Why does Hunter College need a new science and health professions building?

Hunter’s record in training science professionals, particularly women and minorities from the New York City public school system, is nothing short of extraordinary, having produced two of the only four American-born women Nobel laureates and countless trailblazers in the myriad science disciplines. Hunter currently receives the highest amount of National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding among all New York State undergraduate educational institutions without medical schools. Hunter received $14,235,961 in NIH grant funding in 2007. But today, Hunter’s ability to remain competitive is jeopardized by the severe inadequacy of the North Building on 68th Street, which currently houses Hunter’s science programs and is one of the oldest structures in the CUNY system – built in 1939.

The quality and size of science facilities is one of the three key evaluating factors used by the NIH when considering grants. While Hunter receives an A+ in the areas of “quality of concept” and “faculty qualifications”, it ranks a low D in “facilities.” The North Building was never intended to serve as a major research center or house the kinds of laboratories that today’s scientists and students require. Its concrete structure makes it virtually impossible to retrofit.

Similarly, Hunter’s Brookdale campus on 25th Street and 1st Avenue is old, outdated and located far away from the main campus. The location has long been a concern to Hunter, as it has divided the campus and created logistical problems for students and faculty.

In addition, the construction of a new science and health professions building will relieve overcrowding at Hunter’s main campus, freeing up at least 150,000 square feet for non-science programs.

Why can’t Hunter build a new science and health professions building at Brookdale?

While the North Building, our current science facility, is inadequate, its location, adjacent to the main Hunter campus, has been critical in Hunter’s ability to produce results in the science departments, and also in integrating the science departments with the College. Hunter’s Upper East Side location is a key advantage in competing for federal grants for scientific research. Building a new science facility at East 67th Street, within walking distance to the main campus, will permit our faculty and graduate students to maintain their collaborations with nearby institutions, Memorial Sloan-Kettering, Rockefeller University, New York-Presbyterian, Weill Cornell Medical College and the Hospital for Special Surgery.

Hunter will lose these important benefits if it moves the science programs to the Brookdale site on 25th Street. Furthermore, relocating our science departments to 25th and 1st Avenue will divide our campus into one for the liberal arts and one for the sciences. The number of science majors would drastically decline if students are forced to divide their time between the main campus where they will be taking core curriculum courses and participating in campus life activities and a far off site for science courses and lab work.

In addition, the College will lose the ability to sell a substantial portion of the Brookdale site at market value. This sale will provide private funds to build the Julia Richman schools and contribute to the cost of constructing a new facility for the Hunter College Science and Health Professions Building. If Hunter were to build a science facility at Brookdale, there would be no private funds available to build a new facility for the nursing and health programs that currently occupy antiquated facilities at 25th Street.

What is Hunter planning to build on 2nd Avenue between 67th Street and 68th Street?

Hunter plans to construct an as-of-right building which does not require any zoning changes. The building is expected to be no more than fourteen stories on 2nd Avenue plus two stories of mechanical equipment. On the side streets of 67th and 68th, its street wall height will be no greater than sixty feet, which is actually shorter than the existing Julia Richman building. We intend to construct a building that is consistent with Hunter’s track record as a good neighbor and is sensitive to the surrounding community.

Although this is an as-of-right project that requires no city or community approvals, we plan to work with our neighbors on an acceptable construction plan. We will also protect the adjacent St. Catherine’s Park and help to support and maintain it when the project is complete.

How will Hunter fund this project?

CUNY Chancellor Matthew Goldstein included a Hunter science building in the five-year CUNY capital budget. The first phase of funding has been approved by the Board of Trustees, the Governor and the Legislature. Hunter is engaged in a major capital campaign and the sale of the Brookdale property will support construction of the health professions facility.

Hunter has issued a “Request for Expression of Interest” for the one million gross-square-foot Brookdale campus, which will gauge the interest of the real estate development community. It is expected that the Julia Richman schools will occupy approximately 300,000 square feet on this site. The sale of the remaining portion of the site will help pay for the construction of the Julia Richman schools and a new science and health professions building uptown.

How will a new school benefit the students and faculty at Julia Richman?

Hunter will require that whoever purchases the Brookdale site build a state-of-the-art facility for the Julia Richman schools. We hope to facilitate the involvement of Julia Richman faculty and staff in the process to design and build a new facility that meets their needs. Hunter will support this process and provide partnerships and resources as appropriate.

Will any Julia Richman student be forced to leave their school for temporary swing space before the new Julia Richman is completed?

No. Not a single student at any of the Julia Richman schools will leave the current Julia Richman Education Complex until their new space is ready to be occupied. The Julia Richman students, staff and faculty will not have to be relocated into temporary swing space.

Once the new Julia Richman school facility is completed at Brookdale and the schools have moved in, we will demolish the Julia Richman building and then begin to construct the new Hunter College Science and Health Professions Building.

Will the current Julia Richman student body be affected by this project?

No current high school student at Julia Richman will be affected by this project. The student population is primarily comprised of high school students who will have graduated by 2012 – the earliest these new schools could be completed. The only students who may have to leave the current complex for the new facility are Kindergarten-2nd grade students, of which there are fewer than one hundred.

Some have argued that the schools at the Julia Richman Education Complex must exist in their current location.  What are the facts?

The building itself is eighty years old and recently had to undergo emergency repairs including asbestos removal and masonry work.  It originally housed Julia Richman High School which was closed in 1993 due to failing student performance.  The building was then carved up into four high schools, a middle school and an elementary school which have a combined enrollment of 1,666 students (Based on Department of Education figures from October 2006). The students and staff at Julia Richman have the opportunity to leave behind an eighty-year-old building that was never intended for its current use in exchange for a brand new, state-of-the-art building that will be designed according to modern standards to meet the current needs of students, teachers and staff. 

Once again, no high school student currently attending a Julia Richman school will be affected by this proposal, as the new facility is not expected to be ready until 2012 at the earliest.  This proposal strives to provide the best education possible for Hunter and for students at Julia Richman.