New Public Health Lab Coming To Harlem In 2026, City Says

HARLEM, NY — The city broke ground Wednesday on a sustainable public health lab in Harlem, the Health department announced.

The new facility at 40 West 137th St. — across the street from Harlem Hospital on Malcolm X Boulevard — is expected to be occupied by 2026, city officials said.

“We can’t afford to wait for the next pandemic to strengthen our public health infrastructure,” said Mayor Eric Adams.

“The NYC Public Health Laboratory will bring a state-of-the-art facility to Harlem to serve and protect the public health of all New Yorkers."

The new facility comes as the Public Health lab in Kips Bay faces increased strain from emerging disease outbreaks such as diphtheria to the Covid-19 pandemic and Monkeypox infection, officials noted.

The new site will help streamline research between both health sites and provide more resources in a predominantly minority community, according to Economic Development Corporation, which is managing construction of the project.

“We are working to ensure our best and brightest have the … facilities they need and deserve to continue their groundbreaking and lifesaving efforts on behalf of our city,” EDC President and CEO Andrew Kimball said in a statement.

“This new lab will offer them the tools and resources needed to identify future health threats, while the lab’s new location will benefit public health equity, which has never been more vital.”

The Harlem health site will have a training lab to prepare future epidemiologists and an auditorium available to the community, EDC said to Patch. It will also have a Sexually Transmitted Infection testing facility and it was designed with staff wellness in mind.

NYC Health + Hospitals President and CEO Mitchell Katz said that the Big Apple has one of the finest public health laboratories and that its about time the space reflects the caliber of work being done.

“NYC Health + Hospitals is proud to be neighbors and ongoing collaborative partners in public health,” Katz added in a prepared statement.

Investing in PHL is an investment in world-class research, emergency preparedness, and most importantly the health and safety of all New Yorkers, said Department of Citywide Administrative Services Commissioner Dawn M. Pinnock.

“At DCAS, our entire mission is about making city government work for all New Yorkers and we firmly believe public health resources like this laboratory will benefit us all,” Pinnock noted in a statement. “We look forward to the future ribbon cutting and celebrating a more sustainable, energy efficient facility.”

Skidmore, Owings & Merrill is the design firm behind the new $454 million PHL facility, and Skanska is the construction partner for the project, which includes a 10-story, 240,000-square-foot building that will comply with New York City’s resiliency and sustainability regulations that include LEED version 4 Silver and a resilient structure with all critical building systems located above the current 100-year flood plain, according to EDC.

The city Health Department and EDC secured $25 million from DCAS to make the new lab energy efficient via its laboratory equipment, solar photovoltaic panels and chilled beams, according to the economic development agency. It will also have a cogeneration plant to provide significant energy and cost savings helping the lab achieve 80 percent carbon emissions reduction by the year 2050.