Citigroup tops off LIC building

Citigroup, Inc. hoisted the last beam onto its new building, located at Two Court Square in Long Island City, on Wednesday, October 11. The beam, signed in black permanent marker by local politicians and Citigroup officials, was lifted by a giant crane to the top of the new 15-story, 528,000 square-foot structure across the street from the towering 50-story Citigroup building, which has been the tallest building in New York City outside of Manhattan since its construction in 1990.
&#8220The amazing thing about all of this is the short time it takes from the ground breaking to the topping out,” said Borough President Helen Marshall of the one-year construction period. &#8220I'm really happy you are doing this in Long Island City.”
The new $290 million building, which will serve as the national headquarters for Citibank's credit card division and branch banking business, will provide an additional 1,200 permanent jobs and is expected to be completed by 2007.
Currently, the company has more than 25,000 employees in New York City - making Citigroup already the largest private sector employer in Queens with 4,900 jobs - and once the new building is completed, the total of employees in the borough will rise above 6,000.
Citigroup has been working to earn a silver rating from the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Council for the building's environmentally conscious construction - it will be equipped with a storm-water recycling program and high-efficiency fixtures. At Citigroup's sites worldwide, the company has committed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 10 percent.
In addition, the building will feature panoramic views, with 90 percent of employees having access to windows.
During the construction of the new tower, 20 percent of the 1,000 construction jobs and of the construction projects were set aside for minority- and women-owned workers and businesses, and Citigroup Chief Operations & Technology Officer Kevin Kessinger said during the &#8220topping out” that the company is on track to surpass that number of hires.
Councilmember Eric Gioia pointed to Citigroup, along with Silvercup Studios and Tishman Speyer, as three companies heavily committed to the Long Island City community.
&#8220When they are investing in your neighborhood - and they are investing billions of dollars in our neighborhood - it's a good thing,” Gioia said.