• Press Release

Facts About The Leon and Norma Hess Center for Science and Medicine and Residential Tower Building Project

The Leon and Norma Hess Center for Science and Medicine takes The Mount Sinai Medical Center to the next level in research and patient care.

  • (December 13, 2012)

The Leon and Norma Hess Center for Science and Medicine, located at 1470 Madison Avenue between 101st and 102nd streets, takes The Mount Sinai Medical Center to the next level in research and patient care. Scientists and clinicians will work side-by-side in adjacent space, allowing for real-time collaboration that will change the way we practice medicine. The Hess Center is designed to increase the medical center's research capacity by 30 percent.

With nearly a half-million square-feet of new state-of-the-art medical research and clinical facilities, the Hess Center has six full floors of laboratory space and two floors of outpatient clinical space. The centerpiece of the building is a magnificent open stairway that symbolizes and enhances collaboration, as each floor flows into a common area. In this environment, basic and translational research being pursued on one floor will be translated into treatments and diagnostics that could improve outcomes for patients on another floor.

The lead gift to the Center was made by the Hess family. The building is named in honor of Leon Hess, a Mount Sinai Trustee from 1966 until his death in 1999, and his wife, Norma, for their generosity and commitment to Mount Sinai and to improved patient care more broadly.

The Hess Center is one of the few research facilities to open this year in the United States, and one of the first to be completed or even started in New York City over the last several years.
Researchers located in the building have the potential to draw more than $350 million in National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding over the next five years.

The adjacent 52-story residential tower at 1214 Fifth Avenue and 102nd Street houses two floors of the Mount Sinai Doctors Faculty Practice outpatient services with an entrance at 10 East 102nd Street. Floors 5 and 6 of the tower are home to the Mount Sinai Primary Care Associates and the Mount Sinai Diabetes Center, both of which have been substantially expanded to address the growing demand for Mount Sinai's medical services.

The facilities will generate almost 800 jobs over the next four years.

Changing the Face of Medicine

"The construction of the Leon and Norma Hess Center for Science and Medicine underscores Mount Sinai's ongoing commitment to bringing critical therapies from bench to bedside. The building will bring medical breakthroughs to patients by facilitating the translation of basic science done on one floor and more precise medicine for patients on another floor."

- Kenneth L. Davis, MD, President and CEO, The Mount Sinai Medical Center

"Mount Sinai is a magnet for researchers making critical contributions in every part of the scientific spectrum. The building of the Hess Center will invigorate basic, translational, and clinical research and help support the bold thinking and disciplined science that can fundamentally change the face of medicine.”

- Dennis S. Charney, MD, Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz Dean of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs of The Mount Sinai Medical Center

Economic Impact: Quote from Mayor Michael Bloomberg

"New York City's economy has recovered far faster than the rest of the nation's because we've diversified our economy – industries like health care and education are growing as others contract, resulting in solid middle-class jobs across New York City. Mount Sinai is a phenomenally important employer in our City, and these new jobs in East Harlem are another important milestone in helping New York City further recover from the national recession.”

-New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg

Economic Impact: The Numbers

  • The Mount Sinai Medical Center is New York City's 10th largest employer with more than 15,000 employees
  • Mount Sinai has an annual payroll of over $1.5 billion (2011 data)
  • The research facilities at the Hess Center and Residential Tower are projected to result in an annual payroll of $50 million when fully occupied
  • The Hess Center is a state-of-the-art research and clinical facility expected to generate nearly 800 jobs; researchers, post-docs, technicians, nurses, social workers, nutritionists, medical assistants, registration and financial personnel, and other administrative staff
  • Nearly one-quarter of the construction workers who built the Hess Center came from East Harlem
  • The building will be completely filled with current faculty and new recruits in 18 to 24 months after opening, versus original projections of 4 to 5 years

Breakdown of 800 Jobs provided by the creation of the Hess Center and adjacent Residential Tower

Hess Center

  • 100 Scientists
  • 100 Graduate Students
  • 125 Post Doctoral Students
  • 200 Technicians
  • 25 Secretaries
  • 10 Administrators
  • 21 ENG jobs
  • 50 Buildings operations positions

Total Jobs: 631

The Ruttenberg Treatment Center at Tisch Cancer Institute (Cancer Clinical)

  • 9 Managers and/or Supervisors
  • 2 Technician/Specialist
  • 34 Nurses
  • 4 Aides/Orderlies/Attendants
  • 1 Physicians
  • 7 Physician Assistants
  • 4 Social workers
  • 20 Administrators
  • 17 Medical Assistants
  • 4 Pharmacists
  • 6 Physicists
  • 2 Staff Therapists
  • 2 Senior Therapists
  • 1 Clinical Coordinator
  • 1 PCA
  • 2 Registrars

