After a year of aggressive data center capacity expansion in what are considered second-tier US markets, Windstream Communications is stepping up its presence in New York City.

The Little Rock, Arkansas-based telco and IT infrastructure services giant, has leased space at Intergate.Manhattan – the 32-story data center and telecommunications building recently commissioned by Sabey Corp.

This will be Windstream's third Manhattan location and fourth serving the New York metro. In addition to data center and office space, the company plans to install a satellite communications center at the site, including an antenna farm on the roof.

Joe Marano, EVP of network operations at Windstream, said the building provided his company with network diversity and protection against natural disasters, such as last October's hurricane Sandy, which knocked a number of Manhattan data centers down.

“In addition, it offers ample room for expansion as more and more business customers choose Windstream's data, voice, network and cloud solutions,” Marano said.

Windstream signed a 15-year lease for an 11,000 sq ft powered shell it will turn into data center space on its own. The tenant has contracted for 664kW with the option to expand to 1MW.

Windstream has been on an aggressive expansion trajectory over the past several years, growing through acquisitions, leasing and building out data center capacity around the US.

In 2011, it bought data center and connectivity services company Paetec in a US$2.3bn deal that added about 37,000 network route miles and seven data centers to its portfolio.

The company's more recent expansions included the kick-off of a project to build a 60,000 sq ft 10MW data center in Charlotte, North Carolina. Announced in June, the facility is being built for Windstream by Server Farm Realty and DSA Encore.

Windstream has also leased two 10,000 sq ft data centers in Durham, North Carolina, and Nashville, Tennessee, region, built by Compass Datacenters.