Times Square ball drop location is getting a $500 million makeover

The building at One Times Square, better known as the New Year’s Eve ball drop location, will undergo a $500 million transformation. The redevelopment plan includes a viewing deck, an interactive ad space, a museum, and the Metaverse component. 

Built in 1904, One Times Square was briefly used as the New York Times headquarters, Curbed reports. Since the 1920s, it has served as a digital billboard and displayed countless ads. But the interior of the building has been vacant for decades. Jamestown LP, which has owned the building for nearly 25 years, will work with Times Square Alliance and the city to renovate this iconic landmark. 

“Times Square is the magnet that brings so many people to New York City every year, and we need it to live up to its reputation as a global icon to help our economy recover,” said Mayor Eric Adams. “This major project is yet another sign that we are moving in the right direction, towards the more prosperous, innovative, inclusive future New Yorkers deserve.”

More than 360,000 people pass through Times Square every day, according to pedestrian count reports. The companies are spending millions of dollars to rent the billboards, and Jamestown LP would turn both the exterior and interior of the One Times Square into ad space. 

The longtime owner plans to lease 12 floors to companies that will use this space to create branded installations and digital integrations. Another six floors will be dedicated to the museum that will tell the story of One Times Square. The building will also appear in the Decentraland metaverse and invite people from all over the world to enjoy the New Year’s Eve ball drop. 

The redevelopment plan includes improvements to the Times Square Shuttle station: a new stair entrance, canopy, and Americans with Disabilities Act accessible elevator. The modernized building is expected to open to the public in the summer of 2024. 

Image credit:

Jamestown LP

Resources:

“One Times Square, Long Empty, Will Now Bring the Billboards Inside,” by Kim Velsey (Curbed, 2022)

“NYC Mayor Eric Adams Announces $500M Times Square Redevelopment,” by Rana Novini and Romney Smith (NBC New York, 2022)

“Transcript: Mayor Eric Adams Announces Redevelopment of One Times Square,” (NYC, 2022)

“Mayor announces $500 million redevelopment of One Times Square,” by Ethan Stark-Miller (amNY, 2022)

“NYC building that is home to iconic New Year's Eve ball getting $500 million makeover,” (ABC7 New York, 2022)

“Jamestown Launches $500 Million Redevelopment of One Times Square—the Site of the New Year’s Eve Ball Drop,” (Jamestown LP, 2022)