Times Square, the “Crossroads of the World,” is at its own commercial crossroads — but an ambitious, newly launched project by developer Jamestown is expected to bring long-needed glamour to the Bowtie’s tackier south end.
Jamestown is opening One Times Square’s full array of “immersive” attractions to the public on Friday — five years since the half-billion-dollar adaptive reuse of the iconic but empty former office tower was announced.
Guests who pay $44 each enjoy the tower’s Times Square Skywalk, a top-floor, open-air, 360-degree viewing platform, and a “Times Travel” package on lower indoor floors highlighting the bright-lights district’s history — including a simulated 1930s dirigible ride over Manhattan.
Business advocates say the opening will blunt the blight of tip-seeking costumed cartoon characters, most of whom suit up on the pedestrian plaza at the tower’s foot.
Although without offices, the New Year’s Eve ball-drop building’s success or failure is vital to perceptions of the “Bowtie” formed by the junction of Broadway and Seventh Avenue between West 42nd and West 47th streets. Office tenants and merchants are rooting for the new attraction to draw upscale visitors and burnish the area’s image.
CBRE tristate research director Michael Slattery said office vacancy in the 14 million square feet of offices in the Bowtie and the area south of West 50th Street east of Eighth Avenue is a mere 11.7% compared to 20% in West Midtown overall.
“Times Square carries well-known perception challenges. The streetscape and tourist activity are real considerations for some occupiers,” he added.
“But constrained supply elsewhere at comparable price points makes the district a legitimate, and increasingly attractive, option.”
The Bowtie and West 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth avenues — the “Deuce” — have lost a bit of luster since a multi-billion-dollar public-private cleanup campaign transformed the sleazy, crime-ridden blocks of the 1970s and 1980s into a glittering, “Disney-fied” home to new office towers and revitalized theaters.
Despite strong recent demand such as the new JAMS lease at Two Times Square and Versant Media’s expansion at 229 W. 43rd St., two former office addresses – Five Times Square and the landmarked Candler building on 42nd Street – are being converted to apartments.
The Deuce is still fighting to regain its juice since B.B. King’s Blues Club closed in 2018. Construction stopped at a retail conversion of the former Times Square Theater at 215 W. 42nd St. Along Broadway, Asia-based novelty shops replaced mainstream stores such as Express, Swarovski, Oakley and Ray-Ban.
But Times Square Alliance president Tom Harris hailed the One Times Square opening as a harbinger of good things.
“It will allow for the excitement of New Year’s Eve and the ball drop to be felt all year round for the hundreds of thousands of people who visit Times Square each day and is a great place for visitors to make new Times Square memories,” he said.
“Every new experience adds another layer of excitement for a neighborhood already teeming with innovative ways to have a good time and celebrate all New York City has to offer.”