Tech firms flocking to Lower Manhattan

Number of IT and media companies with space in the area is up 71 percent over last five years

From left: skyline of Downtown Manhattan And Brookfield Place
From left: skyline of Downtown Manhattan And Brookfield Place

Technology, advertising and media companies are moving to Downtown Manhattan in increasingly large numbers.

The number of companies in those fields with offices in Lower Manhattan is up 71 percent over the past five years, according to the Wall Street Journal. One of the biggest deals in the sector is Condé Nast’s move to One World Trade Center next week. For creative firms, the neighborhood below Chambers Street has emerged as a cheaper alternative to Chelsea and Soho, where rents are rising.

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Over the past four years, 32 percent of leasing by technology, advertising and media companies was in Lower Manhattan, according to the newspaper. The figure is up from 14 percent between 2007 and 2010, according to a report by LaunchLM cited by the newspaper. In Midtown South — including the neighborhood of Chelsea, Flatiron and Soho — that number rose to 47 percent from 40 percent durng the same time period. [WSJ] — Claire Moses