Verizon Has Agreement to Sell Midtown NYC Building

Verizon Has Agreement to Sell Midtown NYC Building
Corporate Headquarters to Relocate to Lower Manhattan 


NEW YORK, April 5  /PRNewswire/ -- Verizon New York Inc. announced today an
agreement to sell a condominium interest in its 41-story headquarters building
at 1095 Avenue of the Americas to Equity Office (NYSE:EOP), the nation's
largest publicly held office building owner and manager.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050405/NYTU107 )

EOP will purchase for $505 million 1,030,000 square feet, or nearly 80 percent
of the office tower, including approximately 30,000 square feet of retail
space.

Verizon New York would continue to occupy more than 200,000 square feet of the
midtown Manhattan tower. The agreement is subject to approval by the New York
Public Service Commission and the attorney general of New York.

Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ), which currently occupies space in the 1095
building, plans to relocate its corporate headquarters to a company-owned
building at 140 West St. in lower Manhattan.

Lee Brathwaite, Verizon vice president for corporate real estate, said the
company is selling at a good time to a respected buyer: "Verizon felt that this
was a great opportunity for the company to realize a return at a time when
midtown property is highly valued.  As we considered a purchaser, we wanted to
make sure we sold to a first-class operation.  Equity Office is considered one
of the premier real estate firms in the country, and Verizon has a longstanding
relationship with Equity Office."

Verizon currently leases about 400,000 square feet from EOP in 17 Verizon
locations corporatewide.

At 1095 Avenue of the Americas, EOP plans to renovate and lease as "Class A"
office and retail space the portion of the building it is acquiring.

Verizon intends to relocate its world headquarters to its recently renovated
building at 140 West St. The 1926 landmark building, formerly the headquarters
for New York Telephone, will ultimately house about 1,500 employees, including
the principal offices for Verizon CEO and Chairman Ivan Seidenberg, along with
his direct reports. Additionally Verizon's board offices will be located there,
as will the leadership for the company's domestic telecom unit serving
customers in the Northeast.

The company expects to continue to employ about 18,000 employees at various
locations in the city's five boroughs.

"New York City is home to millions of our customers and is the financial and
economic hub of the nation," said Paul Crotty, Verizon region president for New
York and Connecticut.

"In addition to retaining our corporate headquarters in the city, Verizon will
continue to maintain a work force and a community involvement consistent with
the varied needs of our customers and the diverse communities we serve."

With more than $71 billion in annual revenues, Verizon Communications Inc.
(NYSE:VZ) is one of the world's leading providers of communications services.
Verizon has a diverse work force of more than 210,000 in four business units:
Domestic Telecom serves customers based in 29 states with wireline
telecommunications services, including broadband and other services.  Verizon
Wireless owns and operates the nation's most reliable wireless network, serving
43.8 million voice and data customers across the United States. Information
Services operates directory publishing businesses and provides electronic
commerce services.  International includes wireline and wireless operations and
investments, primarily in the Americas and Europe.  For more information, visit
http://www.verizon.com/.

VERIZON'S ONLINE NEWS CENTER: Verizon news releases, executive speeches and
biographies, media contacts, high quality video and images, and other
information are available at Verizon's News Center on the World Wide Web at
http://www.verizon.com/news.  To receive news releases by e-mail, visit the
News Center and register for customized automatic delivery of Verizon news
releases. 

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DATASOURCE: Verizon



CONTACT: Eric Rabe, [phone], , or Lark-Marie

Anton, [phone], , both of Verizon



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