NYCEDC and Deerfield Management Partner to Create a Life Sciences Campus -- MATTER to Create LifeSci NYC's Newest Incubator

NEW YORK, Sept. 26, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) and Deerfield Management, a New York City-based healthcare investment firm, announced a new partnership to redevelop a 12-story building located at 345 Park Avenue South into a life sciences campus as part of LifeSci NYC, a $500 million commitment to establishing New York City as a global leader in the life sciences. The campus will provide expansion space to support healthcare and biotech start-ups and growing companies that work on cutting-edge R&D to treat diseases and chronic conditions. Programming for emerging healthcare and life sciences companies will be operated by Deerfield in partnership with MATTER, a Chicago-based nonprofit healthcare incubator. The campus will create approximately 1,400 quality jobs and is expected to open in early 2021.

The campus will offer life sciences and digital health start-ups as well as high growth companies access to laboratory space and critical resources to grow, providing a single location for entrepreneurs to take concepts and turn them into treatments for diseases like cancer, Alzheimer's, diabetes, among others. The life sciences campus will include approximately 300,000 square-feet of life sciences space, of which more than 200,000 square-feet will be wet lab capable. MATTER will provide resources and programming to accelerate startup development and foster collaboration between entrepreneurs and industry-leading organizations, including corporate innovation groups, patient groups, and market leaders.

In addition, Deerfield Management will commit up to $30M to fund programming in partnership with NYCEDC, focused on workforce development, diversity, and inclusion that will support nearly 5,000 New Yorkers in the burgeoning life sciences ecosystem. Initial programmatic offerings will include NYCEDC's LifeSci NYC Internship program as well as Deerfield's existing CUNY Fellows, Break into the Boardroom and Women in Science initiatives.

"The Life Sciences campus has the potential to place New York City at the forefront of this growing industry. We are excited to begin this partnership with Deerfield and MATTER to provide good-paying jobs and workforce development opportunities for New Yorkers of all backgrounds to enter into the burgeoning life sciences ecosystem," said Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development Vicki Been.

"The shortage of commercial laboratory, engineering, and computing space has prevented us from developing cures for some of the most pressing medical conditions here in New York and nationally, but with LifeSci NYC we are changing that quickly," said NYCEDC President and CEO James Patchett. "Our partnership with Deerfield and MATTER is a game changer for New Yorkers and patients everywhere and will provide a new home for breakthrough scientific discoveries and approximately 1,400 quality good-paying jobs in the life sciences sector."

"We are proud to be part of a community of people in New York who strive to save and extend lives. Creating an environment in which innovative thinking, ground-breaking advances in scientific discovery and where the development of new paradigms of patient care will occur every day is tremendously exciting," said James Flynn, Managing Partner of Deerfield.  

"Since opening in Chicago in 2015, MATTER has helped hundreds of startups and corporate innovators transform their ideas into solutions that improve every aspect of the healthcare experience," said MATTER CEO Steven Collens. "We are thrilled to work with the NYCEDC, Deerfield and the entire New York City community to harness the incredible talent and resources in the area to further accelerate innovation, advance care, and improve lives."

The partnership with Deerfield is the first of a series of LifeSci NYC's infrastructure investments from the Applied Life Sciences Campus RFEI and includes support from the New York City Industrial Development Agency (NYCIDA) to offset the high cost of outfitting wet laboratory, engineering, and computing space. NYCEDC's LifeSci NYC initiative is a $500 million commitment to establishing New York City as a global leader in life sciences R&D and innovation, spurring an estimated 16,000 jobs and creating up to 3 million square feet of new space for life sciences companies and researchers.

"The new life sciences campus is a big boost to New York City's life sciences sector," said Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer. "Congratulations to the EDC, Deerfield Management, and MATTER for partnering on this new center, which will host 1,400 jobs, provide training opportunities for our pool of post-doctoral students, and make the world healthier." 

