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Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

New York City Economic Development Partners With Harlem Biospace To Assist Up To 20 Startup Biotech Firms

06/06/2013
An initiative that will provide affordable wet-lab and microbench facilities, specialized laboratory equipment, mentorship and business support to assist up to 20 startup biotech companies, will be created as part of a partnership between Harlem Biospace and The New York City Economic Development Corporation. Harlem Biospace, which will be located in 2,300 square feet of office space at 423 W. 127th Street in New York City’s Harlem community, will provide 20 companies with ergonomic work desks, wet-lab benches, and access to shared laboratory resources including a cell-culture hood, incubators, a centrifuge, an autoclave, a chemical fume hood, microscopy, freezers and all utilities, wifi and printing.

As an incentive, NYCEDC provided approximately $626,000 in financial support to offset capital improvements, equipment, operations and programming. The space is expected to open this fall.

“Harlem Biospace will fill a critical void that currently exists within New York City’s biotech sector, providing small and early stage companies with the tools they need to grow and solve important health issues,” said NYCEDC Executive Director Kyle Kimball. “With increased access to equipment and mentorship, this incubator will allow these early stage life sciences companies to prosper and help make New York City a leading center for biotech innovation.”

NYCEDC is launching this initiative in partnership with Sam Sia, PhD, an entrepreneur and faculty member at Columbia University’s Department of Biomedical Engineering and Founder of Harlem Biospace.

“I am thrilled to be working with NYCEDC on this new biotech incubator concept, located right in Manhattan,” Sia said. “As a faculty entrepreneur, I am aware of the incredible amount of bioscience research taking place in New York City, but have also experienced the challenges of turning these ideas into products without leaving the city. My hope is that Harlem Biospace will facilitate current bioscience researchers as well as the next generation of young entrepreneurs to pursue biotechnologies to improve patients' health.”

“The Harlem Biospace will be the newest addition in the revitalization of the Harlem community,” said City Council Member Robert Jackson. “This incubator will provide start-ups and small businesses the opportunity to cultivate their ideas into reality. I applaud this project for boosting community partnerships, creating jobs and strengthening the economic development of the neighborhood.”

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