The sprawling new research laboratory set to rise on a quiet Upper East Side block officially has a name. Iron Horse Labs will honor the legacy of legendary Yankees first basemen Lou Gehrig, who earned the nicknamed the ‘Iron Horse’ for playing 2,130 straight games, and was born in a tenement once located on the new building’s footprint.
Set to be constructed at 309 East 94th Street, between First and Second Avenues, the new 200,000 square foot, nine-story lab will extend north to East 95th Street on an adjacent lot also owned by developer Elevator Research Properties.
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“Iron Horse Labs’ inherent function as a cutting-edge research facility is itself a tribute to Gehrig and his continuing status as the face of a disease still in need of a cure,” the developer said in an announcement.
Gehrig died in 1941 of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), a progressive degenerative neuromuscular disease, which even now, modern medicine is only able to slow down.
“Lou Gehrig continues to be a symbol of determination and perseverance both for those battling the disease and for the many searching for cures,” said Bill Harris, Managing Director of architecture firm Perkins & Will, “we attempted to capture that spirit and reflect those contributions through aspects of the building’s design.”
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A plaque honoring Gehrig that was affixed to the exterior of the current building will be restored and featured in the lobby of the new life sciences lab, the developer says.
In addition to a convenient location that places the Iron Horse Labs in close proximity to major hospitals on the Upper East Side and East Harlem — including Metropolitan Hospital, Lenox Hill Hospital, Mount Sinai, Weill Cornell Medical Center and the Hospital for Special Surgery — the new building will also be quite close to the 96th Street-Subway station.
Demolition work is currently underway at the site and Iron Horse labs is expected to opens its doors in mid-to-late 2025.
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