The 810,000-square-foot First Stamford Place office complex, just off I-95. Metro Center can be seen at top of photo. The Westin Hotel, a major amenity for FSP tenants, is in the foreground, at right.

Odyssey America Reinsurance Company, a subsidiary of Odyssey Re (which in turn is part of Fairfax Financial, one of the world's strongest re-insurers), renewed its First Stamford Place lease three years in advance of the expiration of its original agreement, committing to remain at the property through the year 2022. The 15-year lease covers 101,600 square feet on three floors.

In the complex transaction, Odyssey will use 16,000 square feet on a short-term basis as "swing space" for its employees while W&M Construction coordinates the comprehensive upgrade of its First Stamford Place home. The firm has been a tenant since 1997, and expanded its occupancy four times.

"All parties win in this transaction," says Jeffrey H. Newman, W&M Properties' executive vice president in charge of the suburban office portfolio. "When an A-rated tenant renews a long-term commitment to one of our properties, it tells the market we are an important part of its success. Success stories also help attract the interest of other institutional-grade office space users as potential future tenants."

"In some ways, we measure ourselves by our successes with our existing tenants," Mr. Newman says, adding:

"They know who we are and what we do. Securing a long-term renewal like this takes away uncertainty at the property and puts us in a better position to perform for our investors. Perhaps even more important, it makes it easier to refinance the property under favorable terms. Nothing is more assuring to lenders than management's ability to attract and hold on to top-quality, financially strong tenants."

OdysseyRe, which guaranteed the lease, has $1.3 billion of stockholder equity, and is rated "A" for financial strength by AM Best Company, the primary rating company covering the insurance industry.

Odyssey America's deal for early renewal originated as the result of two of W&M Properties' proactive management policies: reaching out to desirable tenants well in advance of lease expirations, and closely monitoring the efficiency of how tenants occupy their space.

"First Stamford Place is a Class-A office complex, conveniently located, with comprehensive amenities and newly completed enhancements, but even so, we are never complacent," says Mr. Newman. "Because even the most satisfied tenant knows it has options when lease expiration approaches."

Therefore, W&M approached Odyssey several years in advance of renewal time in order to work toward accommodating its present and future needs. By monitoring underutilized space of other tenants, W&M was able to conclude deals that provide Odyssey with enough swing space to ensure that all its departments can continue their work without interruption while improvements are made to its permanent space.

Mr. Newman recalls other instances when W&M's forward-looking policies resulted in a major enhancement of the portfolio's tenant roster.

Both Citigroup and Thomson Financial were able to substantially increase their long-term commitments to office space in deals at First Stamford Place and Metro Center, precisely because we are always looking for ways to satisfy the needs of our tenants," says the W&M executive.

"We owe that to our investors."