Roku already has a place in the homes of millions of Americans, but soon it will have a new home in one of the most glamorous media meccas in the world.
The digital media manufacturer agreed to a long-term lease for 240,000 square feet at RXR Realty’s 5 Times Square, according to the New York Post. The lease gives Roku the top eight floors of the building, as well as control over the vertical sign on the building that has long shown EY’s name.
The Post reported Roku had been quietly negotiating the lease for six months and boosted its original offer by 100,000 square feet, boxing out other tenants interested in space at the building. Sources told the outlet the asking rent was in the $90s per square foot and Roku expects to move in by the fourth quarter.
RXR was represented in-house by Dan Birney and Alexandra Budd, assisted by a CBRE team. Roku was represented by CBRE’s Sacha Zarba and Frederick Fackelmeyer.
San Jose-based Roku counts 56 million active users in the United States for its smart TV operating system. The company is moving from 414 West 41st Street, where it had only 70,000 square feet. In April, the company signed a 10-year lease for 72,000 square feet at Boston Properties’ Colorado Center in Santa Monica.
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The office market in Times Square is looking up. The Touro College and University System was reported last week agreed to a long-term lease for more than 243,000 square feet at the Rudin family’s 3 Times Square, where about 500,000 square feet still remains available.
The retail market is also gaining momentum. A souvenir shop last month signed a lease for 1,000 square feet at 566 Seventh Avenue, agreeing to pay $660 per square foot.
As for 5 Times Square, the building is reportedly in the midst of a $50 million capital improvement project. A 48,000-square-foot amenity space with a restaurant and fitness center was recently added to the 1.1-million-square-foot office tower.
Still, about 700,000 square feet are still up for grabs at 5 Times Square, per the Post.
[NYP] — Holden Walter-Warner