The New York City Planning Commission approved the Related Companies’ proposal to develop the Armory into a giant shopping mall on Monday. But in an 8 to 4 vote, Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. secured key support in opposing the project from two other borough presidents and the public advocate. Each borough president has an appointee to the commission.

The votes of the Brooklyn and Manhattan borough presidents’ appointees are important because the final decision will be made by the City Council and the borough leaders’ wishes could instruct the votes of many members. The Council will vote within 50 days.  

In his formal role in the city’s land use process, Diaz recommended last month that the City Planning Commission reject the plan because of the absence of a binding Community Benefits Agreement and a requirement sought by unions and community leaders in the  Kingsbridge Armory Redevelopment Alliance (KARA) that the developer only rent to retailers willing to provide a living wage ($10 with benefits) to their workers.

“Related has not adequately addressed the concerns that my office, in conjunction with the elected officials, community board and community groups from the area, have laid out in our community benefits agreement, nor does the developer seem at all interested in doing so,” Diaz said in a statement on Monday after the vote. “We are not asking for anything radical or extreme. We are simply asking that, in a borough that has the highest poverty rate in the nation and has consistently seen the highest unemployment numbers in New York State, Related and their future tenants provide living wage jobs with benefits that allow Bronxites a chance to provide for their families and to build a better life.”

Diaz added that he hoped Related would still sit down to hammer out an agreement.

In explaining why the appointee of Borough President Marty Markowitz of Brooklyn voted against the plan, Laura Sinagra, Markowitz’s spokesperson, told the Norwood News that her boss “agrees with the position that jobs created by this project should pay a living wage.”

The appointees of Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum also voted against the plan. The mayor has seven appointees on the Commission and rarely, if ever, suffers a defeat there.

The Related Companies has repeatedly said that the living wage requirement is not realistic because of the economic downturn since retailers would be paying more than they do at their other locations in the borough. But some experts say a living wage saves retailers money because better paid workers translates into less turnover among employees and requires less training expenses. 
Regardless, neighborhood leaders insist that because the Armory is a public facility that Related will receive public subsidies to develop,  the company must reach an agreement with community residents and local elected officials.

“This is a public project and its development must improve the lives of working people in the community,” said Bedford Park resident and KARA leader Heidi Hynes. “Our City Council representatives now have a golden opportunity to set a precedent that ensures that future development in the city benefit the people of the city, and not just the developers. The City Council must vote ‘No’ on the development of the Kingsbridge Armory until Related signs a binding Community Benefits Agreement.”