by David Cruz 

Community Board 7 members are expected to hear from the nonprofit developer of an affordable housing/homeless shelter in University Heights just as interest for waterfront development grows. 

Community Board 7’s Land Use/Housing committee will hear from Bowery Residents Committee, a nonprofit developer that plans to build a first-of-its-kind affordable housing/homeless shelter model on 233 Landing Road, a key area for future access to the waterfront. The Manhattan-based developer intends to build 132 affordable unit apartments and roughly 200 rooms set aside for homeless adults. The sparse lot is owned by American Self-Storage.

It’s a rare hybrid pushed by the de Blasio administration in its efforts to introduce more housing options to poverty-stricken residents, a key policy.

And while CB7’s objections are quite strong, there is quiet opposition by officials with the New York City Department of City Planning (DCP), which pegged University Heights as a frontier for economic and residential development. Its conclusion was largely due to the community’s proximity to the barren Harlem River waterfront, which could transform into a vibrant vista given the right investment. The findings were released in a study dubbed The People’s River, compiled by the Urban Land Institute (ULI) over the summer.

Contributing to a revision of the neighborhood is the possibility of a $30 million development site listed by Massey Knakal, representing an anonymous owner that recently purchased 320 W. Fordham Road, a chunk of property abutting the University Heights Metro-North station.

The BRC project involves the New York City Department of Homeless Services (DHS) and the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD). Over the summer, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a lofty ten-year plan to create or repair 200,000 affordable housing units. One method involves the affordable housing/homeless shelter model, such as BRC’s, with nonprofit shelter developers using monies from its shelter contracts to create affordable units. The decision for building a homeless shelter is largely due to DHS’s emergency mandate calling for 1200 units of affordable housing.

But one source, who asked to be unnamed since they were in close ties with the Bronx DCP office, said DCP is “banging its head over this,” citing the report outlining the neighborhood’s potential. The contention reveals a disconnect, where visions over the future of University Heights differ. 

A Marquee Lot

Landing Road, a tiny dead-end street off Fordham Road, was written extensively in the ULI report as a potential bridge deck that would extend above Major Deegan Expressway, the Metro-North tracks, connecting to the waterfront sites. The bridge would be built within the 10-20 benchmark, according to the report. Should the BRC build on Landing Road it would hinder private developers to consider building on the bridge.

The ramp is part of a complete neighborhood overhaul, with mixed-use housing peppering the community. Among the biggest selling points would be the revitalization of the waterfront. Barry Hersh, an NYU professor of real estate and chair of the panel stakeholders, noted University Heights “is rich with opportunities for residential development, a better connection between Manhattan and the Bronx, activating public spaces along the Harlem River.”

Public Review?

To revitalize Landing Road, rezoning would have to take place, according to the report. The site is designated R7-1 zone, according to DCP.  The city Department of Planning did not return calls over whether officials will initiate a public review of the BRC site.

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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.