
The City Innovations Collaborative will be housed in the Taystee Lab Building in West Harlem. Image Credit: Google Maps.
The City College of New York and the Mount Sinai Health System will build new spaces dedicated to startups. Last month, Mayor Eric Adams and the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) directed $15 million to the City College of New York (CCNY) and $11.6 million to the Mount Sinai Health System (Mount Sinai), of a total $1 billion committed to NYCEDC’s LifeSci NYC initiative. Both awards will go towards construction of new spaces geared towards providing startups with resources. Adams and NYCEDC are confident that such startups will benefit the city in turn. (more…)
On September 5, 2023, the Department of City Planning announced further information sessions about the City of Yes for Economic Opportunity zoning text amendment. The proposed zoning text amendment is part of Mayor Adams and the Department of City Planning’s City of Yes initiative to remove outdated provisions and revise the zoning text to enable the better growth of the economy, housing, and the use of green technology. The City of Yes for Economic Opportunity amendment contains 18 reforms that support the growth of small businesses, help fill vacant storefronts, help grow the life sciences sector and revitalize commercial corridors. (more…)

Mayor Adams, last year announcing the proposed City of Yes amendments. A year later, one amendment is in public review, and the second has just been revealed. Image Credit: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office
The amendment is the second of three proposed zoning text amendments from Mayor Adams designed to address outdated zoning issues. On June 14, 2023, Mayor Eric Adams and Department of City Planning Director and City Planning Commission Chair Dan Garodnick revealed the “City of Yes for Economic Opportunity” zoning text amendment. The proposed amendment is part of Mayor Adams’ City of Yes zoning text amendments to modernize the zoning text and remove burdensome outdated provisions that hinder economic, housing and resiliency growth. For CityLand’s prior coverage of the City of Yes Amendments, click here. (more…)

Mayor Adams visits several life sciences-related businesses in the Brooklyn Navy Yard following the announcement of a $20 million biotechnology center there. Image Credit: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office.
On March 3, 2023, New York City Mayor Eric Adams, New York City Economic Development Corporation, and Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation announced the City will open a new sustainability-focused biotechnology center at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. The $20 million center will open in 2025 and be the first commercial center for sustainable biotechnology development in the United States. More than 400 jobs will be created and supported through the center’s office spaces, research laboratories, and programming spaces. (more…)

The Life Sciences sector has seen incredible growth in the NYC metro region. The Zoning for Economic Opportunity text amendment may change restrictions that make it easier for life sciences industries to expand and continue to grow. Image Credit: Tory Williams/EDC.
On Wednesday, June 1, Mayor Eric Adams outlined his, “City of Yes” initiative. This initiative is the next phase of his, “Rebuild, Renew, Reinvent,” plan to stimulate recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. “City of Yes,” is built around a series of three as-yet-unwritten zoning text amendments to modernize and simplify zoning resolutions to encourage business growth, stimulate housing creation, and reduce the city’s carbon footprint. (more…)