THE PLAN

1400 Broadway
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The unique shape of the buildingit actually boasts 13 sides lends itself to natural light, said Mr. Posniak, pointing to windows on nearly every angle of the property. If youre looking at the plan, look at all the windows that you have on this floor, he said. Theres a lot of natural light. Contrary to whats trending in office interiors, Hatch Mott MacDonald eschewed the open plan that is so popular right now with technology and media groups. Instead, the 16-year-old company chose a traditional layout, complete with private offices along the perimeter of the space. Were seeing more and more of the open plan, but they really went a little more traditional, said Mr. Posniak. If the tenant wants a blue suit, you sell them a blue suit. Its just that simple.

When North American engineering consultancy Hatch Mott MacDonald sought to expand and relocate from its offices at 3 Park Avenue, officials explored buildings throughout Midtown and Midtown South, and initially they had no interest in 1400 Broadway, a 35-story building owned by W&H Properties. All it took to change the minds of the executives, however, was a tour of the buildings 15,088-square-foot 30th floor, a space that, despite its size, boasts four separate terraces, including one that wraps around West 38th Street all the way to Broadway. Such amenities, not to mention the buildings proximity to both Grand Central Station and Penn Station, helped tipped the scales in January, when officials inked a full-floor deal. Fred Posniak, a senior vice president at W&H Properties, reviewed the floor plans with The Commercial Observer and discussed what, exactly, drew the consulting company to 1400 Broadway in Midtown. 01
The terraces were a huge draw, acknowledged Mr. Posniak, who recalled executives at Hatch Mott MacDonald saying that they intended to make the outdoor spaces available for employees to relax in. The largest among the terraces spans 1,409 square feet while three separate terraces provide an additional 986 square feet of outdoor space for a total of 2,395 square feet, Mr. Posniak said. Youre not really going to work out there unless you get on the phone, said Mr. Posniak. But you look out there, and its kind of a Zen area. It really is.

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As Hatch Mott MacDonald is a full-floor tenant, the elevators open right on the companys reception area, which itself gracefully leads to an employee pantry room and a conference room. The flow on this floor really works well, said Mr. Posniak. While physical filing rooms, with their hefty cabinets, continue to shrink as office managers and principals become more comfortable with computer storage, such rooms will never disappear completely, said Mr. Posniak. As paperless as we are, youre always going to need a file room and youre always going to need a work area, which is the copy room, said Mr. Posniak, noting that the space is away from windows near the back of the office, not far from the freight elevators. Youll always put that in a windowless space. Remember, real estate is expensive.

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Increasingly, large companies are carving out space for so-called mothers rooms, otherwise known as lactation rooms, where a new mother who is still nursing can privately use a breast pump several times a day. Such amenities are more common among large tenants.

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34|NOVEMBER 6, 2012|THE COMMERCIAL OBSERVER