Taconic Building Next Life Sciences Lab Development in Manhattan
Company is building a 200,000-square-foot Class A research lab
By Greg Cornfield March 20, 2023 10:20 am
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Elevate Research Properties, the life sciences subsidiary of Taconic Partners, has revealed plans for its latest development named Iron Horse Labs underway on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.
The company is building a 200,000-square-foot, Class A research lab with Nuveen Real Estate and Flatiron Equities at 309 East 94th Street near the Second Avenue terminus of the Q train. The project includes lab infrastructure, double-height research space, multiple loading bays and several outdoor terraces, as well as energy-efficient systems and components as part of Elevate’s commitment to environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives.
Elevate expects to complete Iron Horse Labs in 2025.
The development will be built to serve research organizations, academic medical institutions, or life sciences and health care investment firms looking to house portfolio companies and research programs under one roof. The site is near major academic medical institutions Rockefeller University, Mount Sinai Medical Center and NYC Health + Hospitals. Weill Cornell Medicine, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and the Hospital for Special Surgery are also about two miles away on the East Side.
“Elevate is excited to bring another world-class research development to the growing New York City market,” Matthew Weir, president of Elevate Research Properties, said in a statement. “This particular project is especially unique given its rich history along with the rare combination of size, features and location.”
The new research building is at the birth site of legendary Yankees’ baseball player Lou Gehrig, who earned the nickname “Iron Horse” for his streak of consecutive games played. Gehrig also died shy of his 40th birthday in 1941 from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a currently incurable degenerative nerve condition sometimes called “Lou Gehrig’s disease.”
“Our team is honored to work on this facility and knew from the onset that it holds great significance for the larger life science community” said Bill Harris, managing director at design firm Perkins& Will. “A native New Yorker himself, Lou Gehrig continues to be a symbol of determination and perseverance both for those battling the disease and for the many searching for cures. In designing Iron Horse Labs with Elevate Research Properties, we attempted to capture that spirit and reflect those contributions through aspects of the building’s design.”
The project brings Elevate’s portfolio to 1.4 million square feet of lab space and approximately $2 billion in total investment.
Gregory Cornfield can be reached at gcornfield@commercialobserver.com.
