Gottlieb to Helm Robert Martin’s New Life Sciences/Health Tech Initiative
John Jordan | October 2, 2019
ELMSFORD—The Robert Martin Company LLC, which boasts a suburban office, flex and retail portfolio of more than 6 million square feet, announced on Oct. 2 it is expanding its operations to service the life sciences/health tech industry.
Leading the effort will be Laurence Gottlieb, who was named managing director, Life Sciences and Health Technologies. Gottlieb is the former president and CEO of Hudson Valley Economic Development Corporation and former head of the Westchester County Office of Economic Development.
While with county government, Gottlieb developed the “NY BioHud Valley,” a first-of-its-kind initiative to brand Westchester and later the entire Hudson Valley region as a leader in biotechnology research and development—a movement he would eventually lead during his tenure at HVEDC. As head of economic development for Westchester County, he led the marketing effort that branded Westchester County as “New York’s Intellectual Capital,” a distinct identity still employed by the region to this day.
“The seeds that were planted with the launch of the NY BioHud Valley initiative are now baring fruit throughout Westchester, if not the whole Hudson Valley—from the expanding incubator space at New York Medical College to the explosive growth of companies such as Regeneron Pharmaceuticals and Acorda Therapeutics,” Gottlieb said. “Now is the right time to fuse together Robert Martin Company’s significant real estate development and management experience with a high-growth industry seeking locations for expansion beyond the early stage incubators spread throughout the tristate region. I’m truly honored to lead this effort for such a legendary company.”
RMC’s life sciences and health tech initiative will eventually embrace numerous components including RMC-owned properties networked together throughout the region, high-level educational offerings and eventually, an investment fund, the company stated.
RMC CEO Tim Jones said, “Larry is a highly-respected economic development and community partner in Westchester County and the Hudson Valley. Using the expertise he has developed over many years, he has built a strong base for biotech and health tech development in the region upon which so much activity is happening. We are thrilled to provide him with the company’s extensive resources to take this job-generating industry to the next level.”
Gottlieb noted that there are more than 80 biotech and health tech companies in the Hudson Valley region with increasing number of start-up firms and incubators. Westchester is home to two of the nation’s largest biotech firms—Regeneron Pharmaceuticals and Acorda Therapeutics—as well as two top medical academic research facilities such as New York Medical College and the Burke Neurological Institute.
In addition, there are plans to develop a biotech mixed-use campus on the North 60 property adjacent to the Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla being developed by Fareri Associates of Greenwich, CT.
“There are tremendous growth opportunities for life sciences and health tech in Westchester County and Robert Martin Company is ideally positioned with its extensive portfolio of office/flex space,” he said.
In an exclusive interview with Real Estate In-Depth, Jones and managing director Greg Berger detailed a host of investments and new markets the company may enter in the coming years.
In terms of entering the life science/healthcare arena, he told the newspaper that the play in Mount Pleasant could be for biomedical space since Robert Martin owns properties located adjacent to New York Medical College, Regeneron and the proposed bioscience project to be developed for Westchester County on the North 60 parcel on the Grasslands campus.
Robert Martin joins Simone Development Companies of the Bronx in the life sciences/healthcare sector. Simone’s healthcare development division is headed by industry veteran H. Guy Liebler.
Editor, Real Estate In-Depth