Alexandria to build 550K sf life-sciences tower at East Side campus

REIT inks deal with the city to move forward on third building

John Cunningham and the Alexandria Center for Life Science campus at 430 East 29th Street (Credit: Cooper Union and Startup Columbia)
John Cunningham and the Alexandria Center for Life Science campus at 430 East 29th Street (Credit: Cooper Union and Startup Columbia)

Alexandria Real Estate Equities reached an agreement with the city that allows the company to move forward with plans for a 550,000-square-foot tower at its East Side life-sciences campus.

The California-based real estate investment trust announced Thursday that it signed an amendment allowing it start development on the north tower at its 1.3 million-square-foot campus along the FDR Drive between East 28th and East 30th streets.

The deal increases the size of the north tower – the third building on the site – from the originally planned 420,000 square feet to 550,000 square feet. It could cost around $700 million to build, according to Crain’s.

John Cunningham, Alexandria’s director for the New York City region, said the north tower will be “designed to meet the needs of early-stage companies spinning out of world-class academic and medical institutions, which comprise the majority of demand in New York City.”

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Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration has pushed to make the city a hot spot for the biotech and life-sciences sectors, which are booming in places like Boston. Earlier this week, the Long Island City Partnership released a report pitching the Queens neighborhood as an ideal place for a hub.

Alexandria last week bought a Long Island City building for $75 million, which it plans to convert to life-science and biotech uses.

Earlier this year, the company teamed up with David Werner to buy Pfizer’s Midtown East headquarters for $365 million.