By Amanda Becker
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The campaign of likely U.S. presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has signed a lease to house its headquarters in Brooklyn, New York, a source with knowledge of Clinton's plans said on Friday.
Clinton, a former U.S. secretary of state and the wife of a former president, is expected to launch her White House bid for the 2016 election later this month. Her campaign will occupy two floors of an office building at 1 Pierrepont Plaza in the Brooklyn Heights neighborhood, according to the source.
The identity of the lease holder on the Brooklyn space was unclear. If it is Clinton's campaign-in-waiting, the expenditure would trigger a 15-day window in which she must officially form her campaign.
Several criteria were considered by Clinton and her future campaign staffers when selecting the Brooklyn location, the source said.
First and foremost, Clinton wanted the campaign headquarters to be outside of Washington, D.C. Brooklyn Heights was chosen for its accessibility, given its proximity to multiple metro lines and easy access to the city's airports. The availability of housing for staffers who will be relocating to the area and the perception that the neighborhood is somewhere people will enjoy spending time were also factors, the source said.
Politico first reported the lease on the Clinton campaign headquarters on Friday.