Empire State Development Announces Groundbreaking for Phase One of Brookhaven Lab’s Discovery Park Scientific Research Campus on Long Island

First Phase Includes 75,000 Square Foot Welcome Center And Meeting Space

$1.8 Million State Investment Advances Region’s Status As National Science And Technology Hub

Empire State Development today announced the groundbreaking for the first phase of Brookhaven National Laboratory’s Discovery Park in Suffolk County, Long Island. The creation of Discovery Park will establish a 60-acre public-private research campus and regional hub for scientific innovation, economic development and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education. Phase one of Discovery Park includes a 75,000 square foot Science and User Support Center, which will act as a welcome center for researchers, facility users, and guests of Brookhaven Lab and serve as an office and meeting space for approximately 250 Brookhaven Lab staff.

Empire State Development President, CEO and Commissioner Hope Knight said, "Long Island is home to pioneering institutions that have been crucial to unlocking state-of-the-art discoveries while attracting top-tier researchers and scientists further elevate the region as a powerful commercial scientific innovation hub."

Empire State Development is supporting Brookhaven Lab’s Discovery Park with a $1,800,000 capital grant, recommended by the Long Island Regional Economic Development Council. As a transformative mixed-use development, Discovery Park aligns with and reflects New York State's efforts to support projects that will advance scientific discoveries and technology commercialization. The project will also expand existing workforce development and STEM education programs to help create the next generation of scientists and engineers on Long Island.

Empire State Development Board Chairman Kevin Law said, "Long Island is a long-established hub for transformative technology and the Brookhaven National Laboratory is a natural home for Discovery Park. This center of scientific research and STEM education will help to advance New York State’s strategic economic development strategies by strengthening workforce development, accelerating scientific breakthroughs, and catalyzing industry growth.”

Overseen by the U.S. Department of Energy, Brookhaven National Lab is a multidisciplinary laboratory that works to address the nation’s energy, environmental, and nuclear challenges through transformative science and technology solutions. Brookhaven Lab employs more than 2,500 full-time workers and is host to more than 5,000 visiting researchers each year from universities, industry, and government agencies that use its cutting-edge facilities.

Long Island Regional Economic Development Council Co-Chairs Linda Armyn, Chief Strategy and Marketing Officer at Bethpage Federal Credit Union and President of Farmingdale State College Dr. John Nader said, "Today’s announcement is an important step towards ensuring that Long Island is where groundbreaking scientific advancements happen. With Brookhaven National Laboratory as its homebase, Discovery Park will act as an inclusive working lab that feeds minds, incubates innovation, and will spotlight Long Island as a nexus of new discoveries.” 

Through strategic investments, New York fuels the creation of cutting-edge advancements in biopharmaceutical, device and diagnostic research, development and manufacturing. The biotech and life sciences industries have become powerful growth engines for New York State, turning key regions of the state into dynamic life science hubs that includes organizations and institutions dedicated to various stages of research, development, technology transfer and commercialization. The addition of Brookhaven Lab’s Discovery Park will further enhance Long Island as a destination for innovative companies and intuitions, such as the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, as well as Stony Brook University.

Contact:
Emily Mijatovic | [email protected] | (212) 803-3692