Google Invests More Than $1B To Expand In NYC

Google, the Internet search giant, announced Monday (Dec. 17) that it is stepping up its commitment to New York City by investing more than $1 billion to create a new Google campus dubbed Google Hudson Square.

In a blog post, Google Chief Financial Officer Ruth Porat said the 1.7 million-plus-square-foot campus is coming together after inking lease agreements on two buildings on Hudson Street and a signed letter of intent at 550 Washington Street.

“When we came to New York City almost two decades ago, it was our first office outside of California,” wrote Porat in the company blog post. “It’s now home to more than 7,000 employees, speaking 50 languages, working on a broad range of teams including Search, Ads, Maps, YouTube, Cloud, Technical Infrastructure, Sales, Partnerships and Research.”

According to Porat, Google is expanding in New York City because it “continues to be a great source of diverse, world-class talent” which she said is what brought Google to New York City back in 2000 and is the reason it stayed there. Earlier this year Google announced it would spend $2.4 billion to buy the Manhattan Chelsea Market and announced plans to lease more space at Pier 57. Google is aiming to move into the two Hudson Street buildings by 2020 and 550 Washington Street in 2022 once the building is finished.

Porat noted that since 2011, Google contributed more than $150 million in grants and employee matched giving to New York nonprofits. She noted that the Internet giant has also been a big supporter of neighborhood public resources and partnered with the New York City Public Library Systems to provide free WiFi hotspots to public school students and families without home internet access.

“We’ll continue to deepen our commitments in STEM education, workforce development and access to technology,” said Porat, noting that Google will have enough capacity to more than double the employees in New York over the next decade.

Google’s announcement about New York City comes a few weeks after Amazon chose Long Island City, New York and Arlington, Virginia as its new headquarters.