Save Lenox Hill, a group that formed in opposition to the Lenox Hill Hospital’s extensive renovation plan, recently announced that it gathered over 6,600 signatures in an online petition against the project.
The group touted the results as a sign of what’s to come if Northwell Health moves forward its $2.5 billion plan to build a 436-foot tower that would take 11 years to construct.
“The prospect of enduring 11 years of construction, increased congestion, massive disruption for local small businesses and the upheaval of our daily lives is simply unacceptable,” said Stephanie Reckler, a member of the group’s executive committee. “Our community deserves better, and as Northwell presses ahead with their efforts to get this tower approved, we expect opposition to continue to build.”
The group anticipates Northwell Health to formally begin pushing forward with its rezoning request in the next few months. Reckler clarified that the group agrees that the hospital needs renovating but it finds the proposal to be a bid for industry relevancy in a manner that ignores the needs of the neighborhood. It hopes to find a “more suitable solution” that makes a compromise with its neighbors, preferably before the healthcare company moves forward with any rezoning.
A Northwell spokesperson said that the healthcare provider started its community engagement process in 2019. “We’ll continue to seek input and feedback from the community as we focus on making sure Lenox Hill remains a state-of-the-art hospital that is built to serve New Yorkers for generations to come,” said the spokesperson.
What the hospital group presented to Manhattan Community Board 8 last February entails a complex rezoning of the entire block from 76th to 77th Streets and Park to Lexington Avenues. While Northwell did reduce the height of its proposed tower by 80 feet in response to community feedback, it still is seeking a tower that is maximum height limit and would require a…
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