BBC leaves East Side for 1120 Sixth Avenue

1120 Sixth Avenue, where the BBC is moving in

The American division of the international news organization British Broadcasting Corporation has signed a lease to move from its East Side location to a larger space at 1120 Sixth Avenue near Times Square, the company said.

BBC Worldwide Americas, which currently occupies 39,000 square feet on three floors at 747 Third Avenue, between 46th and 47th streets, inked a deal for just under 47,000 square feet on one floor at 1120 Sixth Avenue, between 43rd and 44th streets, a company spokesperson said. The 10-year lease was signed in April.

The media organization was represented by commercial services firm Jones Lang LaSalle while 1120 Sixth Avenue, known as the Hippodrome, was represented by Cushman & Wakefield, data from CoStar Group shows.

The 21-story, 680,280-square-foot Hippodrome, named for a theater by the same name that once occupied the location, is owned by Newark, N.J.-based Edison Properties, CoStar data indicates. The asking rent was not available, but Cushman marketing materials for the fifth floor show asking rents of $57 per square foot.

BBC Worldwide Americas is expected to move to its new space, occupying most of the fifth floor, in October, the company said.

Robert Tunis, vice chairman at commercial firm Colliers International, who was not involved in the transaction, said it is often beneficial for a company to consolidate on one floor.

“Instead of expanding vertically they can expand laterally, which usually saves money,” Tunis said. “There is less duplication, [for example] you don’t need as many reception areas.”

JLL, Cushman and Edison Properties either declined to comment or did not respond to a request for comment.

In another recently announced media lease, the New York Daily News said it and U.S. News & World Report would move from Midtown to nearly 100,000 square feet of space at 4 New York Plaza in the Financial District.