Fulton Center’s Retail Operator Planning to Cease Operations

Upon opening in November 2014, the newly constructed Fulton Center in Lower Manhattan was a major component of the rebuilding of the area following 9/11. In addition to providing seamless connections to nine subway lines and the New Jersey PATH trains, the transportation hub also houses several retail tenants. Australia-based Westfield Corporation, which was acquired by Paris-based Unibail-Rodamco in 2017, was awarded the rights to operate the Fulton Center in December 2013 under a 20-year lease. However, the company intends to cease operations at the site according to a lawsuit recently filed by the New York City Transit Authority (NYCTA). While the NYCTA acknowledged that the lease does include a termination clause in “the case of instances such as a structural defect,” the claim according to Westfield lawyers that “the situation at the center was ‘financially unsustainable,’” does not meet the criteria. Currently seeking a court order to block Westfield from terminating operations, the NYCTA’s lawsuit states that “Westfield’s unauthorized cessation of its operations and termination of the lease would adversely affect not only the retail establishments in Fulton Center that Westfield subleased, but also members of the transit public who are customers of these retail outlets.” News of Westfield’s intentions come at a time when it’s parent company, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, has been “striking deal to cut its exposure in the U.S.”

Source:    https://www.crainsnewyork.com/retail/westfield-plans-pull-out-fulton-center-nyc-transit-says