JetBlue to remain in LIC

New York City-based airline JetBlue announced that they will renew the lease at their Long Island City headquarters, which was set to expire in 2023.
The announcement confirms that the airline will remain in the Big Apple, despite rumors that the company would move a bulk of its office jobs to a facility in Florida. JetBlue’s headquarters at 27-01 Queens Plaza employs approximately 2,000 people.
“JetBlue is a valuable corporate partner here in Queens, and I am overjoyed they will keep their headquarters in Long Island City,” said Borough President Donovan Richards. “By remaining here in Queens, our borough is connected to one of the world’s largest airlines and entrusted with thousands of jobs that will surely revitalize our economy.”
JetBlue, like all airlines, was skating on thin ice after the COVID-19 pandemic grounded flights. JetBlue received a whopping $935 million from the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act last year to keep the company operational.
Despite these setbacks, the airline is still undertaking a number of large projects. JetBlue is moving ahead with a $2 billion plan to renovate Terminal 6 at JFK Airport.
The renovation is also a top priority of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and is expected to receive upwards of $294 million under the $1.2 trillion federal infrastructure plan currently under consideration in the Senate.
“JetBlue’s decision to recommit to Queens is a welcome one for our borough’s entire business community, as we forge ahead together in the wake of the pandemic,” said Queens Chamb er CEO Thomas Grech. “JetBlue has long been known as New York’s ‘hometown airline,’ and we are thrilled that they intend to keep it that way, assuring jobs will remain in Queens and providing a special boost to the Long Island City economy.”