Nearly a year after launching a search for new headquarters space in or near Downtown, Pittsburgh-based Dollar Bank appears to be ready to make a move.
According to real estate industry sources, the bank is close to a deal to relocate its offices from Three Gateway Center to 20 Stanwix, a 22-story office building at Stanwix Street and Fort Pitt Boulevard that overlooks the Monongahela River.
Asked about the move, Joseph Smith, Dollar’s senior vice president of marketing, replied, “At this time, Dollar Bank has no comment on this matter.”
Dollar now occupies about 108,000 square feet of space spread over seven floors at Three Gateway Center, Downtown. It is believed to be looking at up to 78,000 square feet of space at 20 Stanwix.
The relocation would be a coup for Chicago-based M&J Wilkow, which owns 20 Stanwix, where the vacancy rate was more than 30% earlier this year before the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
M&J Wilkow has been struggling to fill the space after PNC moved out several years ago, leaving behind about 100,000 square feet of vacancy.
Marty Sweeney, M&J Wilkow senior vice president of acquisitions and asset management, could not be reached for comment.
Last September, Mr. Smith confirmed the bank was taking a look at potential opportunities in or near Downtown as it neared the end of its lease, which is set to expire around the end of the year.
At the time, he said, “We, like any good business, are just exploring what options we have. We have not made any decisions.”
Bank officials, he added, were “just doing our due diligence” in advance of the end of the lease.
The move to 20 Stanwix comes at a time when the Downtown office market “continued on the path of historically high vacancy,” according to a report by the Newmark Knight Frank real estate firm.
In the Golden Triangle, the overall vacancy rate hit 19.1% in the second quarter, the firm reported. The vacancy rate for the premier Class A space was 17.3%. Only seven years ago, it was as low as 4.9%.
As the vacancy rate climbs, it could make for better deals for companies in the market as landlords seek to fill empty floors and may be more willing to negotiate.
Dan Adamski, senior managing director of the Jones Lang LaSalle real estate firm, sees an upside to Dollar’s move.
“While many companies have been paralyzed by the pandemic, particularly with regards to their real estate, Dollar relocating its headquarters to a new building — and making a significant capital investment in doing so — is a positive signal to the market that some companies are strategically planning for a post-COVID future,” he said.
“Such a move also bolsters a trend we are forecasting, in which companies will relocate to new buildings or buildings that are being renovated with virus-mitigating technologies and enhanced safety measures so returning employees feel safer in their work environment, not just for COVID-19, but also any subsequent viruses.”
Dollar isn’t the only bank looking for a change of scenery. First National Bank, now based on the North Shore, has committed to anchoring the 26-story office tower to be built on the former Civic Arena site in the lower Hill District.
Mark Belko: 412-263-1262 or mbelko@post-gazette.com.
First Published: July 21, 2020, 11:30 a.m.
