Charter Communications opens new Stamford HQ complex

June 6 brought the official opening of the new wing of the Charter Communications building at 400 Washington Blvd. in downtown Stamford. Cutting against the trend of many corporations embracing a work-from-home model or flex space, Charter and its employees under the Spectrum brand will be attempting to encourage a return to office with an attractive set of features for 1,700 employees.

The gleaming two-building, 900,000-square-foot towers in the heart of the city feature a wide range of amenities for employees, including dining options and state-of-the-art continuing education facilities. It also represents a truly transit-oriented development owing to a walkway directly connecting the offices to the Stamford Railroad Station.

The new headquarters building, the largest in the state, is the culmination of efforts that began in 2012. At the time, the company had 16,000 employees and a customer base of around 5 million. Those numbers have expanded to more than 93,000 employees in a wide range of roles serving 32 million customers.

The headquarters represented the bulk of a $100 million investment Charter pledged to make in 2017.

Gov. Ned Lamont and Stamford Mayor Caroline Simmons joined Tom Rutledge, chairman and CEO of Charter Communications, on stage for a ribbon-cutting ceremony before a crowd of excited employees.

Noting that a water fountain and outdoor amphitheater remain to be completed, Rutledge said that it nonetheless represented Charter’s “D-Day.”

“Let’s make this dedication day of the facility we envisioned five years ago now, the facility designed to house us as the fastest-growing communications company in the world I think during that time,” he said.

Rutledge, who joined Charter’s leadership ranks in 2012, recalled that the company moved to Stamford in 1994 with the acquisition of American Television & Communications (ATC) to create Time Warner Cable. The same things that had prompted ATC to set up shop in Stamford made it attractive for the new company’s headquarters as well.

“This was a great place to live in. It was close to major markets, it’s close to transportation, it’s even on a transportation facility, and you can live pretty much any kind of lifestyle you want to when you live in this area. You can live in the city; you can live in the country. You can live in Stamford, you can live on the water,” he said before quipping, “You can even live in the trees.”

Rutledge also noted Lamont and Simmons represented a connection between local communities and the cable industry: Lamont found his pre-political business success in the world of cable and telecommunications while Simmons’ father owned Simmons Communications and Patriot Media.

“I’m sure you had your share of MTV,” Rutledge joked as he introduced Simmons.

“The only downside of growing up in a cable family,” Simmons responded as she took the podium, “is that my father had parental controls on every channel, including MTV.”

Simmons thanked Rutledge not only for the investment represented by the new headquarters building but also Charter’s philanthropic efforts that provided for job training programs in the area. She also expressed gratitude to the architects and contractors at Building and Land Technology who built and created the property.

“They truly are iconic, just stunning buildings. Modern, future-oriented buildings,” Simmons said. “I think that great cities have great architecture and iconic buildings. These are going to add to that iconic fabric of our city; they’re a great symbol for the modern, innovative city that we’re becoming.”

Simmons added that Stamford is the “gateway to Connecticut” and that for many people the Charter Communications headquarters may be the first building in the state that many people notice.

Lamont recalled how his own career in the cable industry began in a “glorified warehouse” on Long Island, a far cry from the high-tech facility Charter now occupies.

“This is a crowning achievement for everything you have done,” the governor said.