NYC Commits to a $100 Million a Biotech Hub, Is Now Requesting Proposals
New York is hoping that a new, central hub could be a catalyst for more, mimicking the way a big Massachusetts investment led to Cambridge’s biotech boom. Exactly what will it look like? That’s not clear, hence the request for proposals.
New York City Economic Development Corporation is now seeking proposals from companies, institutions, or joint ventures interested in developing a $100 million “Applied Life Sciences Hub”.
In December 2016, Mayor de Blasio announced LifeSci NYC, a 10-year $500M commitment to establish New York City as a global leader in life sciences R&D and innovation, spurring an estimated 16,000 jobs and addressing the need for up to 3 million square feet of new space for life sciences companies and researchers.
The centrepiece of this plan is the $100 million investment by the city in a life science campus.
The City of New York is offering up to $100 million in capital funding to seed a transformative project, expecting to leverage significant private and philanthropic investment.
And half of the remaining $100 million of the financing package is earmarked for investment in non-profit research facilities. These investments are intended
to help New York City’s existing institutions create spaces where their research can advance toward commercialization. In doing so, the city aims to build a bridge between academic researchers and the commercial lab space it hopes to bring online in the coming years.Between 2016 and 2026, the aim is to achieve more than quadruple R&D space to four million square feet, increase NIH funding 30% to $2 billion, quadruple the amount invested annually in New York biotech to $500 million, and increase the number of commercial research jobs by 20% to 20,000.
“We have such fantastic research institutions here that we would put ourselves up against anyone and argue that we’re the top. But one area where we know that we are not the top is in the commercialization of the life sciences,” says James Patchett, President and CEO of the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC). “And, so, we believe that there’s a moment in time, right now, where if we put our cards on the table we can be a leader in this field.”
“The Applied Life Sciences Hub has the potential to vault New York City into the forefront of this growing industry,” Alicia Glen, the city’s deputy mayor for housing and economic development, said in a statement. “We are excited to begin this partnership with researchers, innovators and institutions so we can spur the breakthroughs and jobs that will help define our city for decades to come.”
