$20B Hudson Yards Already a Tech Haven

Gary Vaynerchuk

By Barbra Murray, Contributing Editor

A few months remain until Related Cos. and Oxford Properties Group complete development of 10 Hudson Yards, but the tenant roster at the first office building within the $20 billion Hudson Yards mixed-use project is already creeping up on maximum capacity. VaynerMedia, a social media-first digital agency, is the latest business to ink a lease for space at the 1.7 million-square-foot tower, signing on for 88,000 square feet and boosting the property’s street cred as a top home for tech firms.

With VaynerMedia’s commitment, 10 Hudson is now 85 percent leased. The company’s neighbors in the 52-story high-rise will include the likes of Coach Inc., L’Oréal USA and Walldorf, Germany-headquartered SAP, a leading enterprise software applications company.

“Hudson Yards is right for VaynerMedia and for tech companies in New York because it is a signature location and an opportunity for those of us in that industry to establish a serious tech hub here in New York City,” Gary Vaynerchuk, co-founder & CEO of VaynerMedia, told Commercial Property Executive. “It’s one of the few locations in Manhattan that has remained an untapped resource, which means there’s room for growth–the kind of explosive growth that continues to happen for VaynerMedia and many other technology-forward businesses.”

The massive Hudson Yards development will be nothing if not tech-centric. The property will offer a state-of-the-art infrastructure, with a communications system backed by a future-proofed fiber loop. The site will also feature power generation capabilities and an onsite microgrid. As its developers note, Hudson Yards will be a true high-tech quantified and connected community.

VaynerMedia will begin the relocation from its current corporate headquarters at 315 Park Avenue South to the Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates-designed 10 Hudson early next year, bringing with it more than 450 area employees. Vaynerchuk anticipates that many other tech firms will follow. “Hudson Yards is where a forward-thinking Silicon Valley mentality can be concentrated in one physical location within New York—being part of that community is important to my employees, and to me. Hudson Yards is a place where my VaynerMedia team and I will meet and be close to the other business leaders and startups who will congregate there and drive the next chapter of New York City.”