For $2 billion plus, Alphabet is close to acquiring 800,000 new square feet in the heart of Midtown Manhattan, The Real Deal reported yesterday.
The iconic Chelsea Market, which totals 1.2 million square feet, sits across the street from the company’s New York headquarters, a 2.9 million-square-foot building that it bought for $1.8 billion in 2010. Google is already the Market’s largest tenant, having steadily expanded its footprint to about 400,000 square feet.
The tech giant hasn’t revealed plans for the property, but The Real Deal’s sources said the company is expected to maintain the status quo. Alphabet did not respond to Quartz’s request for comment.
Alphabet’s aggressive expansion in New York follows a growing trend of tech giants taking over cities. Amazon, for instance, is searching for the location of its second headquarters, sparking fierce competition among North American cities that wanted to secure an expected 50,000 Amazon jobs. Last October, Apple redeveloped Chicago’s waterfront with a flagship store exemplifying its “Town Square” retail concept.
With their outsized share of the economy, tech companies are exerting increasing influence over urban infrastructure and development.