Editor’s note: Written by a high school student from the Bronx Youth Journalism Initiative, this article was published inside the July 12-25 print edition of the Norwood News as part of Bronx Youth Heard, a publication of the initiative. The Bronx Youth Journalism Initiative is a program of the Norwood News and Mosholu Preservation Corporation.
Basketball courts. A shopping center. A gym.
While there have been many proposals over the past 20 years for ways to make use of the vacant Kingsbridge Armory, the one concept that seems to be sticking is also the one that is most foreign to Bronx residents: a hockey rink.
Ex-Ranger Mark Messier and Olympic skater Sarah Hughes are the big names attached to a well-funded effort to open an ice skating and competitive hockey complex in the Bronx, to be called the Kingsbridge National Ice Center. But local teens say it is not a good idea.
“I think the rink idea is dumb,” said Stephanie Melendez, 19, a Washington Heights resident. “The only people who would use it live in Manhattan.”
There is currently no ice rink in the Bronx, though there are plans to open one in Van Cortlandt Park.
The hockey complex has backers in high places and would require minimal public funds – two elements that make it an attractive option for the Economic Development Corporation, the city agency that will make the final decision.
The hockey rink undoubtedly brings something new to the Bronx, but opponents and residents are concerned a rink wouldn’t service the local community.
“They should put something that people from the Bronx would use,” said Luis Carpio, 16, who lives in Riverdale.
The hockey rink proposal serves the community by providing jobs with steady wages, its proponents say. But Bronx teens say they wouldn’t be likely to go there.
“Most people in the Bronx play basketball or baseball, so nobody would use it,” said Jonpaul Ramirez, 16, from the South Bronx.
Fernando Cabrera, the local city councilman who represents the area around the Armory, has also voiced concerns about the ice hockey proposal and says he wants whatever becomes of the Armory to benefit the community.
Recently, officials from the ice center group have stepped up their outreach efforts to Cabrera and Community Board 7, saying they are committed to providing community benefits by building educational programming into their project.
The Kingsbridge Armory Redevelopment Alliance (KARA), a local coalition of community groups, union supporters and clergy, has been advocating for the building to hold something that will benefit Bronx residents. So far, local groups and residents have voiced their concerns for many of the other previous and current proposals, which have included a mall, school, rock-climbing facility and mega-church. Because of fierce opposition from KARA and Bronx political leaders, the City Council killed a proposal to turn the Armory into a mall in 2009.
The EDC is deciding between the ice center proposal and another proposal by Young Woo & Associates, which wants to transform the Armory into a mixed-use “creative” market that would also include a movie theater, event space and recreational programming.
Both groups say they will pay living wage ($10 an hour plus benefits or $11.50 an hour without) to their employees and will not need taxpayer subsidies to fund their projects.
As of publication, the EDC has not yet announced its selected proposal to fill the building.
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Welcome to the Norwood News, a bi-weekly community newspaper that primarily serves the northwest Bronx communities of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights. Through our Breaking Bronx blog, we focus on news and information for those neighborhoods, but aim to cover as much Bronx-related news as possible. Founded in 1988 by Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a not-for-profit affiliate of Montefiore Medical Center, the Norwood News began as a monthly and grew to a bi-weekly in 1994. In September 2003 the paper expanded to cover University Heights and now covers all the neighborhoods of Community District 7. The Norwood News exists to foster communication among citizens and organizations and to be a tool for neighborhood development efforts. The Norwood News runs the Bronx Youth Journalism Heard, a journalism training program for Bronx high school students. As you navigate this website, please let us know if you discover any glitches or if you have any suggestions. We’d love to hear from you. You can send e-mails to norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org or call us anytime (718) 324-4998.
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These teenagers really seem to be pigeon holing themselves. How many basketball courts and baseball fields does the Bronx need? Why not try something new? They seem to be making the assertion that one specific demographic uses ice rinks. I recommend they take a trip to Laser Rink in Harlem in the winter. The people skating there are of all ethnic and economic backgrounds. As long as the rates are affordable to Bronx residents, I think it’s a positive thing.
All this being said, I can empathize with their apprehensions. The golf courses at Van Courtlandt Park and the NYBG really do purposely cater themselves towards the affluent. The “new & improved” Randall’s Island is also a disappointment for this reason.
Yeah – that’s part of the problem is that most of them know nothing about ice sports. That’s part of the problem with our youth – they are taught to only look in their immediate surroundings instead of taking view of the bigger picture. Success in this life increasingly comes from have a multitude of different experiences to shape one’s worldview.
I personally don’t like ice sports – but I would never say “no one would use it”. The fact that gold medal winning figure skaters and Mark Messier are involved in the project shows that it’s more than just an “ice rink”. I wouldn’t doubt if it hosts regional, national, and international tournaments – in the same way the armory on 168th St. in Washington Heights has become to track & field. It would bring prestige to the Bronx.
Someone should get those youth to think about the potential for employment and maybe even scholarships at the center. Apparently the developer wants to have a program similar to what is done in Philadelphia for inner city youth. Did anyone try to explain that to the youth?
the ny rangers and the nyc dept. of parks & recreation started a free youth street hockey program 2 years ago. the first year there were 10 locations and the following year there were 20, with four locations in the bronx. many people transition from street hockey (in sneakers, not with wheels) to ice hockey. that’s how i started playing ice hockey.