Last Tuesday morning, 1 Willoughby Square opened its doors in Downtown Brooklyn, officially making it the tallest office building in the borough.
Mayor Bill de Blasio, representatives from JEMB Realty Corporation, and officials from the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) attended a special ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the milestone.
“The opening of 1 Willoughby marks a huge turning point in our recovery,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said during the event. “Over a year ago, as the city shut down to save lives, we could have only dreamed of celebrating the opening of a brand-new office tower.
“We got knocked down but we got back up,” he added. “Here we have positive proof that New York City is open for business. ”
“We are confident that it will add to the growth of Downtown Brooklyn,” said JEMB representative Morris Jerome. “As we are coming out of this pandemic, it is our sincere hope that the tenants of this building will help local small businesses emerge from the pandemic.”
The building is 34 stories and offers approximately 500,000 square feet of office space. The building is the work of architecture firm FXCollaborative, who first proposed the project in 2014. The firm is also moving 100 members of its own workforce into the completed building, making them the property’s first tenants.
The space includes a gym, locker rooms, showers, employee lounge, and private outdoor space for tenants. In the future, the building will include a 332-seat public elementary school on its first six floors.
FXCollaborative’s proposal for 1 Willoughby Square originally included an ambitious underground parking facility and public park space. However, both of these elements were abandoned during construction due to a lack of funding.
Rendering courtesy of FXCollaborative.
Photos by nycmayorsoffice on Flickr.