"I want to congratulate EDC, Deerfield, and Matter on what will certainly be one of the premier laboratory facilities for the development of the future of health treatments and discoveries," said New York City Councilwoman Carlina Rivera. The 1,400 jobs coming to the Life Sciences Campus is just another signal, on top of our numerous hospitals and health care facilities, that the East Side of Manhattan is quickly becoming a top destination nationwide for healthcare and life science jobs. It's important that EDC is working to ensure New Yorkers of all stripes have access to the well-paying jobs of the future, and I look forward to seeing the next generation of life science experts come from across our city to work at this Center."

"The life sciences campus will provide space and support to the emerging healthcare and tech organizations that are turning scientific research into the cures and treatments of tomorrow," said Council Member Paul A. Vallone, Chair of the Committee on Economic Development. "This partnership between NYCEDC and Deerfield Management furthers our City's position as a leader in life science innovation and will benefit patients in New York City and beyond for years to come."

"The more commercial laboratory space our City has, the higher the chances that the next historic medical breakthrough will happen right here in New York City," said Council Member Ben Kallos. "Congratulations to the New York City Economic Development Corporation and Deerfield Management as they collaborate on the Life Sciences campus, which will include 200,000 square-feet of much needed wet lab space and related office and co-working space. Thank you to EDC President James Patchett for working to make New York City national leader in the life-sciences sector and creating 1,400 new quality jobs at the LifeSci Center." 

"NYCEDC has been a wonderful partner and this development demonstrates the agency's steadfast efforts to expand the City's life sciences and biotech ecosystem," said Erik Lium, PhD, Executive Vice President of Mount Sinai Innovation Partners, Mount Sinai's commercialization engine. "This facility will support advancing much-needed therapies and cures into the clinic to positively impact patient lives." 

"New York is rapidly developing as an innovation hub in life sciences. The Life Sciences Campus enhances opportunities for entrepreneurs to develop important therapeutics while staying in New York said Jennifer Hawks Bland, CEO of NewYorkBIO.  Building on the earlier investments of LifeSci NYC and others, the Life Sciences Campus reflects the growth of the importance of the life sciences in New York and we are ready to help bring those New York developed cures to the world."

Today's announcement builds upon a series of recent LifeSci NYC announcements including an expansion of the Alexandria Center for Life Sciences North Tower on Manhattan's East Side offering a 550,000 square-foot facility to provide much-needed commercial laboratory and office space for growth-stage life science companies. NYCEDC awarded BioLabs@NYULangone a $5 million grant to fund approximately 50,000 square feet of new incubator lab space, approved a $10M fund to help NYC companies expand their physical footprint in NYC, and launched an internship program to train the next generation of life sciences talent. Since the start of the internship program in 2018, 218 students have participated gaining both business and scientific experience from NYC based companies of which, approximately one third of the students from the 2018 cohort received full time offers. 

The life sciences sector is comprised of mission-driven companies in fields like biotechnology, physiology, and biochemistry that work to translate scientific research into cures, treatments and technologies that save lives and improve human health. With an average salary of $75,000 per year, the life sciences industry presents a key opportunity to create good jobs in New York City.

About NYCEDC
New York City Economic Development Corporation creates shared prosperity across New York City's five boroughs by strengthening neighborhoods and creating good jobs. NYCEDC works with and for communities to provide them with the resources they need to thrive, and we invest in projects that increase sustainability, support job growth, develop talent, and spark innovation to strengthen the City's competitive advantage. To learn more about our work and initiatives, please visit us on Facebook, Twitter, or our blog.

About Deerfield Management
Deerfield is a healthcare investment management firm committed to advancing healthcare through investment, information and philanthropy. 

About MATTER
MATTER, the premier healthcare incubator and innovation hub, includes more than 200 cutting-edge startups from around the world, working together with dozens of hospitals and health systems, universities and industry-leading companies to build the future of healthcare. Together, the MATTER community is accelerating innovation, advancing care and improving lives. For more information, visit matter.health and follow @MATTERhealth.

Shavone Williams (NYCEDC) | 212-312-3523 | [email protected]
Karen Heidelberger (Deerfield) | 212-551-1600 | [email protected]  
Caitlin Blum (MATTER) | 312-558-1770 | [email protected]

SOURCE Deerfield Management Company; New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC)

Related Links

http://www.deerfield.com