The local paper for the Upper East Side
WEEK OF JANUARY
Healthy Manhattan
17-23 2019 201
• 2019 SPECIAL REPORT • PAGE 13 •
THE METAMORPHOSIS OF A HOSPITAL EXCLUSIVE It’s eastward ho as Lenox Hill redevelops an entire blockfront on Third Avenue, mulls a big sale on Park Avenue — and ruffles community feathers amid demands for greater transparency BY DOUGLAS FEIDEN
The Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum on Fifth Avenue in a Jan. 13 photo. The public will be barred from the landmark Carnegie Mansion until the federal government reopens. Photo: Douglas Feiden
CASUALTIES OF THE SHUTDOWN GOVERNMENT As venomous politics and dysfunction in Washington bring federal governance screeching to a halt, Manhattan absorbs a body slam BY DOUGLAS FEIDEN
At least four former presidents historically and inextricably linked to New York have been officially dissed. The culprit: The record-shattering federal government shutdown that’s largely the handiwork of the current president. “Grant’s Tomb is closed!” lamented City Council Member Mark Levine. “And the trash has been overflowing.” West Siders don’t typically enter the mausoleum at 122nd Street to visit the sarcophagus where the 18th president and his wife are en-
tombed. But General Ulysses S. Grant’s permanent perch on Riverside Drive has been a worldwide magnet for tourists since it was dedicated in 1897. Or at least it was. Then last month the National Park Service was forced to shutter the site due to the abrupt cutoff in federal funding. Overnight, the visitors vanished. In turn, that spotlighted the corrosive impact the shutdown has had on the micro-economies of Manhattan: “Our local businesses are hurting,” said Levine, whose West Side district takes in the national memorial. “The tourists who commonly walk over to Broadway to shop or have lunch after visiting aren’t here anymore.” The longest government closure in U.S. history has lasted 25 days, as of press time on Jan. 15. And as the fiery standoff between President Donald Trump and Congressional Demo-
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It was 1868 when the institution that would eventually became Lenox Hill Hospital first put down stakes on Park Avenue at East 77th Street. Now, 150 years later, the Upper East Side fixture is weighing whether it should monetize some of the pricey property at its ancestral home. The hospital is in the preliminary stages of exploring a potential sale of a parcel it owns on Park Avenue between 76th and 77th Streets, Straus News has learned. A real estate play would be a gamechanger for Lenox Hill, which is under the umbrella of Northwell Health and has been evaluating the option as a means of financing an ambitious expansion paired with a rehabilitation of both its legacy holdings and other East Side properties. The hospital’s main campus, between Park and Lexington Avenues, sits on some of the most valuable land in Manhattan — a full city block running 204 feet along the avenues and 405 feet down the side streets. It is a portion of its western frontage at 855 Park Ave. — a tourniquet’s throw from the Carlyle Hotel and the Met Breuer — which the hospital is now eyeing for a possible sale and redevelopment, according to sources familiar with its plans. There are three hospital buildings on the site, but it wasn’t immediately clear if one or more than one could be up for bids. It also was not yet known if Lenox Hill, should it decide to pro-
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The Park Avenue side of Lenox Hill Hospital on 77th Street in a recent photo. A portion of the super-expensive parcel is being eyed for possible sale and redevelopment. Photo: Douglas Feiden
What’s the big secret?” Elaine Walsh, co-chair of the zoning and development committee at Community Board 8
ceed, would partner with a private developer in a joint venture or sell the land outright. If the hospital moves ahead, the plot could be repositioned as an ultra-highend residential property. It would likely require a change of zoning — the current land use is for public medical facilities and institutions — before it could take its place among Park Avenue’s exclusive co-ops and condos. Asked what was contemplated for the western perimeter of Lenox Hill
and what the potential development timetable would be, Northwell spokesperson Barbara Osborn responded with a statement: “There are no set plans for our primary campus,” she said. “We are continuously looking to deepen and strengthen our network by investing in our Manhattan campus locations in order to continue to deliver the highest quality care. “We will update the community, patients, physicians and staff with more information as it becomes available.”
CONTINUED ON PAGE 7 Jewish women and girls light up the world by lighting the Shabbat candles every Friday evening 18 minutes before sunset. Friday, January 19th – 4:39 pm. For more information visit www.chabaduppereastside.com
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