“North 60” Plan Takes Giant Step Forward

The Westchester County Board of Legislators voted unanimously this week to approve a 99-year lease of 60 acres of county-owned land adjacent to the Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla that will allow the creation of the $2.1 billion Westchester BioScience & Technology Center.

The Board’s 17-0 vote for the largest single financial transaction in county history sets the stage for creation of a 3 million-square-foot mixed-use complex by developer John Fareri. His innovative plan can now move to the Town of Mount Pleasant for environmental and site plan review and final approval, a process expected to take 18 to 24 months.

The Business Council of Westchester attended a news conference before the vote to support the project, which it has strongly endorsed as part of a larger strategy to create a bio-tech/life sciences sector that will bring thousands of high-paying, high-tech jobs to the region. The Westchester BioScience & Technology Center alone is expected to create more than 8,000 permanent jobs.

”For the last decade the BCW has worked tirelessly to support the steps necessary to help position Westchester and the Hudson Valley as a center for the bio-tech and bioscience industries that are well-matched to the region’s intellectual capital and talent,’’ said BCW President and CEO Marsha Gordon. “The approval of the lease is a singularly important step forward in securing the economic future of the county, the region and the state.”