Brookfields moves to revamped twin towers

Two floors of Tower One at 205 Queen St will be occupied by Brookfields Lawyers.

Long-established Auckland law firm takes 12-year lease for two floors with landlord Kiwi Income Property Trust

Brookfields Lawyers will move across the road to renovated premises in the former National Bank Centre within the twin towers of 205 Queen St in a major leasing deal signed with landlord Kiwi Income Property Trust (KIPT).

The long-established Auckland law firm, which traces its history to the start-up legal practice of Frederic Maurice Preston Brookfield from Sheffield in 1856, has signed a 12-year lease for two floors of attractively refurbished office space in the 17-storey Tower One. Brookfields will take occupation of the building on the corner with Victoria St West in December 2013 following a bespoke interior fitout designed by Ignite.

James MacCormick of Colliers International, who negotiated the deal with colleague Rob Bird, says it is the first major signing for 205 Queen St since KIPT began a marketing campaign to lease floors recently left vacant after the departure of ANZ Bank from the building.

"KIPT is undertaking a programme of upgrades to the well-known twin towers, including floor-by-floor, main lobby and bathroom refurbishments, and is offering full and part floors for lease," he says.

"The project has resulted in a high-quality, good-value product being offered to the market and we are pleased to have secured Brookfields as the first major signing for KIPT at this property since its re-launch to the market."

Brookfields will move its central Auckland based staff to 205 Queen St from its current offices opposite at Brookfields House, 19 Victoria St West.

Howard Johnston, partner and chairman of Brookfields' board, said the firm was a founding tenant in Brookfields House and the building has served the firm well since 1987. However, the move to 205 Queen St will allow the firm to achieve optimum utilisation of its office space through installation of a more modern interior fitout.

"As our business has grown and developed, the volume and type of office space our teams require has changed," Johnston says. "Like many organisations, we have moved towards a more collaborative and team-based working style over the years. This approach will be more readily facilitated by the move to a different configuration at 205 Queen St."

Johnston says the firm's new office space has been designed to achieve efficient and effective use of space as well as facilitating co-operation among teams. "We are very happy to be remaining in the Queen St and Victoria St precinct, which is a very convenient location, and we are looking forward to the new office space and the operational benefits it will bring to the business."

Lauren Riley, commercial asset manager at KIPT, says naming and signage rights and the upper floors of Tower One are still available to a cornerstone tenant. Tower Two continues to be known as DLA Phillips Fox Tower and the entire property has been branded as 205 Queen.

"The chance to acquire naming rights in this superb CBD location, right in the middle of the Queen St action, will be attractive to businesses looking to move to high-quality, good-value, centrally positioned space. We are also willing to provide flexible options to tenants, including part-floor packages," Riley says.

Bird says the twin towers, which have been awarded a five-green-star design rating, include energy-efficient lighting, double glazing and a high-quality air conditioning system. The buildings' seismic strength has been assessed at 133 per cent of new building standard.

"Round-the-clock security access, on-site showers, lockers and bike racks, along with underground car parking make this an excellent workplace. The lobby cafe area also provides a pleasant environment for informal meetings."

He says the opportunity to move into a good-quality, high-profile building owned by a large, professional landlord with extensive property experience will also be attractive to potential tenants.

MacCormick says 205 Queen St has several retailers on the ground floor, including Tank Juice, Mojo Coffee, Sushi Pac and Gloria Jean's Coffees.