Total Jobs: 116

Residential Tower: FPA Outpatient Practice — Mount Sinai Primary Care Associates and the Mount Sinai Diabetes Center

  • 12 Clinicians
  • 30 Support staff
  • 8 Other staff

Total Jobs: 50

The Hess Center and Residential Tower by Floor

The Friedman Brain Institute – 9th and 10th Floors

  • A collaborative and multidisciplinary environment to advance research and care with a focus on brain repair, cognition and therapies for neuropsychiatric disorders
  • Groundbreaking work will continue in aging-related illnesses like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease, schizophrenia, addiction, and autism.

The Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology – 8th Floor

  • Internet-scale generation and integration of multiple sources of biological data combined with clinical information will expand Mount Sinai's ability to characterize disease, and ultimately be more precise in the diagnosis and treatment of patients

The Mindich Child Health and Development Institute – 7th and 8th Floors

  • Integrating the latest technologies with a modern research layout, the new space will help scientist-physicians advance innovative paradigms to understand the effects of genetics and environment on child health, as well as personalize pediatric medicine
  • Areas of focus include cardiovascular conditions, diabetes, obesity, asthma, and allergies

The Helmsley Charitable Trust Center for Cardiovascular Research – 7th Floor

  • State-of-the-art resources will help deepen our understanding of the cardiovascular system and advance the global fight against heart disease
  • Areas of focus include imaging, tissue regeneration, genetics, and behavioral modification

The Tisch Cancer Institute – 5th and 6th Floors

  • 42,000 square feet of laboratory space on the 5th and 6th floors houses 50 investigators with a goal of improving the diagnosis and treatment—and ultimately prevention—of all cancers
  • Close proximity of scientists to patients on the 3rd and 4th floors could result in a great degree of spontaneity and potential for discovery
  • Promising areas of cancer research include immunotherapy, targeted therapies and inflammation
  • Radiology, Imaging, and Radiation Oncology will be moving into the nearby SC2 basement level in 2013, allowing for state-of-the-art research, equipment and technicians as well as a seamless diagnostic and treatment experience for patients
  • The Derald H. Ruttenberg Treatment Center of the Tisch Cancer Institute is housed on the 3rd and 4th Floors, and expands into the corresponding floors of the adjacent residential tower. Patient exam rooms are located on the 3rd floor while Cancer Infusion is on the 4th floor
    • Square footage of cancer treatment space doubled in size to 50,000 square with 54 infusion suites—several of which are dedicated to new treatments—and 48 exam rooms
    • Patients have easy access to treatments including chemotherapy and emerging care options through clinical trials
    • Centralized space enhances multi-disciplinary care for patients – highly unique in New York City
    • Specialized pharmacy for cancer patients is housed on the 4th Floor
    • A patient resource center provides written and digital materials to guide patients through the treatment process and any questions they may have about their disease, with support from Ruttenberg's patient experience manager
    • New consultation rooms where physician and nursing teams can collaborate with patients to develop customized care plans for each individual

The Bonnie M. Davis, MD and Kenneth L. Davis, MD Auditorium – 2nd Floor

  • Conference Center featuring a lecture hall two seminar rooms, and a conference room
  • Lecture hall named in honor of Mount Sinai's president and CEO and his wife
  • Lecture hall seats 144 people which makes it ideal for hosting a variety of grand round talks, educational events and clinical conferences

The Translational and Molecular Imaging Institute – 1st Floor, 7th Floor and 2 basement levels (SC1 & SC2)

  • Physician-scientists will apply leading-edge technologies, as well as new modalities such as bioluminescent and fluorescent imaging to diagnosis and treatment of diseases
  • Areas of discovery include neuroimaging, cardiovascular and cancer research and treating patients with nanomedicine
  • Mount Sinai will be among the first institutions in the world to combine an MRI and PET in a single machine, which will lead to earlier detection and more targeted treatments
  • A 7 Tesla MRI will enhance imaging in order to diagnose and treat diseases
  • A one of a kind Computed Tomography scanner will improve the precision of imaging while minimizing the radiation exposure
  • Radiation Oncology on the basement level of SC2is an expansion of existing treatment facilities to include 2 additional linear accelerators. Radiation Oncology takes approximately 1/3 of the total floor at 10,000 square feet. The other 2/3rds of the total floor consists of 20,000 square feet of clinical and research imaging space and includes a PET/MR and PET/CT scanner

