Sky Bank could try Brooks Bros. on for size

The region's sixth-largest financial institution is shopping at Brooks Brothers.

Sky Bank is considering moving its regional headquarters to 36,000 square feet of office space at 610 Smithfield St., where the venerable retailer occupies the first floor. Sky employs 100 people Downtown and needs room to grow; its staff has grown fivefold in less than three years.

Vincent Locher, CEO of Sky Bank Pittsburgh, confirmed that talks are going on but said it's not a done deal and Sky has other options.

"We haven't signed a lease," he said.

Locher added that Sky also is considering a few other properties Downtown, though he would not identify them. He said the regional bank's parent company, Sky Financial Group Inc. of Salineville, Ohio, will make the final decision, likely sometime next month.

Jeremy Kronman, an executive vice president for CB Richard Ellis/Pittsburgh who represents Sky, said he expects an announcement soon.

He saw the possible move by Sky as much-needed good news and perhaps the start of more positive office trends for the city.

"Following on the heels of American Eagle's announcement, it's definitely a nice trend to see a major public company picking the city for a relocation choice," said Kronman, alluding to American Eagle's decision to move its headquarters to the city's SouthSide Works in 2007.

Almost all of the top two floors of 610 Smithfield -- a four-story, 80,000-square-foot building -- have been available for the past couple years. The building is controlled by McKnight Development Co. of Pittsburgh, which is owned by the Rudolph and Perlow families. Brooks Brothers' parent company, Retail Brand Alliance, based in Upper Marlboro, Md., renewed its long-term lease in 2003. The other major tenant is Ditto Reproduction Services, which occupies the entire second floor. The lease price ranges from $17 to $18 per square foot.

Locher said the search began in earnest three months ago. Locher and other Sky officials have talked about needing more space since 2003.

Sky bought its way into Western Pennsylvania through several acquisitions: Century National Bank, based in Rochester, Beaver County, in 1997; First Western Bancorp, New Castle, in 1998; and Three Rivers Bancorp, Monroeville, in 2001.

Sky started its Pittsburgh bank with 25 sites in 2002. About half came from the Three Rivers purchase, as did the executive Sky put at the helm. Locher had been Three Rivers' senior vice president and chief lending officer.

Locher established the Pittsburgh bank's headquarters at the former Three Rivers Downtown branch in the Times Building at 336 Fourth Ave. But as additional business divisions were brought on, particularly a fast-growing wealth management business, Sky has been increasingly pressed for space. The staff at the Downtown regional headquarters has grown from 20 in 2002 to the current 100.

As Sky seeks to consolidate its regional office presence, its Sky Insurance subsidiary also consolidated its small collection of offices in the north and south suburbs. Sky signed a lease for 24,000 square feet of office space at the Fountainhead building at Southpointe in Canonsburg. The firm made a similar consolidation in the North, leasing 8,000 square feet at the Cranberry Woods office park in Cranberry.

What are people saying about mortgages today:

Rates on 30-year mortgages edged down last week to a seven-month low. Mortgage-giant Freddie Mac reported Thursday that 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages fell to 6.3 percent, down slightly from 6.31 percent two weeks ago. It put rates at the lowest level since they were at 6.24 percent the first week of March.

Bank of Hawaii, Central Pacific Bank, Territorial Savings Bank and Wells Fargo Home Mortgages all cut their 30-year mortgage rates to 5.75 percent this week.

Most people think of a mortgage as a means to an end. After all, you buy a house, not a home loan. But a mortgage is much more than the path to homeownership. It is a financial instrument that must be managed, just like any other financial investment.