CP Group’s renovation of Atlanta’s tallest building appears to be paying off after it secured one of the city’s 20 largest office leases this year.
Global law firm Eversheds Sutherland agreed to take 94,000 square feet at Bank of America Plaza and will occupy floors 49 through 52, according to the building owner. The new lease is about half the size of Eversheds’ space at its longtime home at 999 Peachtree in Midtown, about 1 mile north of Bank of America Plaza. The law firm did not say when it plans to move. Terms of its new lease were not disclosed.
Law firms' use of office space as a recruiting tool has helped bolster the office market in the post-pandemic era when landlords have struggled with high vacancy rates. Norton Rose Fulbright and Morris, Manning & Martin are among the large law firms that have relocated U.S. offices this year or signed leases for future moves.
CP Group acquired Bank of America Plaza in March 2022 for $380 million and has been renovating the 32-year-old tower, including adding speculative office suites. Architecture firm Gensler led a redesign of the building lobby, and CP Group is finalizing plans for a high-end restaurant to open on site, according to the company.
Including Eversheds, CP Group has finalized a total of 170,000 square feet in new leases and renewals at Bank of America Plaza over the past six months, according to the Boca Raton, Florida-based landlord. Tenants leasing new space or renewing leases include the law firms Watson Spence, Shunnarah Injury Lawyers and Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart.
Eversheds listed its space at 999 Peachtree earlier this year and it is still available, according to the building's owner, Piedmont Office Realty Trust. Piedmont is nearing completion on a renovation of the 28-story tower, including the addition of a restaurant, locally owned coffee shop, tenant lounge and fitness center. A Piedmont spokesperson declined to disclose the renovation costs.
As a result of the renovation, Piedmont raised its gross rental rate at 999 Peachtree by about 50% and total occupancy to 89% from the mid-70% range, the spokesperson said.
The Eversheds lease at Bank of America Plaza ranks as the 17th-largest office lease over the past 12 months in the Atlanta market, according to CoStar data. The largest was Southern Co.’s 264,000-square-foot lease at 725 W. Peachtree St.
Eversheds hired Perkins & Will as the interior designer for its new space at Bank of America Plaza. Its upcoming move marks the next phase for the law firm that has been in Atlanta for 100 years, said Mark Wasserman, managing partner of Eversheds, in a release.
“Our foremost priority is to meet the needs of our clients and people by providing a modern workspace that fosters collaboration, flexibility, and innovation," Wasserman said.
For the record
Jeff Keppen and Nicole Goldsmith at CBRE represented CP Group, while John Shlesinger, Sam Holmes and Grey McCarthy at CBRE represented Eversheds.