At the Harbor Drive office complex on Stamford”™s Shippan Point peninsula, an array of large satellite dishes is trained southwest, which happens to be the direction Time Warner Cable Inc. took its headquarters in relocating to New York City last year.
The building”™s ownership group may soon be picking up a return signal from Manhattan.
Despite its impressive waterfront locale overlooking marina docks on Stamford harbor, Harbor Drive has proved a tougher lease than downtown Stamford, for reasons not readily apparent.
Since Time Warner Cable”™s decision to move into New York City, Harbor Drive”™s ownership group has yet to identify a replacement tenant, despite several companies revealing plans to relocate to Stamford the past few months, including Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. and Affinion Group Inc.; and rumored interest by others including Nestle Waters North America, Scotiabank and Avon Products Inc.
AREA Property Partners, which has an equity stake in the complex, has been taking a more activist role of late with its properties, and may be aiming to elevate Harbor Drive”™s profile amid a glut of similar-sounding offices in Stamford, which include the adjacent Harbor Plaza, Stamford Harbor Park and Harbor Point.
Until a year ago, AREA Property Partners was known as Apollo Real Estate Advisors, with the company stating at the time the new name “formalized” its independence from Apollo Global Management L.L.C.
Like Apollo, AREA has offices in New York City ”“ in the Time Warner Center building of all places, which it owns ”“ and in Purchase, N.Y.
Of late, AREA Property Partners has been a player in some major deals. Last month, the company took over five San Francisco high rises from Morgan Stanley valued at $289 million in the aggregate.
Real estate brokers say the company may be similarly taking a much larger role in the marketing of the Harbor Drive complex in Stamford that was the home of Time Warner Cable.
Harbor Drive has proved no easy lease, with no easy explanations. The campus is not close to Stamford”™s rail stations, making it less attractive to financial companies hoping to draw talent on the reverse commute from New York City. Still, that did not dissuade insurance company XL Capital from placing a major operation at Seaview House on Shippan Point close to Harbor Drive, and several other smaller financial companies occupy offices in the area.
While Manhattan rents are heading south, Stamford remains an attractive option for companies assessing a lease renewal, according to Kevin McCarthy, an economist with Cushman & Wakefield. The brokerage company reports that Manhattan”™s vacancy rate stabilized at 11 percent between the third and fourth quarter, a possible sign that the market has hit bottom and that rents could begin to inch upward.
“We”™ll see some (businesses) looking in the suburbs, particularly companies that have lower margins ”“ publishing for instance,” McCarthy said. “They are under a lot of pressure.
Still, the office complex faces competition from other landlords in Stamford who in the past have proved ready to bend to the needs of tenants in order to land a lease. In the case of Harbor Drive, AREA Property Partners”™ willingness to make concessions may ultimately drive its ability to make a deal.
