Landlords are caught between the same competing forces as transit officials, who must balance the need for access and efficiency with the need for security, The Wall Street Journal reported. Landlords are under added pressure because their tenants can always move out if they are annoyed by too much security. Security officials say tenants in many buildings, particularly those outside major cities, are pushing for accessibility rather than tight security.
Real-estate firm Shorenstein Co., which owns and manages more than 20 buildings nationwide, found that, in smaller cities, tenants quickly dismissed any plans for "closed" buildings that involved stopping visitors at building entrances for security clearance.
Even in larger cities such as San Francisco, visitors have to pass through security checks in only two of the six buildings that Shorenstein owns or manages.
The new owners of New York City's MetLife building have removed bag scanners at visitor entrances to shorten the waits to get in, a move privately welcomed by many tenants but questioned by some local security experts.
Meanwhile, the new owners of one of New York City's most recognizable skyscrapers — the MetLife building at 200 Park Ave. — have removed bag scanners at all visitor entrances. Shortly after Tishman Speyer bought the 58-story skyscraper at 200 Park Ave. for $1.72 billion in April, the landlord got rid of the scanners in order to shorten the 10- to 15-minute waits to get in. The move privately was welcomed by many tenants.
The decision points to the larger problem of appeasing tenants' short-term requests while protecting them against the long-term threat of terrorist attacks.
Some local security experts have expressed concern about Tishman Speyer's decision. Police officials released information this spring that terrorists associated with the Madrid train bombings had kept plans of Grand Central Terminal, which is linked to the MetLife building.
Following the recent attacks in London, the New York Police Department announced a program to improve information flow between the department's counterterrorism unit and the city's local businesses. In general, though, New York security experts say the easier attitude toward security started shortly after August's Republican National Convention, when many New York landlords had been on high alert for the possibility of attack.
At certain well-known skyscrapers, companies are sparing no expense on security. Managers of the 110-story Sears Tower in Chicago, the nation's tallest building, say they are just as vigilant as they were on Sept. 12, 2001. Visitors to the building pass through magnetometers, have their bags scanned and are monitored by 140 cameras through the building. At the same time, the building — which is struggling with a 20 percent vacancy rate — tries to process visitors as quickly as possible.
