Newmark Grubb Knight Frank (NGKF) has arranged two leases that will support the generation, processing and storage of the largest concentration of biomedical research data within one organization, the New York Genome Center (NYGC), the first major biotech center engaged in genomics research to be established in Manhattan. The nonprofit entity, backed by 11 Institutional Founding Members-including many of the region’s pre-eminent universities, hospitals and research labs-will take office and laboratory space at 101 Avenue of the Americas in Hudson Square and will meet its offsite data center requirements at Intergate.Manhattan at 375 Pearl Street.
NGKF’s Bill Harvey represented NYGC in negotiations with the landlord, Edward J. Minskoff Equities, Inc. NYGC is to take occupancy of 170,000 square feet on seven floors of custom built-out space in the LEED Silver-certified building by mid-2013. The $47 million build-out, for which work has already begun, will create sequencing, bioinformatics and research labs, a new technologies center, and computing infrastructure.
“The center is expected to grow vigorously, from about 100 employees at the start to more than 500 employees within five years,” said Harvey. “The capacity to grow as rapidly as needed, and a location in the vicinity of vibrant Hudson Square that would draw employees to the center, were both critical requirements for this assignment.”
Equally critical is the capacity to support the enormous data load that is an integral part of genomic science. NYGC’s offsite data requirements will be managed at Sabey Data Center’s (SDC) Intergate.Manhattan. New York’s largest and most advanced high-rise data center will provide seamless scalabilty to NYGC and the network to connect all the major genomic research centers in the world - with NYGC as the hub and leader. NYGC also secured space in SDC’s Intergate.Quincy, a data center campus in Central Washington State where low cost hydropower will support storage for NYGC’s data at a fraction of the cost. NGKF’s Harvey, Michael Morris, and Bryan Loewen represented NYGC in this transaction. A team led by NGKF President, New York tri-state area, David Falk comprises the leasing team at Intergate.Manhattan.
NYGC was founded in 2010 to leverage the collective resources of 11 world-class institutions in and around New York to pursue genomic science to research and devise potential treatments for diseases like cancer. In genome sequencing, a person’s blood or tissue sample is used to decode and analyze the DNA or RNA sequence of the individual.
Nancy J. Kelley, founding executive director of NYGC, said, “Our facility will be home to one of the world’s largest genomic centers, combining innovative thinking, leading edge technology and an entrepreneurial spirit.”
Cornell University/Weill Cornell Medical College, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Mount Sinai Medical Center, and New York-Presbyterian Hospital are among the institutions behind the scientific effort.
“Thanks to our world-class universities, medical research centers and pharmaceutical companies, New York is already a global leader in the commercial life sciences,” said Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg in a press release. “The New York Genome Center will make us even more of a world leader in the life sciences, in much the same way that the applied sciences campuses we’re developing on Roosevelt Island and in Downtown Brooklyn will further solidify New York’s leadership in the tech sector.”
NYGC is being launched with $125 million in public, private and grant money - including $3 million from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.
About Newmark Grubb Knight Frank
A part of BGC Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ:BGCP), Newmark Grubb Knight Frank is one of the largest commercial real estate service firms in the U.S. It brings together the strategic consultative approach to creating value for clients and leading position in the New York market that are hallmarks of Newmark; the complementary strengths of Grubb & Ellis in leasing and management, investment sales, valuation and capital markets services; and BGC’s financial strength, proprietary technology, expertise in global capital markets and deep relationships with many of the world’s leading financial institutions.
Newmark Grubb Knight Frank, together with its affiliates and London-based partner Knight Frank, employs more than 11,000 professionals, operating from more than 300 offices in established and emerging property markets on five continents. This major force in real estate is meeting the local and global needs of tenants, owners, investors and developers worldwide.