Major Land Use Victory for New York Blood Center

New York Blood Center won a major litigation victory on Aug. 22, 2022, when the New York State Supreme Court dismissed a petition challenging the November 2021 land use approvals — a rezoning, zoning text amendments, and special permit — required for the development of its  “Center East” project on East 67th Street in Manhattan. Kramer Levin’s Land Use and Environmental Departments represented the Blood Center throughout the land use approval process, including its public approvals pursuant to the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure and environmental review pursuant to the City Environmental Quality Review, and built the administrative and legislative record on which the court based its decision.

Center East will be a life sciences hub located on the Blood Center’s current property at 310 East 67th Street. It will provide a new headquarters and laboratory space for the Blood Center, as well as commercial laboratory space for life sciences companies. The project will anchor a new life sciences cluster that includes the world-class medical and academic institutions located in the far East 60’s, and it will make a major contribution to New York City’s life sciences industry.

The proceeding challenging the Blood Center’s approvals was brought by a neighboring building. In her opinion, State Supreme Court Justice Bluth dismissed all of the claims and granted summary judgement to New York City and the Blood Center. The dismissal is a testament to the careful and considered planning that went into the Center East project, by all involved.