By Hank Russell
The Department of War recently signed a 10-year lease for 23,600 square feet with Lee & Associates NYC at 1 Old Country Rd. in Carle Place. The agency will establish a regional office at the five-story building owned by DBD Realty Group and is expected to take occupancy in early 2027 following an extensive buildout of the new space to meet the Department’s operational requirements.
Lee & Associates NYC Principal Kelly Koukou represented DBD Realty Group in the transaction. The tenant was represented by Ralph Guiffre, Vince Lamatta and Richard Freel of CBRE.
“1 Old Country Road has undergone a remarkable transformation over the past several years, and we’re seeing strong demand from major institutional and government tenants that value the scale, infrastructure and accessibility the property provides,” Koukou said. “The Department of War’s commitment further validates the extensive repositioning of the building and reflects the continued momentum we’re seeing as the property fills following its post-pandemic leasing surge.”
The five-story, 320,000-square-foot office building has undergone a major, $22 million repositioning in recent years. DBD Realty invested heavily in upgrades, including a new façade, windows, lobby, bathrooms, upgraded wiring and technology infrastructure, modernized sprinkler systems and enhanced building systems throughout.
One of the building’s most distinctive features is its parking capacity for approximately 1,600 vehicles, made possible through a newly constructed parking deck. According to Lee & Associates NYC, the new deck will provide more parking spaces than any other office building in the Garden City/Carle Place area.
The property has experienced significant leasing momentum following the pandemic, with more than 200,000 square feet of space leased in recent years as tenants are drawn to the building’s modern infrastructure and large, efficient floorplates, Lee & Associates NYC noted.
Among the building’s largest tenants is the Federal Aviation Administration, which signed a 15-year lease in 2023 for just over 74,000 square feet, occupying the entire fifth floor and half of the fourth floor. The FAA relocated its Eastern Regional administrative headquarters from Jamaica, Queens, as part of its nationwide network of regional offices responsible for outreach initiatives, emergency transportation preparedness and oversight of aviation programs and operations.
Long Island Life & Politics reached out to the War Department for more information, but the agency declined to comment.