New York State to develop first "Women's Building"

New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo on Monday unveiled a plan to redevelop a former prison into the state's first-ever "Women's Building" to unite more than a dozen organizations that advocate women's equality.

The former Bayview Correctional Facility in Manhattan will be renovated to include dedicated working space for women-centric community service organizations, he said.

The building will be at the center of the worldwide women's equality movement, the governer said.

"Today we are continuing our efforts to shatter the glass ceiling by taking down an institution of defeat and turning it into opportunity and social reform for women," Cuomo said.

"The Women's Building is an example of our strength and leadership as the capital of progressivism in this nation -- and when other states and look to New York, they will see yet another symbol of a community coming together to enhance the future and potential of its people," he added.

According to the governor, the Women's Building will create more than 300 new jobs and generate an estimated 43 million U.S. dollars in annual economic activity.

The medium-security women's prison, which opened in 1974, was evacuated days before it was flooded during Hurricane Sandy in October 2012.

The NoVo Foundation, a non-profit organization funded by billionaire investor Warren Buffet, won the bid to redevelop the property in partnership with a real estate firm owned and operated by women.

"The Women's Building will demonstrate what's possible when the potential of girls and women is nurtured rather than locked away," the foundation said in a statement.

The foundation has entered into a long-term lease for the space, paying an initial base rent for 3.5 million U.S. dollars per year, according to the statement. Enditem