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NYU Returns to LICH Deal After Judge Dismisses Nurses' Union Lawsuit

By Nikhita Venugopal | September 29, 2014 7:09pm
 Long Island College Hospital at 339 Hicks St.
Long Island College Hospital at 339 Hicks St.
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DNAinfo/Nikhita Venugopal

COBBLE HILL — A Brooklyn judge dismissed a union-backed lawsuit Monday evening, allowing the state to complete its sale of Long Island College Hospital to a coalition that plans to redevelop the site. 

The State University of New York is expected to go ahead with its $240 million sale of the Cobble Hill property to Fortis Property Group, NYU Langone Medical Center and Lutheran Health Care, which plan to bring a freestanding emergency room, a cancer center, luxury condominiums and affordable housing to the site.

SUNY board of trustees chairman H. Carl McCall credited the deal to “months of hard work and negotiation” and added that NYU would bring “modern and state-of-the-art patient care” to LICH. 

The New York State Nurses Association's lawsuit, brought against SUNY last month, claimed that the Fortis group had failed on a promise to hire laid-off LICH nurses at the new facility.

“It is the Court’s finding that the relief sought by NYSNA was never contemplated by the Settlement Agreement between the parties,” Justice Johnny Lee Baynes wrote in his decision. 

“NYSNA also does not claim, nor can it that it is a signatory to any contract between SUNY and Fortis nor a third-party beneficiary of any such contract. Frankly, it is unclear what it is that NYSNA seeks, and the instant application must fail procedurally and substantively,” he wrote.

NYU Langone Medical Center had initially backed out of the $240 million deal after the court had ordered NYU’s direct involvement in the lawsuit earlier this month. 

NYU would return to the deal and was “looking forward to expanding our practice of excellent health care at the NYU Langone Cobble Hill facility," a spokeswoman confirmed in an email.

The nurses’ union said it was “disappointed in the ruling” Monday evening.

"We are reviewing the court's decision and considering our options. We remain committed to protecting care for Brooklyn patients," NYSNA said in a statement.