One Court Square
| Company type | Commercial office skyscraper |
|---|---|
| Industry | Real estate, Office building |
| Founded | 1989 |
| Founder | Citicorp |
| Headquarters | Long Island City, Queens, New York City , United States |
Area served | Queens, New York City |
Key people | Raúl de Armas (architect), Savanna (owner) |
| Products | Office space leasing |
| Owner | Savanna Realty |
One Court Square, frequently referred to as the Citicorp Building or Citigroup Building, is a 50-story commercial office skyscraper situated in Long Island City, Queens, directly across the East River from Manhattan in New York City. Completed in 1989 and crafted by the architectural firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill for Citigroup, it held the title of Queens' tallest structure until 2019, when the Skyline Tower surpassed it. The building continues to serve as a prominent office hub, currently accommodating tenants such as telecommunications company Altice USA, whose emblem adorns the building’s summit.
Design
Conceived by Raúl de Armas of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill and presently owned by Savanna, One Court Square boasts a distinctive green-tinted glass exterior extending up to 50 floors. The tower features a largely unbroken vertical facade, with no setbacks until reaching its apex, which is crowned by a pyramidal form. Inside, it offers approximately of leasable office area. The building’s official location is 2501 Jackson Avenue.
For nearly thirty years, it was New York State’s tallest edifice outside Manhattan and on Long Island. However, in 2019, it was overtaken by Brooklyn Point and Skyline Tower, relegating it to the third tallest on Long Island and second tallest within Queens. By 2021, Queens Plaza Park also exceeded its height.
It is important to distinguish One Court Square from the Manhattan-based Citigroup Center, situated near Citigroup’s former headquarters at 399 Park Avenue. The two are connected by a single stop on the New York City Subway’s IND Queens Boulevard Line: Citigroup Center is close to Lexington Avenue–53rd Street station, while One Court Square stands above Court Square–23rd Street station.
History
In 1985, Citicorp, then recognized as the largest banking institution in the United States, revealed its intention to construct an office tower in Long Island City, Queens, supplementing its Manhattan headquarters at what was then called the Citicorp Center. This initiative was partially funded through the sale of over 30 floors at Citicorp Center—a transaction considered unconventional at the time. Due to the site’s proximity to LaGuardia Airport, plans were subject to review by the Federal Aviation Administration. Following approval from the New York City Planning Commission in 1986, construction commenced in 1987 with Turner Construction serving as general contractor and Skidmore, Owings and Merrill as architects.
When One Court Square opened its doors in 1989 as Queens’ tallest building, it represented an investment of $250 million. The project benefited from $97 million in tax breaks and utility incentives spread over thirteen years designed to encourage firms to remain in Manhattan. In return, Citicorp contributed $8.5 million toward upgrading the nearby Court Square–23rd Street station, established a publicly accessible plaza, and built a parking facility accommodating 750 vehicles. Initially envisaged for partial leasing, Citicorp ultimately occupied the entire tower with roughly 4,000 staff members. By 1990, its tax-assessed valuation reached $114 million—the highest in Queens at that time.
At its inception, One Court Square stood isolated amid predominantly industrial surroundings consisting of warehouses and auto repair shops, provoking mixed responses from local residents—some feared increased congestion while others viewed it as a business opportunity. Even five years later, the neighborhood had seen little transformation.
In 2005, Citigroup sold One Court Square for $470 million to Reckson Associates Realty Corporation but maintained a lease agreement for fifteen years. A neighboring structure known as Two Court Square was erected in 2007 for Citigroup; however, plans for further development were halted due to the economic downturn caused by the Great Recession.
In 2012, Brooklyn-based investors Joel Schreiber and David Werner acquired One Court Square for $481 million from entities including Stephen L. Green’s SL Green and JPMorgan Asset Management. Subsequently, Savanna Realty purchased the property in 2014. By 2020, following lease expiration and with telecommunications company Altice USA headquartered there since 2017, the Citi logo was removed from the building’s facade.
In 2021, Consolidated Edison invested $5 million into an HVAC system retrofit at One Court Square—marking their largest energy efficiency enhancement undertaken for an office property to date.
Tenants
The rooftop of the building hosts broadcasts from WNYZ-LD (Voice of NY Radio Korea) along with several other low-power television stations.
Since 2017, the uppermost floors have served as the headquarters for Altice. In 2018, up to 25 levels were allocated to Amazon as part of its HQ2 project; however, the New York City HQ2 plan was eventually discontinued. As of , Centene occupies roughly , while the New York City School Construction Authority intends to utilize about across 11 floors beginning in 2024.
For nearly thirty years, the Queens Library maintained a branch on the ground floor, paying a nominal annual rent of $1, before vacating at the end of its lease term.
See also
External links
- Articles with short description
- Bank buildings in New York City
- Skyscrapers in Queens, New York
- Citigroup buildings
- Long Island City
- Office buildings completed in 1989
- Skidmore, Owings & Merrill buildings
- Skyscraper office buildings in New York City
- Privately owned public spaces
- Commercial buildings in Queens, New York
- 1989 establishments in New York City