Adjacent Residential Tower: Mount Sinai Primary Care Associates and the Mount Sinai Diabetes Center—5th and 6th Floors

  • The new location provides 14,300 square feet of clinical space, located on the 5th and 6th Floors of a new 43-story Residential Tower
  • The facility provides enough space for the five new physicians: four in the Diabetes Center and one in Primary Care Associates, with plans to increase the number of providers in the next year
  • The number of primary care providers at Mount Sinai has tripled in the last two years and there are plans to increase that number in the next year
  • Co-locating the Diabetes Center and Primary Care Associates together in the same location allows doctors from both practices to partner in the goal of helping patients receive the most thorough care possible

Hess Center Building Facts

  • Location: 1470 Madison Avenue between 101st and 102nd streets
  • Architect Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (designers of the Willis Tower in Chicago (formerly called the Sears Tower) and One World Trade Center (formerly called the Freedom Tower)
  • Perkins Eastman is the designer of the clinical space
  • Construction management: Bovis Lend Lease LMB, Inc.
  • Engineer: Jaros Baum & Boles (JB&B)
  • HVAC trade manager for construction stage: KSW, Inc.
  • Electrical: E-J Electric Installation Co.
  • Silver Level LEED Certification
  • Official opening: December 2012
  • Groundbreaking: June 2009
  • 10 stories, with one additional floor of mechanical space
  • 6 floors have laboratories
  • 4 laboratory modules on each floor
  • Open spiral staircase connecting each of the lab floors
  • 187 feet tall, with nearly 500,000 gross square feet
  • 385,000 square feet of research space total (laboratories, lecture halls, educational space, etc.), including:
    • 180,000 square feet of laboratory space
    • 30,000 square feet for imaging research
  • Hess Center construction cost approximately $440 million, financed through:
    • Equity including philanthropic donations
    • Dormitory Authority of the State of New York

Residential Tower Building Facts

  • Location: 1214 Fifth Avenue at 102nd Street
  • Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects and SLCE Architects were the Design Architects and Architects of Record, respectively, for the tower including the building shape, exterior facades, ground entry lobbies, amenities and residential units.
  • Perkins Eastman is the designer of the clinical space on floors 5 and 6
  • Management company: Related Companies
  • 52 stories
  • 500 feet tall with 425,000 gross square footage
    • 229 residential units floors 21-52
    • Twenty percent of the units (46 apartments) are affordable housing
      • 50 percent preference (23 apartments) for residents of Community Board 11 in East Harlem
  • Tower construction cost approximately $200 million, financed through:
    • Tax-exempt bonds issued through the New York State Housing Finance Agency (HFA) and
    • The Dormitory Authority of New York

Additional Information about the Hess Center

Interview with Dr. Dennis Charney, March 30, 2012

Time-lapse video of construction

Hess Center web page

Cover story, Mount Sinai Science Medicine magazine, October 2012

About the Mount Sinai Health System

Mount Sinai Health System is one of the largest academic medical systems in the New York metro area, with more than 43,000 employees working across eight hospitals, over 400 outpatient practices, nearly 300 labs, a school of nursing, and a leading school of medicine and graduate education. Mount Sinai advances health for all people, everywhere, by taking on the most complex health care challenges of our time — discovering and applying new scientific learning and knowledge; developing safer, more effective treatments; educating the next generation of medical leaders and innovators; and supporting local communities by delivering high-quality care to all who need it.

Through the integration of its hospitals, labs, and schools, Mount Sinai offers comprehensive health care solutions from birth through geriatrics, leveraging innovative approaches such as artificial intelligence and informatics while keeping patients’ medical and emotional needs at the center of all treatment. The Health System includes approximately 7,300 primary and specialty care physicians; 13 joint-venture outpatient surgery centers throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, Long Island, and Florida; and more than 30 affiliated community health centers. We are consistently ranked by U.S. News & World Report's Best Hospitals, receiving high "Honor Roll" status, and are highly ranked: No. 1 in Geriatrics and top 20 in Cardiology/Heart Surgery, Diabetes/Endocrinology, Gastroenterology/GI Surgery, Neurology/Neurosurgery, Orthopedics, Pulmonology/Lung Surgery, Rehabilitation, and Urology. New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai is ranked No. 12 in Ophthalmology. U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Children’s Hospitals” ranks Mount Sinai Kravis Children's Hospital among the country’s best in several pediatric specialties.

For more information, visit https://www.mountsinai.org or find Mount Sinai on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

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