NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Howard Hughes Corporation® (NYSE: HHC) announced today that ESPN will occupy approximately 19,000-square-feet of rentable space within its waterfront development at Pier 17, part of the company’s revitalization of Seaport District NYC in Lower Manhattan. The long-term lease has been executed with ESPN’s studio partner at the Seaport, NEP Studios. In celebration of the announcement, Pier 17’s façade was lit “ESPN red” yesterday evening, marking the first time the building has been fully illuminated. The grand opening of the Pier 17 rooftop is scheduled for summer 2018.
Starting in spring 2018, ESPN will produce multiple studio shows from this location, as well as radio, radio on TV, news hits and social segments. The facility, offering unparalleled views of the Brooklyn Bridge, Statue of Liberty, East River and city skyline, will provide ESPN with a unique opportunity to create content within the studio, outside the facility on Pier 17 and its rooftop venue, and around the neighborhood’s historic cobblestone areas. NEP Studios will provide technical services and staffing for the shows.
“The Seaport District production facility is a state-of-the-art content factory that will allow us to produce differentiated studio content for both television and digital,” said Connor Schell, Executive Vice President, Content, ESPN. “The flexible spaces, both indoor and outdoor, allow us to take advantage of all that New York City has to offer.”
David R. Weinreb, Chief Executive Officer of The Howard Hughes Corporation, stated, "We are pleased to welcome ESPN as the latest addition to the Seaport District. They will bring a new dimension of entertainment to the neighborhood with live daily telecasts from Pier 17 in what I believe will become one of the most iconic studio spaces in the country. This is yet another sign of Lower Manhattan's evolution into a vibrant hub for the media, technology and creative sectors."
“We are pleased to celebrate the announcement in such a dynamic way, with all 150 glass channels comprising the façade of Pier 17 being lit red in honor of ESPN and showcasing the building’s lightband,” said Saul Scherl, Executive Vice President of The Howard Hughes Corporation. “This announcement further distinguishes the Seaport as a one-of-a-kind destination with its unique mix of culinary, fashion, entertainment and cultural offerings.”
Barry Katz, Senior Vice President and GM of NEP Group, added, “Television goes where the audience is, and the historic Seaport welcomes millions of New Yorkers, visitors and potential audience members each year. We’re excited to support ESPN and their new space with the best technical services and staffing NEP has to offer, and to be a part of the Seaport District’s continued transformation.”
About the Seaport District NYC
The Seaport District is New York’s original commercial hub, located on the East River in Lower Manhattan with unparalleled views of the Brooklyn Bridge, Statue of Liberty and the city skyline. It is currently being revitalized by The Howard Hughes Corporation® and will encompass seven buildings on several city blocks totaling more than 400,000 square feet of cutting-edge culinary, fashion, entertainment and cultural experiences. Highlights include the new Pier 17, poised to become an iconic entertainment destination with a 1.5-acre rooftop that will have a restaurant, outdoor bars and a venue for special events. Waterfront restaurants inside the building from culinary powerhouses Jean-Georges Vongerichten and the Momofuku Group led by David Chang are the first to be announced in what will become a range of dining options in the district. The Seaport District will also be home to the only U.S. location of Carla Sozzani’s pioneering experiential concept store 10 Corso Como, a 50,000-square-foot food market by Jean-Georges in the restored Tin Building, and is the first Manhattan location of premier cinema operator iPic Theaters that opened last fall. An essential part of New York for over 300 years, the reinvigorated Seaport District will continue to function as a much-needed community anchor and a “port of discovery” for the rapidly growing population of Lower Manhattan. For additional information, visit SeaportDistrict.NYC.
About The Howard Hughes Corporation®
The Howard Hughes Corporation owns, manages and develops commercial, residential and mixed-use real estate throughout the U.S. Our properties include master planned communities, operating properties, development opportunities and other unique assets spanning 14 states from New York to Hawai‘i. The Howard Hughes Corporation is traded on the New York Stock Exchange as HHC with major offices in New York, Columbia, MD, Dallas, Houston, Las Vegas and Honolulu. For additional information about HHC, visit www.howardhughes.com.
Safe Harbor Statement
Statements made in this press release that are not historical facts, including statements accompanied by words such as “will,” “believe,” “expect,” “enables,” “realize”, “plan,” “intend,” “assume,” “transform” and other words of similar expression, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on management’s expectations, estimates, assumptions, and projections as of the date of this release and are not guarantees of future performance. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially are set forth as risk factors in The Howard Hughes Corporation’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Quarterly and Annual Reports. The Howard Hughes Corporation cautions you not to place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements contained in this release. The Howard Hughes Corporation does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect future events, information or circumstances that arise after the date of this release.
