New Building for CUNY Law School

The New York Law Journal is reporting that CUNY Law School will move into a new building in the fall of 2011. The story is below. As the story points out, the current facility at CUNY is notoriously hard to get to and has been inadequate since its founding. The new facility will be more accessible and will enable the school to expand its programs. Congratulations to the folks at CUNY!

Law School Moving to New NYC Campus in 2011

By Daniel Wise | New York Law Journal

The City University of New York School of Law will move to new quarters in fall 2011 under a resolution approved yesterday by the board of trustees. The school is expected to buy the lower six floors of a 14-story building owned by Citigroup at Court Square in Long Island City for $150 million. The acquisition will give the school an added 70,000 square feet for a new part-time program aimed at older adults and students from working-class backgrounds.

Since its founding in 1983, CUNY Law has been located in a former junior high school in Flushing, Queens. That building, at 150,000 square feet, is "bursting at the seams" and difficult to reach by public transportation, according to Dean Michelle J. Anderson. The new location is within walking distance to subway and bus lines, the Long Island Railroad and a state Supreme Court building.

The school will make a $50 million down payment with funds appropriated in 2008 by state lawmakers for construction of a new building, according to CUNY Law spokesman Michael Arena. The balance will be financed with either tax-exempt bonds or federal stimulus money, he added. Citigroup's proposal that the school purchase the floors as a condominium was the most attractive of several proposals received in response to a formal request. It would have cost $250 million to build a new school from scratch, Mr. Arena said.

CUNY has approximately 390 students.