By JAMES FINK
jfink@bizjournals.com | 716-541-1611

Partners in Phillips Lytle LLP heard pitches Oct. 20 from three area developers looking to land the Buffalo law firm as an anchor or sole tenant.

The three were short-listed following a yearlong search by Phillips Lytle to find a new downtown office. They are Benderson Development Co., Uniland Development Co. and Ciminelli Real Estate Corp.

Phillips Lytle is one of the most coveted leases on the market. The firm is seeking approximately 85,000 square feet to house more than 350 employees.

• Benderson wants the law firm to anchor the proposed redevelopment of the Gen. Donovan State Office Building, a central project in the Canal Side development.

• Uniland is pushing a planned 110,000-square-foot office building and parking ramp at 155 South Elmwood Ave. near the New Era Cap Co. headquarters.

• Ciminelli is looking to construct a 100,000-square-foot, multi-tenant building at the corner of Main and Swan streets on a parcel that housed the long-vacant Bernstone's cigar store and cafeteria.

David McNamara, managing partner of the law firm, said the recent meeting provided "extensive and valuable information on our options."

"We are now entering into the critical evaluation stage," he said.

His firm has shifted its focus to analyzing the presentations, according to McNamara, who said a final decision is due by year-end.

Phillips Lytle occupies several floors in HSBC Tower and is looking to consolidate offices into more functional space. It has been scouting locations for more than a year, with Studley Real Estate Group serving as site consultant.

The lease in HSBC Tower will expire in 2013, two months after a lease expires on the 38-story building's anchor tenant, HSBC Bank USA.

HSBC Bank is conducting its own site search and said it expects to pinpoint a location for the downtown Buffalo and regional offices by the end of this year.

Combined, Phillips Lytle and HSBC Bank account for more than 87 percent of the office space in the nearly 800,000-square-foot HSBC Tower.