Lenox Hill Hospital Plan Moves Forward With Key City Commission Vote

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — The controversial plan to rezone a portion of East 77th Street and expand Northwell's Lenox Hill Hospital just got the stamp of approval from the City Planning Commission on Wednesday morning with a unanimous vote.

The Commission's approval is critical as the pending project advances through the mandatory public review process, heading next to the City Council for a vote. From there, the mayor can authorize or veto the vote.

The Commission's motion to approve the plan follows two months after Community Board 8 voted 23-15 with two abstentions to reject Northwell's proposal to build extra stories and modernize many parts of the hospital on East 77th Street between Lexington and Park avenues.

Then, in May, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine also made an official recommendation to approve the project.

"We have a collective responsibility here to ensure the city's healthcare infrastructure is able to meet evolving needs, provide excellent care and remain competitive to attract and retain talent," Daniel Garodnick, the chair of the City Planning Commission, said before casting his vote in favor of the plan.

A spokesperson told Patch they were grateful to the City Planning Commission for "recognizing the critical importance of revitalizing Lenox Hill Hospital."

"This vote brings us one step closer to delivering a modern, world-class hospital that meets the urgent and growing needs of everyday New Yorkers," the spokesperson told Patch. "We’re proud of the significant improvements made through community engagement, including reduced building heights, accelerated construction timelines and expanded neighborhood partnerships, and we remain committed to collaborating with all stakeholders to bring this essential project to life."

Stephanie Reckler, the co-founder of The Committee To Protect Our Lenox Hill Neighborhood, a grassroots organization that formed in opposition to the plan when it was first introduced, was 'dismayed but not disheartened' by the vote on Wednesday morning.

"I am so disappointed that the CPC paid no attention to the community, and Community Board 8 and their resolution," Reckler told Patch. "What are we, as a community, if our elected officials don't listen to us? I was shocked that not a single commissioner voted to turn it down."

Reckler said members of her organization are planning to meet with City Councilmember Keith Powers, who represents Lenox Hill, in the coming weeks to voice their opposition.

Garodnick said that while he approves of the plan moving forward, he urges the developers to keep the neighborhood's concerns about construction in mind.

"I think it's important for everyone to recognize that years of construction, if not done in a sensitive way, would have impacts on the surrounding neighborhood," Garodnick said.

"I'm pleased that the applicant has agreed to reduce the overall height of the building from prior iterations, preserve and renovate buildings along Park Avenue to limit construction impact and pursue public realm improvements, including relocating all loading and unloading activities of patients and materials off the street and within the building."

Nuha Ansari, executive director of Friends Of The Upper East Side, told Patch the Wednesday morning vote was a disappointment to her and her preservation advocacy organization.

"We are disappointed by the City Planning Commission’s unanimous vote to approve Northwell Health’s redevelopment plan for Lenox Hill Hospital without requiring any reduction in the height of the proposed tower on narrow Lexington Avenue," Ansari said.

"This isn’t smart planning; it’s an aggressive overreach that would be vastly out of scale with anything in the surrounding area and violate long-established zoning protections that have preserved Lexington Avenue's unique character."

The renovation plans

There are two different designs currently on the table for the new building.

In one plan, the building would be built to rise 436 feet over Lexington Avenue, but taper down to 195 feet on East 77th Street and East 76th Street.

This plan would take six years of construction on the building itself and three more years of work on the building's interior, hospital officials said.

In another newer plan, the building would come to 395 feet over Lexington Avenue, and drop down to 360 feet over the side streets.

Building this plan would take six-and-a-half years of construction on the building itself, and two-and-a-half years of construction inside the building, hospital officials said.

But, with either plan, the hospital will transform all patient rooms into single-bed rooms, update operating rooms, and add new center specifically for labor and delivery patients, hospital officials said.

The NYC Department of City Planning gave Northwell the green light to renovate the medical center and add extra stories to the building this March, which launched the mandatory public review process, the first step in finalizing construction plans.

This is a developing story and may be updated. For questions and tips, email Miranda.Levingston@Patch.com.