NEW YORK, N.Y. - Brookfield Office Properties Inc. (TSX:BPO) says it has struck a deal with Bank of America/Merrill Lynch to buy the U.S. bank giant's 49 per cent interest in Four World Financial Center in downtown Manhattan.
When the deal closes, Brookfield will own 100 per cent of the 1.9-million-square-foot property.
The purchase price of the 49 per cent stake US$264 million, the office landlord said late Monday.
Brookfield is part of the group of companies controlled by Brookfirled Asset Management (TSX:BAM.A), the Toronto-based investment company formerly known as Brascan.
In a related development, Brookfield has a deal to lease 767,000 square feet of office space at the World Financial Center in Lower Manhattan to Bank of America.
"Renewing Bank of America/Merrill Lynch for a sizable amount of space at the World Financial Center was an important objective within our New York City portfolio," said Mitch Rudin, president and chief executive of Brookfield Office's U.S. commercial operations.
"Leasing activity in Lower Manhattan thus far in 2011 has eclipsed that of all of 2010, fuelled by existing financial services tenants like BofA/Merrill, as well as historical Midtown users looking to reposition their firms by leveraging downtown's dynamic changes in retail, transit and parkland."
Brookfield Office Properties is the largest office landlord in the Lower Manhattan and also owns, develops and manages office buildings in the United States, Canada and Australia.
Besides New York, the company has buildings in Washington, D.C., Houston and Los Angeles in the United States.
In Canada, the company owns Brookfield Place in Toronto and Bankers Hall in Calgary.
