Grand Central Apple Store set to open December 9

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Corporate News

Apple is one week away from opening its next New York City store inside Grand Central Terminal. According to MacRumors, Apple made it official on Thursday when it updated the digital signage outside the store with a date.

"Apple Store, Grand Central. Arriving Friday, December 9," reads the panel, which resembles a typical train station departure board.

The New York Post on Wednesday shared some details of Apple's 10-year lease with the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA). It claimed that at about $60 per square foot, Apple is paying much less than other tenants. In July, however, the Post said its rent will be $800,000 per year, nearly half a million more than what Metrazur, the previous tenant, paid for the space. Apple gave Metrazur $5 million to vacate early.

Apple's contract, however, doesn't allow for any revenue-sharing with New York's Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA), although other lessees must pay a percentage of their sales to the authority once they surpass a certain threshold. In a separate report, the Post said New York State is now investigating the deal to determine whether or not the MTA gave Apple "overly generous terms on its lease."

"The article in the New York Post about the MTA's contract with Apple in Grand Central Terminal is a cause for concern," state comptroller Thomas DiNapoli told the Post in a statement. "This is a prime property, and I intend to make sure that the MTA hasn't given away the space."

The Post said Apple could generate $100 million a year in sales with the new 23,000 square-foot store, which will be its fifth in Manhattan as well as one of the biggest Apple Stores in the world.

Originally opened in 1871, Grand Central's 44 platforms on two underground levels make it the biggest train station in the world. Apple has said that it will honor the integrity of the building, which itself is one of the Big Apple's architectural gems. The plans for the new store allowed for "very modest alterations to historic elements" of the site.

This article, written by Leslie Horn, originally appeared on PCMag.com and is republished on Gear Live with the permission of Ziff Davis, Inc.