Slate Property, Evenhar Development Partner on Mount Sinai Project in East Harlem

Slate Property Group and Evenhar Development have joined forces for a new medical property development in East Harlem.

The two developers will build a 13-story medical office and community facility building at 1578 Lexington Avenue, which is currently a vacant lot covering 19,605 square feet, according to a release. Crain’s New York Business first reported the news.

The new building between East 100th and East 101st streets will be home to Mount Sinai Health System, who signed a 36-year lease for 150,000 square feet for medical office space and an employee day care center.

Another 18,978 square feet at the building will be set aside for East Harlem Center, a community hub owned and operated by Children’s Aid, and for a new branch of Life Changers Church.

Life Changers Church previously owned the East Harlem site until Evenhar bought it for $5.9 million in February 2023, property records show.

“1578 Lexington exemplifies our commitment to creating developments that serve the broader community,” Oren Evenhar, president at Evenhar Development, said in a statement. “The project introduces additional health care resources to the area while demonstrating how thoughtful real estate development can strengthen neighborhoods without displacing traditional community organizations that keep them running.”

The new development, which will be just a few blocks from Mount Sinai’s hospital campus between Fifth and Madison avenues, will be financed by a $119 million construction loan from J.P. Morgan and a $40 million preferred equity investment from GoldenTree Asset Management, according to the release. Walker & Dunlop represented Slate and Evenhar Development for the financing on the transaction.

Kutnicki Bernstein Architects (KBA) and DLR Group are the architects on the project. Construction will start this month, with occupancy slated for spring of 2028.

“We’re creating a true community hub that addresses multiple neighborhood needs,” Martin Nussbaum, co-founder and principal of Slate, said in a statement. “Together with Evenhar, we’ve structured a partnership that preserves and enhances local services while delivering a world-class medical facility.”

Mount Sinai will use its new East Harlem space for its outpatient clinical services, while Children’s Aid will occupy the lower level, ground floor, second floor and third floor for the East Harlem Center’s gym, basketball court and classrooms, the release said.

“For decades, we’ve been deeply committed to the East Harlem community, and this new space will allow us to continue delivering high-quality programs and services that help children, youth and families thrive,” a spokesperson for Children's Aid told Commercial Observer.

Meanwhile, Life Changers Church will take space on the ground and lower levels and offer worship services and ministry programs.

“This is an exciting development bringing key programs together at one location to better serve our community and employees,” Thomas Ahn, system vice president for Mount Sinai’s real estate division, said in a statement.

Spokespeople for Life Changers Church, KBA and DLR Group did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

News of the project comes during a relatively busy time for developments in East Harlem.

In August, New York City’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development filed plans to turn the five-story East Harlem Multi-Service Center building at 413 East 120th Street into a 21-story, roughly 270,000-square-foot residential building with 282 units, CO previously reported. The project, called The Beacon, will be developed by Ascendant Neighborhood Development and The Community Builders.

And in November 2024, Maddd Equities submitted an application to construct a 13-story building with 73 residential units at 132 East 125th Street, which was formerly home to a historic bank, CO reported.

Isabelle Durso can be reached at idurso@commercialobserver.com.