As a born and bred New Yorker, I was disheartened when I read the New York Post op-ed by James Altucher, “NYC is dead forever – here’s why.” I’ve lived in the city for over 40 years, and most of my adult life. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March, I have remained in the city and decided not to leave, despite living in close proximity to all of the east-side hospitals located between 14^th and 34^th Streets. It was heartbreaking to drive along the FDR Drive, and see the number of refrigerated morgue trucks grow in number almost daily. There was a palpable air of dread and fear during those darkest months, as New York City struggled to get the pandemic under control.
 
Fast forward to now. We have been able to “flatten the curve” in our city, thanks to people following public health guidelines by wearing masks and social distancing. New Yorkers witnessed the horror of this uncontrolled virus first-hand and understood the foe they were up against. And we rose to the occasion.
 
As a networker and connector in the life sciences industry, I built my career around bringing people together to solve problems, form collaborations and advance this industry at in-person events. When the pandemic first hit, it was an extremely dark and difficult time for me, because our team was about to launch a new international investor and business development conference in New York City, called BioFuture, which was to have taken place in April at the Lotte Palace Hotel in Midtown.
 
As CEO and Founder of Demy-Colton, a company dedicated to facilitating growth and advancement in life sciences and digital medicine, through the creation of specialized industry conferences and events – my whole career has been dedicated to connecting entrepreneurs and companies focused on developing innovative new therapies to improve patient lives and care. Now that meeting in person was impossible, what could we do to continue our mission? I saw my whole company, and everything I’ve built flash before my eyes, and really wondered how we could adapt to this “new normal.”
 
Prior to founding Demy-Colton in 2008, I was Vice President for Business Development and Investor Relations at the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO). I also spent more than a decade as a Director for Foreign Investment at the Empire State Development Corporation, which is where I was initially introduced to the pharma and biotech community. In fact, the first person to head up New York’s biotechnology association, NYBio, was introduced at a global biotech event that I organized many years ago!
 
So, you can say that I’ve watched the New York City life sciences community transition over the last few decades from being a major global research center to becoming a burgeoning life science and digital medicine hub as well. It has only been in the last decade that NYC’s strength in life sciences has come into sharper focus – and it is long overdue.
 
For the last few years I’ve watched New York welcome innovative life sciences, medical device and digital health companies from all over the world. New York City and the Empire State have now grown to be one of the largest biotech hubs in the United States, and one of the biggest on the East Coast, second to Boston.
 
In 2016, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced a $650M initiative to spur the growth of a new, world-class life science cluster in New York. Last September, NYCEDC and Deerfield Management announced a partnership to create a life science campus – MATTER to create LifeSci NYC’s newest incubator.
 
Demand for life sciences space in New York City, which houses 60% of the country’s pharmaceutical industry, is flourishing amid the pandemic, with funding and deal flow continuing well into the second quarter, according to a recent CBRE report. New York City’s life sciences sector continues to thrive in an otherwise challenging time for traditional office tenants, according to the report. Lab tenants are continuing to expand in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, in response to ongoing momentum and a robust flow of financing by venture capital and NIH funding sources.
 
I watched as the Alexandria Center for Life Science grew over the years to what is now a sprawling, 728,000-square-foot campus by the East River in Kips Bay. Alexandria leased nearly 20,000 square feet in April to BlueRock Therapeutics, a billion-dollar cell therapy company that was purchased by Bayer in August. 
 
What is also amazing about New York City is our unrelenting commitment to diversity. Demy-Colton is a fierce advocate for diversity in all forms and has made a commitment to fostering inclusion in all of our events, both in-person and virtual. As the founder of Biotech Showcase, I led the movement on calling out “manels,” and made a commitment to ensure gender diversity on all panels, at all events.
 
Recently, we launched a new virtual events initiative, the Virtual Salon Series, which has been complimentary for anyone working in the life sciences or digital health industries. We’ve featured cutting-edge science, with topics ranging from gene editing to our most recent panel, the Futurescaping of Oncology. Our Fireside Chat series will feature Mike Gaito, the Global Head of Healthcare Banking, Amy Abernethy, Principal Deputy Commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and many others.
 
I received many comments from C-level executives, scientists, researchers and investors in our industry, stressing the importance of “connecting” with each other during this unprecedented time. They seemed to truly appreciate our newly launched Virtual Salon Series, and the opportunity for continued dialogue.
 
I love this city, and will continue to make connections, foster inclusion, and promote interesting new startups from the city, and across the world.
 
And no — New York is not dead. We are just beginning.
 

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Sara Demy is one of the most influential networkers and connectors in the life sciences industry. As the CEO & Founder of Demy-Colton, a leading life sciences events organizer, she brings more than 22 years of experience launching, developing, and shaping high-profile investor and business development conferences in the healthcare industry.