Amazon’s LIC plan bumps cable company from One Court Square

Altice USA moved HQ to the building two years ago

From left: One Court Square in Long Island City, Jeff Bezos, and Altice's Dexter Goei (Credit: Wikipedia, Getty Images, Facebook)
From left: One Court Square in Long Island City, Jeff Bezos, and Altice's Dexter Goei (Credit: Wikipedia, Getty Images, Facebook)

Amazon’s potential move to Long Island City would bring big changes to the neighborhood in coming years, and it’s already caused some disruption in the local office market.

The tech giant’s plan to lease 1 million square feet at Savanna’s One Court Square is sending telecom and cable company Altice USA out the door, the New York Post reported. Altice had moved its headquarters from Long Island to the building about two years ago, subleasing three floors from Citigroup.

Citigroup’s plans to vacate its 1 million square feet in the 1.5 million square foot building in 2020, when its lease expires. When Savanna announced its deal with Amazon in November, managing partner Nicholas Bienstock thanked Citi “for its critical role in delivering the space.”

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Altice plans to move down the street to the Paragon at 2100 49th Avenue, taking up all 130,000 square feet available there. Related Companies and Green Oak Real Estate converted that building, a former Paragon Oils & Burners warehouse, into offices as part of a project known as the Point, which also includes the Blanchard at 2110 51st Avenue.

Amazon plans to locate offices at One Court Square, still the borough’s tallest building for now, before it constructs a 8 million-square-foot campus nearby. That project still requires approval from the Public Authorities Control Board, whose members have veto power over projects that come before it. [NYP] — Kevin Sun