Tonight, New York Methodist Hospital will unveil its controversial plan to demolish several 19th-century brownstones in the heart of Park Slope so it can build a massive “u”-shaped hospital building.
The public meeting at the Sixth Street hospital will be the first time that the 135-year-old hospital officially presents its preliminary plans to the public. A handful of community members were allowed an early preview of the proposal at a special June 19 meeting, and residents directly impacted by the construction were invited to an exclusive meeting June 24. Tonight’s meeting will be held jointly with the Park Slope Civic Council and the Landmarks and Land Use Committee of Community Board 6.
At two meetings held last month, architects, development consultants, and hospital representatives told the select group of residents that the hospital wants to tear down at least 15 old buildings that it owns on Fifth Street, Eighth Avenue, and Sixth Street and replace them with an outpatient facility that could be up to seven stories high. The buildings to be demolished are not landmarked or part of Park Slope’s enormous historic district.
The planned structure will include a surgery center with 12 operating rooms, physician offices, an endoscopy suite with six special rooms, a cancer center that will offer radiation oncology, chemotherapy and urgent care services, and additional rooms for meeting space.
The hospital is also inviting neighborhood residents to send e-mail comments, questions, and concerns about the project to build@nym.org.
Presentation of New York Methodist Hospital’s expansion plans at New York Methodist Hospital [506 Sixth Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues at the Hospital’s East Pavilion Auditorium in Park Slope] July 11, 6:30 pm.
Reach reporter Natalie Musumeci at nmusumeci@cnglocal.com or by calling (718) 260-4505. Follow her at twitter.com/souleddout.
