New school expected to bring more than 800 jobs to the area
MIDDLETOWN, NY (Jan. 16, 2013) – The mid-Hudson region is on the verge of getting healthier, and the region’s economy is getting a much-needed shot in the arm, thanks to the Danza Leser Group’s purchase and redevelopment of the former Horton Hospital campus.
Touro College is located at the former Horton Hospital Complex.
The group is working with Touro College to develop an osteopathic medical school that will create hundreds of jobs and bring hundreds of doctors to the area. Renovations to the former Horton Hospital campus will begin with the next 90 days, said Touro College President Alan Kadish. The grand opening of the college is planned for August 2014
“We pursued this property because we understand the increasing need for medical services in this area,” said Abraham Leser, a partner in The Danza Leser Group. Leser said Tony Danza, CEO of The Danza Leser Group, has worked since 2008 to bring a medical school since to the location.
“The medical school is only a part of the entire complex. It will serve as a primary touchstone for medical education in the region.” When fully operational the new medical school will have more than 500 students and will generate about $55 million for the local economy, Danza said. “The positive impact on the region’s economy would be tremendous, even in the best of economic times,” he added. “Thanks to the help of Mayor Joseph DeStefano, Dr. Ron Israelski, County Executive Edward Diana and Congressman Maurice Hinchey, we will make this happen.”
The Horton Hospital project is expected to provide more than 800 jobs to the region and gives us the opportunity to recycle this pristine building, Danza said.
“The former Orange Regional Medical Center is one of the most significant properties in Middletown,” said Congressman Maurice Hinchey. “This campus will provide an important boost to the local economy as well as help ensure that the Hudson Valley and Catskill regions have sufficient physicians and health care professionals to meet the growing needs in the coming decades.”
“I congratulate The Danza Leser Group for bringing this project to Middletown, as it will add significantly to our growing medical corridor in Orange County,” said Orange County Executive Edward A. Diana. “Touro College will provide our residents with quality health options while adding much needed jobs to our region. I welcome them to our County and look forward to their success in our community.”
“Tauro College will have four-year degree programs for doctors, physical and occupational therapists, nurses and pharmacists,” said Dr. Alan Kadish, president of Touro College. “We’re looking forward to working with the local community colleges and high schools, as we do at our New York City, California and Nevada locations,” Kadish said.
Dr. Ron Israelski, Director of Medical Education for Orange Regional Health Center, worked tirelessly with Danza to establish the region’s first medical school. “The health indicators for our region are as bad as the worst places in the United States,” Israelski said. “So in addition to the national trend that we need more doctors for an aging population, we need more schools for doctors. With Touro College coming, we add the local justifications of good health, good education and a boost for the region’s economy.”
Israelski said that a good number of the doctors who graduate from the Touro program will stay in the area. “Studies show that about 25 percent of the doctors who graduate remain in the region,” he said. “That’s crucial to this area.”
Shown are the complex's student housing, faculty housing, campus life, kitchen and dining room facilities.
Middletown Mayor Joseph DeStefano said the project put together by Danza and Israelski would have a huge impact on the mid-Hudson region. “They have brought a very significant project to our city,” DeStefano said. “This is the largest project to hit this region in decades. Just like the rest of the nation, our community has struggled for years. This project will transform the area.”
According to the 2010 census, Middletown’s population is 28,086. Middletown and its outlying communities have several community colleges and high schools.
In addition to the medical school, Danza said the Horton Hospital complex, is looking to provide assisted-living, skilled nursing services as well as student and faculty housing.
The Danza Leser Group has constructed residential housing projects, including townhouses, as well as single family and multiple-story construction developed millions of square feet of commercial projects. The Danza Leser Group actively participates in a range of development activities for a wide-variety of public and private use projects including Victory Hospital in Brooklyn, and other New York commercial, residential and healthcare facilities. For more information about The Danza Leser Group visit www.DanzaGroup.com.