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SUNY Ends Talks with Peebles Corp. in Long Island College Hospital Bid

 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 — The State University of New York has once again ended talks with a bidder in line to purchase and redevelop Long Island College Hospital, officials announced Wednesday.

After weeks of negotiations, SUNY pulled out of a deal with the Peebles Corporation after officials found portions of the company’s proposal for the embattled hospital had “dramatically changed,” state officials said in an emailed statement.

The changes could include “the possibility of long delays in the manner and method in which health care” is administered at LICH. The parties also could not agree on which would be responsible for potential environmental remediation costs, Capital New York first reported.

“These deviations from the initial proposal are unacceptable to SUNY from both a health care and business perspective,” the statement said.

Most of LICH shuttered last week after community advocates, who had long sought a full hospital, reached a tentative agreement with Peebles that would maintain health care services at the site

Only the emergency department remains open, which SUNY will continue to staff and maintain at current services while negotiations continue, officials said.

The state will immediately begin discussions with Fortis Property Group, which is partnering with NYU Langone Medical Center and Lutheran Health Care.

The Fortis coalition’s $240 million proposal includes a health care center with a 24-hour freestanding emergency department, an urgent care facility and cancer center, as well as residential units with affordable housing.

This is the second time SUNY has terminated talks with a bidder for the Cobble Hill hospital since a legal settlement over LICH was reached in February. Earlier this month, the state pulled out of a deal with Brooklyn Health Partners, the winning bidder through a Request for Proposal process.