One Financial Plaza, also known as "The Gold Building", in downtown Hartford. Photo courtesy of Sun Life

One of downtown Hartford’s most iconic buildings is getting a major new tenant.

Insurance company Sun Life announced it is taking 47,000 square feet in the 26-story One Financial Plaza, also called “The Gold Building,” at the corner of Main and Pearl streets.

“Hartford is one of the strongest markets in the world for insurance and related technology professionals, and bringing our Connecticut team to Hartford is an important step in making us an even stronger home for top talent in the area,” Sun Life U.S. President Dan Fishbein said in a statement.

The company intends to grow into the space, it said. Its Connecticut office currently employs about 300, but its new space will have room for 450, and the company looks forward to “developing a strong presence in and relationship with the city of Hartford,” Fishbein said.

The move comes even as Sun Life plans to permanently shift its workforce to a more flexible model balancing work-from-home and office work, it said. The building’s amenities – a fitness center, onsite café, and an attached parking garage with complimentary parking – helped make the relocation attractive as it seeks to build a “hub” for its local workforce.

Design work will begin early next year, with occupancy targeted for September 2022.

The deal is a vote of confidence in downtown Hartford and its restaurants, theaters, museums and other cultural offerings, executives at building co-owners LAZ Parking and Shelbourne Global Partners said in statements.

“Sun Life’s decision to relocate its workforce downtown is an indicator of our rebounding economy and of the growing interest in Hartford as a place to do business and attract amazing talent,” LAZ Chairman and CEO Alan Lazowski said.