Apple Officially in Discussions for Retail Store Space in Grand Central Terminal

grand central terminal leasing

Grand Central Terminal leasing plan (PDF) with Metrazur on East Balcony at right

Earlier this year, reports surfaced claiming that Apple was pursuing a potential new retail store location in the historic Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan, a hub for both commuter and tourist activity. Claims had even suggested that the store could be the company's largest. But a few weeks later, word appeared claiming that Apple had backed out of its plans.

But according to The Wall Street Journal, Apple is indeed in discussions for a space in the terminal checking in at around 15,000 square feet, a fairly large store although not the company's largest.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is looking for new tenants for a marquee space in Grand Central Terminal, and computer giant Apple Inc. has expressed interest in putting a store there.

The agency is looking for a single renter for two adjacent balconies on the north and east sides of the terminal. It will issue a request for proposals Monday.

According to a spokesman for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), the agency has spoken to Apple about the opening and is hoping that the company bids on the space.

The report hints that the MTA may be working specifically to find space for Apple, as successful restaurant Metrazur is one of the businesses closing to free up the space and the restaurant's owner suggests that he will be receiving a substantial buyout for agreeing to end his lease well before its 2019 expiration.

A new tenant would be required to pay Mr. Palmer a substantial sum of money to vacate his lease.

"It's an offer that's hard to refuse," said Mr. Palmer, who declined to put a number on it. "It's hard to compete with whatever that company might be that's taking the space."

Retail space in Grand Central Terminal is awarded through an open bidding process, meaning that Apple's official intent to bid on the space should become public as the selection process moves forward.

Popular Stories

Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock Light

iOS 19 Leak Reveals All-New Design

Friday January 17, 2025 2:42 pm PST by
iOS 19 is still around six months away from being announced, but a new leak has allegedly revealed a completely redesigned Camera app. Based on footage it obtained, YouTube channel Front Page Tech shared a video showing what the new Camera app will apparently look like, with the key change being translucent menus for camera controls. Overall, the design of these menus looks similar to...
2024 App Store Awards

Apple Explains Why It Removed TikTok From the App Store in the U.S.

Sunday January 19, 2025 6:58 am PST by
Apple on late Saturday removed TikTok from the App Store in the U.S., and it has now explained why it was required to take this action. Last year, the U.S. passed a law that required Chinese company ByteDance to divest its ownership of TikTok due to potential national security risks, or else the platform would be banned. That law went into effect today, and companies like Apple and Google...
iPhone 17 Air Size Feature

'iPhone 17 Air' With Rear Camera Bar Allegedly Shown in Leaked Photo

Tuesday January 21, 2025 12:46 pm PST by
A leaker known as "Majin Bu" today shared an alleged image of a component for the rumored, ultra-thin "iPhone 17 Air" model. The blurry, pixelated image shows a pair of rear iPhone shells with a pill-shaped, raised camera bar along the top. On the left side of the bar, there is a circular cutout that appears to be for a single rear camera. On the right side of the bar, there appears to be an ...
iPhone SE Dynamic Island Majin Bu

iPhone SE 4 Leak Shows Dynamic Island, Casts Doubt on Rumored 'iPhone 16E' Name

Monday January 20, 2025 9:01 am PST by
A new iPhone SE is widely rumored to launch this year, and the device has potentially been confirmed today by known leaker Evan Blass. In a private social media post, Blass shared an image of what appears to be source code mentioning an iPhone SE (4th Gen), which casts doubt on the alternative "iPhone 16E" name rumored for the device. However, the name in the source code could be a...
airtag 4 pack blue

AirTag 2 Launching This Year With These 3 New Features

Sunday January 19, 2025 8:11 am PST by
After a four-year wait, a new AirTag is finally expected to launch in 2025. Below, we recap rumored upgrades for the accessory. A few months ago, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said Apple was aiming to release the AirTag 2 around the middle of 2025. While he did not offer a more specific timeframe, that means the AirTag 2 could be announced by the end of June. The original AirTag was announced...
iOS 19 Roundup Feature

iOS 19 Rumored to Be Compatible With These iPhones

Saturday January 18, 2025 10:28 am PST by
iOS 19 will not drop support for any iPhone models, according to French website iPhoneSoft.fr. The report cited a source who said iOS 19 will be compatible with any iPhone that can run iOS 18, which would mean the following models: iPhone 16 iPhone 16 Plus iPhone 16 Pro iPhone 16 Pro Max iPhone 15 iPhone 15 Plus iPhone 15 Pro iPhone 15 Pro Max iPhone 14 iPhon...
apple power beats pro 2

