SPARC Kips Bay Will Create Over 15,000 Jobs, Generate $42 Billion in Economic Impact Over 30 Years, and Deliver State-of-the-Art Life Sciences Space to CUNY Community
Mayor Adams, Governor Hochul Have Consistently Set Tone for a Focused City-State Relationship That Delivers a More Affordable City for New Yorkers
New York City Mayor Eric Adams, New York Governor Kathy Hochul, New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) President and CEO Andrew Kimball, and The City University of New York (CUNY) Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez today celebrated progress on the Science Park and Research Campus (SPARC) Kips Bay project, a first-of-its-kind life sciences innovation, career, and education hub they have been working in partnership to make a reality since year one of the Adams administration. Deconstruction of the current campus on the site is expected to begin in February 2026, with construction of the new SPARC campus expected to begin in 2027. Today’s announcement is yet another example of the successful city-state partnership Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul have achieved for the last four years, working together to address the affordability crisis, create new housing, lower taxes, advance bold infrastructure projects, and make the city safer.
“SPARC Kips Bay will transform an entire New York City block into a state-of-the-art destination for the life sciences and healthy industry. It will create 15,000 good-paying jobs and generate over $42 billion in economic impact for our city. We thank our partners, NYCEDC, CUNY, and, especially, Governor Hochul for her steadfast support and leadership,” said Mayor Adams. “From day one, Governor Hochul has been a real partner in ‘Getting Stuff Done’ for our city and working people. Over the past four years, we have worked together to make our city more affordable, delivered the ‘City of Yes for Housing Opportunity,’ expanded the New York City Earned Income Tax Credit for the first time in nearly two decades, and eliminated the personal income tax for over 582,000 New Yorkers through our ‘Axe the Tax for Working-Class’ plan. We have worked in partnership to get big, visionary projects planned, approved, and built, including the reimaging of the Kingsbridge Armory and our historic plan to turn the Brooklyn Marine Terminal into a modern maritime port. Together, we have invested in a bold vision for the five boroughs that has made New York City safer, more affordable, and the best place to live and raise a family.”
“The new SPARC campus will drive innovation and research for New York’s nation-leading life sciences ecosystem, ensuring that groundbreaking medical advances are done right here in this city,” said Governor Hochul. “Over the past four years, Mayor Adams and I have made bold strides to uplift New York City’s economy, create good-paying jobs for New Yorkers, address the affordable housing crisis head-on, and forge ahead with critical infrastructure projects — showcasing what can be accomplished through state and city partnership.”
“SPARC Kips Bay will expand pathways into public health careers for our students and provide state-of-the-art facilities for our faculty who are conducting research for the public good,” said CUNY Chancellor Matos Rodríguez. “I’m pleased to mark this milestone and grateful to Governor Hochul and Mayor Adams for their leadership and support of this transformational project, which will strengthen our city and university.”
Next Steps for SPARC
The transformation of SPARC will bring over 2 million square feet of academic, public health, and life sciences space to the community. First announced by Mayor Adams, Governor Hochul, NYCEDC, and CUNY in October 2022, the historic project is expected to create more than 15,000 total jobs, generate $42 billion in economic impact over the next 30 years, and establish a pipeline from New York City’s public schools and public universities to future-forward and family-supporting careers in the life sciences and health care sectors.
The Innovation East development — located at 455 First Avenue in Manhattan — will replace the former and obsolete Public Health Lab with a new state-of-the-art life science hub. The Public Health Lab will relocate to a new, modern facility in Harlem to continue its critical work, which is expected to be complete in 2026. Demolition of the existing 455 First Avenue building is anticipated to occur once the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene vacates, which is expected in 2026. SPARC Kips Bay passed Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULRUP) and received New York City Council approval in February 2025.
The SPARC Kips Bay and Innovation East projects are key initiatives to advance the LifeSci NYC with the goal of creating and attracting accessible jobs in life sciences, health care, and public health; and cementing New York City as a global leader in the sector.
Addressing New York City’s Affordability Crisis
Last year, Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul worked together to pass “City of Yes for Housing Opportunity,” the most pro-housing zoning proposal in New York City history. The citywide rezoning plan will enable the creation of 80,000 new homes over the next 15 years and invest $5 billion — including $1 billion from the state — towards critical infrastructure updates and housing. Additionally, in 2024, Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul worked with the New York state Legislature to pass a comprehensive housing agreement as part of the Fiscal Year 2025 budget. That agreement — which included new tools to encourage more affordable housing, convert offices into homes, allow more density in housing, and create safe basement apartments — is already delivering more housing for New Yorkers across the city.
Further, Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul worked together to establish the New York City Public Housing Preservation Trust, paving the way for the overdue repair, rehabilitation, and modernization of 25,000 apartments under control of the New York City Housing Authority.
Over the last four years, under Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul’s leadership, the city and state worked together to deliver hundreds of millions of dollars in tax relief for working-class New Yorkers, including the first expansion of the New York City Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) in nearly two decades and Mayor Adams’ “Axe the Tax for the Working-Class” proposal to eliminate and lower city personal income taxes for nearly 500,000 New Yorkers and their dependents. When combined, both Axe the Tax for the Working Class and the new, enhanced NYC EITC is putting more than a collective $408 million back into the pockets of 2 million New Yorkers.
Delivering on Big, Bold Infrastructure and Economic Development Projects
Since 2022, Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul have worked together to advance bold economic development and infrastructure projects that had previously languished for decades and bring new housing, jobs, and public space to New York City.
Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul — as well as local elected officials and community leaders — helped pass a historic vision plan to turn the Brooklyn Marine Terminal into a vibrant, mixed-use community. Backed by $418 million in city, state, and federal investments, the ambitious plan will transform the dilapidated marine terminal into a 60-acre, all-electric maritime port, as well as create 6,000 new homes, 28 acres of public space, 37,000 construction jobs, and 275,000 square feet of commercial space along the Brooklyn waterfront.
Additionally, Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul helped pass a historic plan to transform the Kingsbridge Armory in the Bronx into a thriving, community-centered hub. With a state-of-the-art venue space for entertainment, new cultural and commercial space, light industrial manufacturing space, over 25,000 square feet of dedicated community space, and approximately 500 permanently-affordable homes, the new Kingsbridge Armory will deliver a more affordable Bronx for working-class New Yorkers.
Along with the “New” New York initiative to ensure an equitable economic recovery after the pandemic; a joint planning effort for the future of Roosevelt Island; an agreement to replace and expand the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Midtown Manhattan; a $500 million investment from the Battery Park City Authority’s Joint Purpose Fund into affordable housing; new incentive programs to encourage businesses to maintain offices in or move to New York City; and more, the Adams and Hochul administrations have consistently delivered a productive partnership and real results year after year.
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