Business group, pols push to keep OSI here

Now that OSI Pharmaceuticals Inc. is under new ownership, Long Island business and political leaders are trying to keep the drug manufacturer from moving to Westchester County.

The new owners say they will review the plan to move.

Incoming Long Island Association president Kevin Law will ask Masafumi Nogimori, chief executive of Tokyo-based Astellas Pharma, to leave Melville-based OSI on the Island.

Astellas waged a months-long battle to acquire OSI, finally agreeing to pay $4 billion for the maker of the anti-cancer drug Tarceva.

Once viewed as an anchor for a biotechnology industry on Long Island, OSI announced months ago that it plans to move by the end of this summer to Ardsley, in Westchester County.

In a letter signed by Law, who is currently LIPA's chief executive and will become LIA president Sept. 1, the two county executives - SteveLevy of Suffolk and Edward Mangano of Nassau - Hempstead Town supervisor Kate Murray and Brookhaven supervisor Mark Lesko, tell Nogimori that OSI's decision to move "was a major setback" to the Island. "We are hopeful that your company's acquisition of OSI presents a new opportunity for discussions regarding available sites for Astellas to locate on Long Island," they said.

The Island is home to "world-class research institutions," including the Feinstein Institute of North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System, Hofstra University, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Brookhaven National Laboratory and Stony Brook University, Law and the others noted.

They cited also "tax incentives" that could be offered by the state and municipalities and "lower location costs than Westchester." They said they will telephone Nogimori this week.

Daniel R. Perkins, an LIA vice president, said, "I think we're in a situation where we need to ask. If we're told no, it's no. But we want to explore that."

An Astellas spokesman noted that the acquisition was just completed Tuesday. The spokesman said that "Astellas will work with OSI to carefully plan the integration of the two companies. As part of that, Astellas will review OSI's proposal to consolidate the oncology business at the Ardsley campus." Astellas said it would have no further comment until it reviews the plan.