(Google Maps)
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center is set to add a 600-foot-tall building to its campus on York Avenue. According to Patch, MSK filed plans this week to demolish the existing residential building at 1233 York Avenue (which it also owns) to make way for the new “MSK Pavilion.” The building currently provides dormitory housing for MSK trainees, students and employees.
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Plans for the project, located between 66th and 67th streets, were first presented to Community Board 8 last April. While the committee was supportive, they also expressed concern for the loss of housing in the neighborhood and potential disruption, especially to P.S. 183 which is on the same block. After a series of task force meetings, MSK was asked to replace all housing units lost in the neighborhood as part of an agreement to proceed. The current towers consist of approximately 300 residential units which were used for hospital staff and students. MSK says that the towers are currently empty, and that all residents had accepted offers of alternate housing.
The zoning application filed with the city requests permitting for a 31-story hospital building with a pedestrian bridge over East 67th Street. According to the MSK website, the bridge will ensure “total integration into MSK’s main campus,” serving “as an efficient route to move critically ill patients, equipment, and faculty between Memorial Hospital and the Pavilion.” In addition, the center will be home to 28 operating suites and 206 single-occupancy inpatient beds. Construction is expected to be completed by 2030 “pending completion of the required land use and environmental review processes.”
MSK cites the CDC’s estimate that cancer cases will rise by nearly 50% by 2050 – translating to more than 60,000 new cases per year in New York City – as the reason the massive new inpatient center is needed. They plan to design a center that can address the evolving needs of cancer patients moving into the future with “advanced technology, cutting-edge robotics, improved digital infrastructure, and enhanced operating suites.” Plans are undergoing continued city agency and public reviews. Residents with questions can email communityaffairs@mskcc.org.
Relocation arrangements? The mind boggles.