Construction of 200,000 Sq. Ft. Iron Horse Labs Now Underway
The building is named in tribute to New York baseball legend Lou Gehrig, who developers say is an inspiration for scientists searching for answers, including the cure for his namesake disease.
| 01 Nov 2023 | 02:33
An artists rendering of the new Iron Horse Labs being built on the boyhood home of Yankee legend Lou Gherig on the UES. (
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Iron Horse Labs, a 200,000 square-foot, eight-story life sciences facility, is taking form on 94th Street between 1st and 2nd Avenues with construction anticipated to be finished by mid-to-late 2025.
The facility is named after New York Yankees legend Lou Gehrig, who was known as the “Iron Horse” for his baseball prowess that included what was at the time the most consecutive games played by a major leaguer, 2,130. He died in 1941 at age 37 from ALS, a neurodegenerative disease commonly known as “Lou Gehrig’s Disease.”
“A native New Yorker himself, Lou Gehrig continues to be a symbol of determination and perseverance both for those battling the disease and for the many searching for cures,” said Bill Harris, Managing Director at Perkins & Will, the global design practice working on the project. “In designing Iron Horse Labs with Elevate Research Properties, we attempted to capture that spirit and reflect those contributions through aspects of the building’s design.”
Elevate Research Properties, a developer and subsidiary of Taconic Partners, bought the construction site for $70 million in December 2021, and will spend at least $280 million more by ribbon-cutting time. The new lab subsumes an existing five-story industrial loft structure, the sites of smaller demolished buildings, and a plaque that marks Lou Gehrig’s birthplace, which will be re-installed in the lobby. His birthplace and the new building share the same address at 309 E. 94th Street.
According to Taconic Partners, the project’s design elements and infrastructure will “focus on resiliency, as well as energy efficient systems as part of our commitment to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives.” These design elements include sun-shading on the building’s façade, evoking baseball pennants strung across the fields where Gehrig once played. The building will also feature lab-ready infrastructure, high-bay research space, multiple loading facilities, and upper floor outdoor terraces.
Elevate Research Properties is undertaking this project with partners Nuveen Real Estate and Flatiron Equities.