“Park Ave 188th Street” by Bebo2good1, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike 4.0 International. Modified by Guzov, LLC.
New York is going through a development boom from Astoria, Queens to the South Bronx. In the Bronx, there are currently thousands of residential buildings either in the planning stages or undergoing construction.
Young people are attracted to the relatively low prices in the Bronx and its proximity to the New York City, and developers are capitalizing on this opportunity. Somerset Partners and the Chetrit Group are planning to construct six 25-story buildings. Monadnock Construction is in the process of developing two residential buildings with 293 units together, and a 152 room hotel. The increase of residential units is spurring the development of trendy shops, restaurants and concert venues.
Developers are taking advantage of the Bronx. The Spofford Juvenile Center at Hunt Point, which was closed in 2011, will transform into residential units, office spaces, and food and beverage shops. Gilbane Development Company, Hudson Companies and Mutual Housing Association of New York are tackling this venture as soon as they receive zoning authorization. Residents are hopeful that this project will alleviate the neighborhood’s ties with crime and give it a clean slate.
The Bronx has seen an increasing migration shift in the past few years. However, a key concern in the Bronx, which has a 27% poverty level, is to implement affordable housing. Mayor Bill de Blasio has incentivized this by offering rezoning authorization to developers who make certain units affordable, meaning below the market rate. For example, the La Central apartments, a 992 unit development in Melrose has guaranteed that 30-35% of the available units will be affordable housing. Further policies have been lenient to developers who agree to construct affordable units by offering tax exemptions and suspensions. This has stimulated competition amongst developers, leaving the city with multiple proposals for each potential project.