NYBC proposed rezoning plan sparking
controversy on the Upper East Side
BY CARSEN HOLADAY
Residents from the Upper East Side
have come together to speak out
against the New York Blood Center’s
plan for their new building.
The New York Blood Center is in development
to create a Life Sciences Hub on
their existing site at 310 East 67th Street
in Manhattan, Community District 8. The
project will consist of demolishing their
headquarters on the Upper East Side and
rebuilding it as a 16-floor tower. To start
this process, an amendment must be made
with NYC Planning in regards to rezoning.
“This rezoning will not only enable the
Blood Center to significantly expand its
life-saving work, but allow for the development
of a state-of-the-art life science
campus located in the heart of the Upper
East Side’s world class cluster of health
care and research institutions,” said Rob
Purvis, NYBC’s Executive Vice President
and Chief of Staff. “Anchored by the Blood
Center, Center East will provide space
where research institutions and innovative
biotechnology companies can work
collaboratively under one roof to advance
drug development and cures for diseases.”
NYBC announced its plans for the
Center East facility in August of 2020. On
Feb. 23, 2021, the NYBC posted an update
to the project on their website, explaining
that planning will continue throughout
the year.
NYBC selected life science developer
Longfellow Real Estate Partners as its strategic
development partner for the facility.
The environmental impact
The proposed plan first required several
actions from the NYC Department of City
Planning. After reviewing the project, the
City Planning Commission determined
that the NYBC’s proposed renovations
may have a significant effect on the environment.
Under the City Environmental
Quality Review, a Positive Declaration
was issued as well as an Environmental
Assessment Statement detailing the possible
adverse effects on the environment.
The NYBC was to prepare a Draft Environmental
Impact Statement.
An Environmental Impact Statement
Public Scoping Meeting was held in December.
Olga Abinader, Director of the
Environmental Assessment and Review
Division of the NYC Department of City
Planning, chaired the meeting and was
joined by several of her colleagues from
A rendering of what the redeveloped New York Blood Center would look like.
the Department of City Planning.
The final scope of work for the issued
Environmental Impact Statement is yet to
be completed.
The response
Since the proposal and the question of
the possible environmental impact, the
project has garnered attention regarding
the possible effects on the community’s
safety, the environment and on the visual
aesthetic of the Upper East Side.
On their website, the Friends of the
Upper East Side Historic Districts organization
said that through the proposed
rezoning, the NYBC wants to “undo
the R8B contextual zoning which has
protected and preserved the special lowrise
character of the Upper East Side side
streets for decades, since it was mapped in
the 1980s as one of FRIENDS’ founders
earliest efforts.”
In February, a new, public community
group entitled Eastsiders for Responsible
Zoning released a statement in response
to NYBC’s recent post about their plan for
the Center East facility.
“The fact is no need exists for such an out
of scale development to empower NYBC to
fulfill its mission,” the group said in the
statement. “Existing zoning gives the Blood
Center everything it needs to modernize
and expand its existing facility to a state
of the art, world class life science facility,
while not adversely impacting surrounding
residences, St. Catherine’s Park and the
Julia Richman Education Complex.”
ERZ group and community member
Bill Angelos expressed his worry not only
about the tower’s environmental effects,
but for the possible impact on the area’s
schools and parks.
“The proposed tower will cast a tremendous
shadow on the park,” said Angelos.
“The Blood Center proposed in the submission
to the Community Board would
cast a shadow for about four hours every
day. What is a park without sunlight?”
The chemical impact
Residents also expressed concern about
the potential biological or chemical effects
that NYBC’s laboratory will have on the
surrounding area.
The proposed new building will include
biosafety level 3 (BSL3) laboratories.
BSL-3 laboratories are considered
high-containment research laboratories
made for the study of highly infectious
pathogens, including indigenous or exotic
microbes and diseases with high potential
for respiratory transmission.
This fact was not mentioned during
the environmental scoping process, to the
surprise of many – including Manhattan
Borough President Gale Brewer.
“I was alarmed to find that in a 2016
memo, the NYC Department of Health and
Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) noted significant
risks associated with such facilities,
PHOTO: DBOX/ENNEAD ARCHITECTS
including the potential for an accidental
outbreak, which could be severe given
New York City’s population density,” said
Brewer in a letter raising her concerns to
NYC Department of Planning. “Furthermore,
the fact that the proposed facility
is in a residential neighborhood raises
serious questions about the adequacy of
safeguards and the potential impact of
such a laboratory.”
Angelos also expressed his concern for
the biological and chemical implications
of NYBC’s research during the pandemic.
“Half a million Americans have died.
COVID-19 is a respiratory infection,”
said Angelos. “There is no justification
for the Blood Center to build this tower,
and to also include a BSL3 laboratory in
the middle of a residential neighborhood.
There truly is no justification for that.”
Despite the community’s pushback,
NYBC remains confident in the potential
benefits of the new building.
“New York currently lacks space for
this full ecosystem which is essential to
advancing life science innovation,” said
Purvis. “The Blood Center is committed
to working with the community to bring
this proposal to the Upper East Side. Local
residents’ input is important to us and we
are having many productive conversations
with stakeholders such as Friends
of St. Catherine’s Park, CUNY and other
schools and educational nonprofits which
have been outspoken in their support for
Center East.”
14 March 18, 2021 Schneps Media