The Annual Union Square Partnership Commercial Update

Union Square is bustling, with robust foot traffic recovery, a strong roster of new retail and office tenants, and new mixed-use residential developments in the pipeline.

Key data points from the last 12 months highlight the district’s strengths:

1.1M SF of office
space leased in the
last 12 months

58K+ average daily
riders at Union Square
-14th Street Station

13% higher visitor
activity on Greenmarket
days in USQ

370K average daily
weekday trips to the
Union Square area

78K+ SF of ground floor
retail space leased in
the last 12 months

Visitor traffic reached
a high of 109% recovery
over January 2020

DISTRICT TRENDS

USQ IS THRIVING
∫ Union Square’s residents have strong spending power,
with average household incomes nearly 75% higher than the
Manhattan average.
∫ By the end of 2023, visitor traffic hit 109% of January 2020
levels, driven by Union Square’s vibrant mix of uses and the
steady return of office workers.
∫ Leading employers choose Union Square, and the biggest
new leases represent finance, technology, hospitality, and
fin-tech.
∫ Union Square grew as a job center, with its workforce
increasing by 12% since 2023 to reach 168K employees.
The tech and innovation sector remains strong, with over 45
companies located in the area.
∫ 43 new businesses opened in the past year, 60% of which
are food and beverage establishments. Indicating a return to
in-person dining, the number of new sit-down restaurants in
the district increased by 25% over the number that opened in
the previous year.

Similar Posts

  • Latest New School Construction Update

    Next week (April 29 to May 3), material and equipment deliveries and installation work will continue on all floors inside the building. We will be work on the new sidewalks around the building as well.

    The following week (May 6 to May 10), material and equipment deliveries and installation work will continue on all floors as well as sidewalk work.

    This weekend the site will be open on Saturday, April 27th for interior and sidewalk activities between the work hours of 7AM and 5PM as permitted by the City. We will also be working on Sunday as some interior work needs to be completed.

  • Union Square Cafe Nears the End

    From the Times:
    The countdown has begun to the closing of the 16th Street space that this influential restaurant has occupied for 30 years. The cafe, which was the first piece of Danny Meyer’s culinary empire, has been a favorite of New York’s publishing world and jump-started the renaissance of the Union Square area. But it will not renew its lease at a higher rent, and in the spring will relocate to nearby 235 Park Avenue South, at East 19th Street.

    To mark the final days at its current spot, from Dec. 1 to 12, the last day of service, the restaurant will switch to a three-course dinner menu called the 12 Nights of Union Square Cafe, highlighting some of its best-known seasonal dishes, including garganelli with white truffles, beef tartare, lamb braciole and Berkshire rack of pork. There are optional wine pairings from some of the restaurant’s favorite producers. Lunches will feature the regular à la carte menu:

    Dinner reservations Dec. 1 to 12 by phone only, $85 prepaid; lunch reservations up to 28 days ahead, opentable.com;

    Union Square Cafe, 21 East 16th Street, 212-243-4020,

    unionsquarecafe.com.

  • 30-Story Condo to Rise at 5 West 13th St.?

    Prolific New York condo developer Victor Sigoura’s Legion Investment Group got busy this week with a new project on a site it just acquired near Union Square.

    Legion and real estate investment firm EJS Group bought the vacant six-story office building at 5 West 13th Street/8 West 14th Street for $57.5 million, according to property records made public Tuesday. The ink barely had time to dry before Sigoura’s firm filed permits on Friday to tear down the 130,000-square-foot building. The developer likely has plans for more of what it does best: a condo building up to 30 stories tall, according to Crain’s New York Business. 

  • Dim Sum for Breakfast

    Shanghai Square on 13th St. is now open for breakfast, serving traditional Chinese fare such as dim sum, Shanghai soup dumplings, and scallion pancakes. Is this innovative marketing or desperation? Is this bagel-and-croissant neighborhood ready for something so exotic at 8 in the morning?

  • The Next Police/Community Public Meeting is November 20

    The NYPD 6th Precinct Community Council Meeting

     will take place in-person

    Wednesday, November 20 at 7:00 PM

    Our Lady of Pompeii’s Fr. Demo Hall – Lower Level

    at the corner of Bleecker and Carmine Streets

    Guest Speaker: Jessica Mates, Deputy Director

     NYS Attorney General Leticia James’ Office 

    Join the leadership of the 6th Precinct, your neighbors and local businesses for an update on community affairs. This is also your opportunity to advise Precinct Leadership of chronic or specific crime/safety/quality of life problems you see in our community so their actions are directed with your unique insights. Take this opportunity to listen or to voice your thoughts in an open and informative session.  We encourage you to tell/bring a neighbor and be a part of your Community’s voice.

    All meetings starts promptly at 7:00 PM

    Please arrive early to sign in and register as a speaker.

    Some folks requested to submit questions before the meeting. Please feel free to send them to 6thpctcommunitycouncil@gmail.com they will be addressed in the meeting