Dive Brief:

• RAL Development Services will lead construction of a $250 million technology hub near Union Square, in Manhattan, intended to provide real estate for technology worker training, education and startup incubation, according to Commercial Property Executive.

• Designed by Davis Brody Bond, the 258,000-square-foot development will include flexible office space and will be anchored by Civic Hall, a component of the project that will house community organizations, tech startups, government agencies and entrepreneurs.

• Lauded by New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, the tech hub is expected to contribute to a city goal of creating 100,000 jobs — including 40,000 in the next four years.

Dive Insight:

“Look out Silicon Valley, here comes Silicon Alley,” New York City Council Member Ben Kallos said in an announcement regarding the city’s Tech Hub investment earlier this month. Companies in the city have seen a steady increase in venture capital funding — from $2.4 billion in 2011 to $4.6 billion in 2014 — that is contributing to the overall growth of the city’s $125 billion tech economy.

So far, the Tech Hub seems to be more about meeting space than systems. Renderings and corresponding official comments on the development have centered around collaborative working environments and square-footage rather than what advanced technology that might be included in the building itself, which has been characterized by the city, from an IT standpoint, simply as “wired.”

Job creation is also a metatag for the project, which is expected to contribute more than 600 positions as the city’s startup economy expands across the engineering, advertising and design sectors. According to the Mayor’s Office, the project's development is expected to create 800 construction jobs, with groundbreaking expected in 2018 and completion as early as 2020.