Google\'s got a major New York expansion in the works - and it could more than double its workforce there

Google is planning a major expansion in New York City, adding enough space to more than double its current workforce there, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The internet search giant is nearing a deal on an office building at St. John's Terminal on the west side of Manhattan, is planning to expand its space at Chelsea Market, which is just north of there, and is planning to develop some space at Pier 57, the Journal reported. All told, the moves would add some 1.85 million square feet of space to that controlled by the company in the city, according to the report. That's enough room for more than 12,000 workers.

Currently, the company employs about 7,000 workers in New York City.

A Google representative declined to comment on the report.

The biggest piece that the company plans to add to its New York real estate puzzle is the planned office building at St. John's terminal, according to the Journal. That building, expected to be completed by 2022, will have 1.3 million square feet of space, or enough for about 8,500 workers, according to the Journal. Google is nearing an agreement through which it would either buy or lease the building, according to the report.

Google has a long history in New York

The company purchased Chelsea Market in March for $2.4 billion. Google is planning to add about 300,000 square feet to the property, the Journal reported. It previously had announced plans to lease some 250,000 square feet of space in nearby Pier 57. Those two projects would give it enough room for more than 3,500 workers.

Google has had a presence in the city since 2000, when it opened a sales office there. It established its main office in the city at 111 Eighth Avenue in 2006 and bought that building in 2010. It's been using space in the Chelsea Market next door since 2008.

The company's New York workforce includes representatives of a broad swath of its business, including its engineering, product, and business operations groups.

The report about Google expansion follows the Journal's report earlier this week that Amazon, one of the search giant's chief rivals, is planning on opening up a large satellite office in Long Island City in Queens as part of its effort to establish a second headquarters, or HQ2.

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