Exhibit 99.1
City National Creates Banking and Administrative Center with
Lease of up to 310,000 Square Feet in Downtown Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 20, 2003--
ARCO Plaza and Bank of America Tower to Be Renamed for City National
In a move that will enhance its business capabilities in Los
Angeles and underscore its commitment to downtown L.A., City National
Bank today announced that it has leased up to 310,000 square feet of
commercial office space at what is now ARCO Plaza. It is the largest
commercial real estate lease signed in the city of Los Angeles this
year and a milestone for owner Thomas Properties Group, which
purchased the property less than one year ago.
City National Bank will occupy 12 of 52 floors in the property's
south office tower at 555 South Flower Street. The building will be
renamed "City National Tower," with new signage appearing in September
2004. The tower will serve as the bank's new administrative center,
bringing together more than 20 departments, from Product Management,
Cash Management, International and Finance to Human Resources,
Marketing, Community Reinvestment and select areas of Wealth
Management.
The bank also will relocate its nearby Library Tower banking
office to 6,600 square feet in a three-story building that sits
between the two ARCO Plaza office towers. Until then, that branch and
the bank's downtown business and private banking centers will remain
in Library Tower.
The new City National Tower and the plaza banking office together
will form City National's expanded Downtown Los Angeles Regional
Center, offering extensive private and business banking and wealth
management capabilities.
The entire property, which is located on Flower Street between 5th
and 6th streets in the heart of L.A.'s business district, will be
renamed "City National Plaza" in September 2005.
City National's move to this new location will begin next year and
is expected to be completed in 2006.
"After 50 years of growth in multiple locations, this move by City
National to one of Southern California's landmark properties will
bring together many of our capabilities and more than 800 of our
colleagues to one outstanding facility," said bank Chief Executive
Officer Russell Goldsmith. "As a result, we will provide our clients
here in Los Angeles with even more convenient access to the full range
of City National's outstanding financial products and services and the
talented team of bankers and financial advisors who deliver our
superior relationship-based banking and financial solutions as
California's premier private and business bank. This move underscores
our strong commitment to the revitalization of downtown Los Angeles,
and will enhance the productivity and effectiveness of our
organization."
Said Thomas Properties Group CEO James A. Thomas: "City National
Bank shares our vision for this center as the best office location and
tenant environment in downtown. The bank is a leader in the L.A.
business community and will be a strong addition to our project,
contributing to the continued renaissance of the financial district."
City National is the largest bank headquartered in Los Angeles and
one of the leading private employers in the city and county. When its
relocation is complete, nearly 1,000 of its 2,300 colleagues will work
in L.A.'s central business district. In addition to its new facilities
at what will become City National Plaza, the bank will continue to
occupy space, including a ground-floor banking office, in the City
National Bank building at 606 South Olive Street. It has been there
since 1967.
Designed by AC Martin Partners and built in 1972, ARCO Plaza
contains approximately 2.6 million square feet of space. The twin
towers and the plaza building are sheathed in forest-green granite and
glass. For more than 30 years, this property has been a defining
feature of L.A.'s world-famous skyline.
A group of investors led by L.A.-based Thomas Properties Group, a
national development and investment firm, purchased the property early
this year and recently unveiled plans for a two-year, $125 million
improvement program that will transform the future City National Plaza
into a vibrant gathering place. In addition to restaurants and
revitalized retail establishments, the plaza will feature new
fountains and state-of-the-art building systems.
"The many improvements announced by Thomas Properties Group were
critical to our commitment, and should ensure that City National Plaza
will remain one of the premier addresses in Los Angeles," Goldsmith
said.
City National Bank was represented in the negotiations by Lynn
Williams, William Puget, Carl Muhlstein and Jeffrey Welch of Cushman &
Wakefield of California, Inc., while the landlord was represented by
Kent Handleman, managing director of leasing for Thomas Properties
Group.
Thomas Properties Group and the California State Teachers
Retirement System are the major investors in TPG Plaza Investments,
the entity that owns the property. Kings Capital, a privately held
company managed by Picerne Investment Management Corp., is a member of
the investor group.
For more information about Thomas Properties Group, visit the
Website at thomaspropertiesgroup.com.
About City National
City National Corporation (NYSE:CYN) is a financial services
company with $12.8 billion in total assets. Its wholly owned
subsidiary, City National Bank, provides banking, investment and trust
services through 54 offices, including 12 full-service regional
centers, in Southern California, the San Francisco Bay Area and New
York City. Thirty-one of these offices are located in Los Angeles
County; 19 of them are in the city of Los Angeles. At September 30,
2003, the company and its affiliates had $27.5 billion in investment
and trust assets under management or administration.
City National is ranked among America's top companies in Forbes
magazine's "Super 500" list. It also is one of the nation's top wealth
managers, according to Barron's magazine.
For more information about City National, visit the company's
Website at cnb.com.
BACKGROUND: ARCO PLAZA
The landmark ARCO Plaza, under new owner Thomas Properties Group,
is slated for major changes to restore its position as the finest
office campus in downtown Los Angeles. The five-year, $125 million
program will transform the public plaza into a vibrant gathering place
with restaurants, revitalized retail establishments, dancing waters
and state-of-the-art building systems. At night, dramatic lighting
will spotlight the towers on the skyline.
AC Martin Associates is collaborating with landscape architect
Laurie Olin of Olin Partnership to activate the central public plaza
in the style of a European piazza. Plans include translucent canopies
that shade a host of tables and chairs that are flexible and movable
to accommodate tenant events and public activities. Further expanding
dining options, a portion of the lobby of each tower will be converted
into distinctive restaurant space with indoor and outdoor seating.
Herbert Bayer's eye-catching red sculpture, "Double Ascension,"
which embraces a large central fountain, will be re-engineered as a
dancing-water display by WET(R) Design, the premier architect/engineer
of imaginative water attractions.
Sussman/Prejza, the nation's top environmental design firm, has
created elegant interior-illuminated signage sentinels for each corner
of the site. These translucent monuments accent the architectural
classicism of the towers while heightening street level identity and
providing naming opportunities.
The retail space is being consolidated into one 80,000-square-foot
floor and completely renovated with sophisticated graphics, engaging
styling and topflight goods and services. The 65,000-square-foot,
three-story plaza building that Thomas Properties calls the "jewel
box" will include a City National Bank branch office. The rest of this
property is being contemplated for a variety of uses such as a museum,
shops, restaurants and offices.
Note: A photo is available at URL:
http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/photo.cgi?pw.112003/bb3
CONTACT: Investor Contact:
City National Bank
Frank Pekny, 310-888-6700
frank.pekny@cnb.com
or
Media Contact:
City National Bank
Cary Walker, 213-833-4715
cary.walker@cnb.com
or
For Thomas Properties Group
Barbara Casey, 310-396-2400
bcasey@cswpr.com