Powerbeats Pro 2 Coming Soon: Apple to Announce Them 'Imminently'

Sunday January 19, 2025 8:25 am PST by
In September, Apple said that it would be launching Powerbeats Pro 2 in 2025, and it appears the wireless earbuds are coming very soon. Powerbeats Pro 2 images found in iOS 18 code In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the Powerbeats Pro 2 are "due imminently." In addition to Apple filing the Powerbeats Pro 2 in regulatory databases last month, Gurman said Apple is...
ipad pro 2024

New iPad Pro Reportedly Launching This Year

Tuesday January 21, 2025 6:40 am PST by
Apple plans to release at least one new iPad Pro model this year, according to a supplier-focused report today from Korean website The Elec. It is likely that the 11-inch and 13-inch iPad Pro models would be updated simultaneously. After receiving an OLED display last year, the report said the iPad Pro will receive only "minor" changes this year. Overall, the next iPad Pro is expected to...
Generic iOS 18

Everything New in iOS 18.3 Beta 3

Thursday January 16, 2025 12:39 pm PST by
Apple provided the third beta of iOS 18.3 to developers today, and while the betas have so far been light on new features, the third beta makes some major changes to Notification Summaries and also tweaks a few other features. Notification Summary Changes Apple made multiple changes to Notification Summaries in response to complaints about inaccurate summaries of news headlines. For...

Top Rated Comments

Lesser Evets Avatar
178 months ago
Wasn't this news several months ago?
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
FloatingBones Avatar
178 months ago
I keep thinking about the flash crowd events that have been held in GCT.

If Apple gets a store on the concourse, perhaps Microsoft could fly in some retail employees to do the electric slide (//www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSAXEVXvNz8) on the main floor for the opening. :)
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
OllyW Avatar
178 months ago
Wasn't this news several months ago?
Yes but it was later reported to have been shelved.

Earlier this year, reports (https://www.macrumors.com/2011/02/08/apple-seeking-to-build-new-retail-store-in-manhattans-grand-central-terminal/) surfaced claiming that Apple was pursuing a potential new retail store location in the historic Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan, a hub for both commuter and tourist activity. Claims (https://www.macrumors.com/2011/02/17/apples-grand-central-terminal-retail-store-to-be-largest-yet/) had even suggested that the store could be the company's largest. But a few weeks later, word appeared (https://www.macrumors.com/2011/03/21/apple-backs-out-of-plans-for-grand-central-terminal-retail-store/) claiming that Apple had backed out of its plans.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dethmaShine Avatar
178 months ago
Apple should a open an Apple Store in India. :|

There's not a single Apple Store there. :(
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
the8thark Avatar
178 months ago
Why do some new store rumours get front page news here when others only get 2nd page news? I don't understand.

Could it be that little stores get 2nd page and big flashy stores get front page?
No. Cause the Brisbane store will be very flashy, fancy and expensive. And it was on page 2.

Could it be only US stores get front page news?
No. Cause the Madrid store got front page news.

Could it be the Mac-Rumors staff pick whatever new store rumours they want for the front page and not care if the other ones are important to some people?
Very possible. I've found no other evidence to disprove this.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DJHonda84 Avatar
178 months ago
It also turned out to be convenient having Madison Square Garden at NY Penn Station. Not worth it though since a great station was essentially destroyed in the process.

I know an Apple Store at a GCT balcony wouldn't have such extreme negative effect, but I can't help but be sensitive when it comes to such proposal. GCT was the place that launched historic landmark preservation movements across the country. Plus, anyone who knows the history of GCT knows that too much willingness to bring in tenants and commercial partnerships was in poor taste.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)