by David Cruz 

By a vote of 48 to 1, the New York City Council overwhelmingly passed a plan for a project allowing developers to convert the Kingsbridge

Armory into  a colossal ice skating center, with elected officials, community groups rejoicing at the end of a near 20-year-saga.

The entire Bronx Council Delegation, including holdout Councilman Fernando Cabrera, voted for the $320 million project that clears the Kingsbridge National Ice Center (KNIC), bringing nine ice skating rinks, and a 5,000-seat arena to the facility, drawing droves of hockey fans while also grooming any potential hockey stars, as developers see it.

News of the vote will likely be been seen as a game changer for the borough and an end to a near 20-year saga of false starts, last-minute deals, and the big question–what to do with a 794,900-square-foot facility that stood virtually unused, bedeviling Bronxites.

For years, proposals ranging from a neighborhood school to help ease overcrowding to an entertainment/recreation complex featuring a 4-D movie house were presented and failed.  A persistent push by city officials, however, sought to turn the hollow complex into a moneymaker, funneling new revenue to the borough.  In the case of KNIC, the complex is estimated to generate over a billion dollars in thirty years, according to a report by HR&A Advisors.

Bronx Delegation Caucus In The Affirmative

The Bronx Council Delegation, comprised of all nine legislators, followed Cabrera’s lead in voting overwhelmingly in favor of the project.

“We’ll have the opportunity for young people, especially people of color who didn’t have accessibility to ice skate,” said Cabrera, who made those comments before the official vote.

“This project is a victory for everyone involved, and represents the type of development we can see when everyone works together for the greater good. I look forward to this project’s completion, and the day when the Bronx can officially declare itself to be the premier ice sports destination in the United States, if not the nation,”  said Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., arguably the biggest supporter of the project since August 2012.

“This is really a dream come true,” said Councilman Oliver Koppell, a longtime supporter of the project, speaking  before his fellow colleagues at City Hall.

“It puts the Bronx on the map,” said Councilman Jimmy Vacca.  “I think it’s a good development team, I think it’s good for the borough.”

The lone dissenter in the crowd was Brooklyn Councilman Charles Barron, explaining that “nine ice skating rinks was a bit much.”

Clearing Hurdles

Earlier in the day, the Council’s  Sub-Committee on Zoning and Franchises voted 6-0 in favor of the project just several days after holding a hearing on the project with many community leaders and elected officials backing the plan.

Cabrera, considered the key swing voter since the armory falls within his district, delivered opening remarks prior to the vote, praising the project following several months of indecisiveness. In a last-minute deal drafted less than 24 hours ago, Cabrera gave his final stamp of approval after KNIC agreed to address overlooked concerns dealing with impending traffic jams, lack of parking and possible displacement of already established small businesses in the working class community.  The New York City Economic Development Corporation, the economic arm of the Bloomberg Adminisration, will monitor the new add-ons.  It’s unclear whether those perks will be retroactively attached to the CBA.

But  Koppell, who’s long endorsed the revitalization of the armory, took jabs at Cabrera, labeling him a flip-flopper over his late endorsement of the armory.

Outer borough council members were also in favor of the project. Councilman Dan Garodnick, sitting on the subcommittee panel, tweeted he was “pleased” with the outcome of the vote. “Bring on the ice,” he wrote.

But at the Zoning Committee, Brooklyn Councilman Charles Barron voted against the project, being the lone dissenter as the rest of the 18-member panel voted in favor of the project.

The vote now caps the lengthy Uniform Land Use Review Procedure, where several agencies, from the Borough President’s Office, Community Board 7 and the City Planning Commission overwhelmingly supported the project, offering their advisory approval early this year.

Even before the public review process was underway, KNIC developers had come to the table to hammer out a Community Benefits Agreement with 27 community groups seeking entitlements that would help prop up the neighborhood whilst avoiding to displace existing neighbors.  In all, $1.3 billion in benefits is expected to be re-invested to the community.  KNIC agreed to sign the legal document, which promises 50,000-square-feet of community space, a 1% revenue share with the community and a $10 living wage with benefits, a perk that wasn’t honored by The Related Co. in 2009, which sought an interest in converting the armory into a mall.

The mall project failed nearly four years ago to this day, causing a rift between the Bloomberg Administration and Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., who slammed the mall project for lack of a living wage.

The Swing Voter

But throughout the deal, the burning question unresolved until the day before the vote was how would Councilman Cabrera, would cast his vote. For months Cabrera remained tight-lipped on the project, though he often hinted towards approving the project, comparing it to the new Yankee Stadium when the city publicly announced KNIC as the chosen applicant in the Request for Proposal. He then backpedaled, publicly stating more review was needed before he gave his final stamp of approval.

Along the course of the public review process, word of alleged soliciting by Cabrera spread, with accusations the ordained pastor had requested $100,000 to be pumped into this defunct religious nonprofit, Community Action Unlimited, for the next 99 years, the life of the lease between KNIC and the city. Cabrera is alleged to have requested the funds during negotiations on the Community Benefits Agreement, a legal document worked out between KNIC and 27 community groups. Cabrera has denied any involvement with the nonprofit, though a lawyer for KNIC confirmed Cabrera did make an “inappropriate” request for funding, a violation of the City Charter.

Loose Ends Abound

With the plan fully approved, green developer and former Wall Streeter Kevin Parker will now begin construction of the center, keeping the exterior of the armory intact given its landmark status.  The $320 million price tag will be covered solely by private monies, with Goldman Sachs among the investors.

“The Kingsbridge National Ice Center is destined to awe and inspire,” said Parker in a statement, calling the vote “historic.”

CEO Mark Messier, former New York Rangers star and hockey legend, has already used his connections to secure commitments from professional hockey clubs and local colleges to utilize one of nine sheets of ice and a 5,000-seat arena. But Messier and KNIC emphasized the much-publicized free after school hockey program modeled after the Philadelphia-based Ed Snider program.

And while traffic and small business concerns were addressed, there are still some loose ends relating to the project, namely their original intent to create a sports-themed school, a plan that received plenty of cheers during the project’s earlier drafts but was inexplicably phased out.

The measure now moves to Mayor Bloomberg’s desk, another major supporter of the bill, who is expected to sign the bill, sealing his legacy at the tail end of his political life.

“The transformation of the Kingsbridge Armory is evidence of what we can achieve when we put aside our differences and come together in pursuit of a common goal,” Bloomberg wrote in a statement.

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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.