Boro’s Harlem River development secures fi nancial backing
Fordham Landing, which will be built along the Harlem River in University Heights. Photo Courtesy opf NYC EDC
AOC town hall discusses gentrifi cation, hospitals, education
BRONX TIMES REPORTER, NOVEMBER 1 BTR 5-21, 2019 3
BY JASON COHEN
Gentrifi cation, healthcare
and education were the
primary topics residents discussed
at a town hall hosted by
Representative Alexandria Ocasio
Cortez last week.
The event was held Wednesday,
November 6 at P.S. 71, Rosa
E. Scala School, 3040 Roberts
Avenue.
The outspoken congresswoman
began her talk by
briefl y explaining her poverty
legislation, titled A Just Society,
which involves fi ve bills
and a resolution dealing with
how to improve jobs, immigration
and the economy.
The audience of just over 50
concerned residents was calm
as people were eager to chat
with their congresswoman.
One resident named Darius,
who went to school at P.S.
71, said his sister is a teacher
who often spends way too
much money on supplies. He
asked the congresswomanwhat
could be done to better
fund education.
“First of all we need to pay
them (teachers) more,” she
said.
According to the congresswoman,
the problem with fi nding
money for schools is that
the ‘bag’ often gets passed from
the federal, to the state and
then to the city. Ultimately, it’s
like a game of telephone, she
explained
“We need to fully fund public
schools,” she exclaimed.
Austin Hill asked Ocasio-
Cortes how she feels about universal
basic income. He noted
that it could benefi t many people
in society, including himself,
who are being priced out
of their neighborhoods. In a
single income household it can
be quite challenging, he said.
“When it comes to UBI,
there’s more than one way
to go about it,” the congreeswoman
said.
Ocasio-Cortes explained
that if the federal government
gave people a $1,000 a
month for example, the government
might get rid of programs
like the Special Supplemental
Nutrition Program for
Women, Infants, and Children
(WIC). Furthermore, how far
can $1,000 really get people a
month? While it can help, it
can only go so far, she said.
Ocasio-Cortes said it’s important
for people to work, but
not everyone can. Some are
caretakers, others are disabled
or sick.
Another topic discussed
was the disparity in funding
for private and public hospitals.
Kelly Cabrera, a nurse at
Jacobi Medical Center, asked
the congresswoman how this
issue could be resolved.
The congresswoman said
there is no panacea for fi xing
the funding between private
and public hospitals offering
the implementation of a single
payer healthcare system as a
possible solution.
“NYC used to have a rich
tradition of public hospitals,
especially here in the Bronx
and they slowly were gutted
over time,” she said.
She stressed that everyone
should have healthcare
regardless of how much he or
she makes or his or her legal
status. Furthermore,she explained,
cracks in the system
happen when the government
decides who is or isn’t eligible
for healthcare.
Gentrifi cation, which is
credited as a key factor in her
winning her congressional
seat, was brought up by Reverend
Marilyn Oliver who asked
if it is good or bad for the borough.
“There are people that live
in this community because
they want to live in this community,”
the congresswoman said.
“That’s what makes the Bronx
the Bronx. It (gentrifi cation)
creates a transient community.
It displaces everybody.”
Darius Longarino asks about funding schools. Schneps Media/Jason Cohen
BY JASON COHEN
On Tuesday, Nov. 5, developer
Dynamic Star appointed
Meridian Capital Group to arrange
equity and debt fi nancing
for Fordham Landing, a
planned $3.5 billion development
along the Harlem River
in University Heights, preparing
it to be the largest land assemblage
along a New York
body of water by a private developer.
The parcel is located in
Community Board 7, but directly
across from CB 5.
According to a study conducted
by the Association for
the Neighborhood and Housing
Development, 64.4 percent
of the residents in University
Heights/ Fordham are rent
burdened.
The multi-phased development,
which would occupy 40
acres of mostly vacant land separating
the Harlem River from
the Major Deegan Expressway,
will total 2,380 residential
units, consisting of 1,660 freemarket
apartments and 720 affordable
housing units.
The development will bring
waterfront access to the area
and feature a revamped Metro
North station, offi ce space, residential
units, a life sciences
research center, hotel, retail, esports
arena, student housing
and a public school.
The site is adjacent to the
Metro North station at West
Fordham Road and is located
near the University Heights
Bridge, which offers quick access
to Manhattan.
“Meridian’s fi rst mission
is to obtain $50 million of equity
for Fordham Landing, followed
by securing $100 million
in debt fi nancing for the multiphased
project,” said Dynamic
Star’s president and CEO Gary
Segal.
The riverfront will afford
boating access to residents and
will connect with the 25-acre
Roberto Clemente Park, which
offers sports, cultural activities
and a playground.
Additionally, the Metro
North station currently situated
below grade at West Fordham
Road will be enlarged,
modernized and raised to
street level. The community’s
various components are expected
to span 5,000,000 square
feet.
Construction is expected to
begin early 2022.
“The initial reactions we
have received are enthusiastically
positive,” Segal said.
“We understand this is a lot to
digest for the many stakeholders,
so we are eager to proceed
deliberately to ensure that all
questions and concerns are addressed.”
CB7 district manager Ischia
Bravo said she has concerns
that the large scale project
could impact the community’s
infrastructure, price people
out and possibly create congestion.
But, ultimately, it is too
early to reach such a verdict,
she said.
At a later date the board
plans to have the developer at a
hearing before the full board.
She pondered how tall the
buildings will be and would
they be out of context with the
surrounding area?
She stressed there be needs
to be a traffi c study and the
board would need to hear how
the NYC Planning Commission
feels about the project.
Yes, it could benefi t the
neighborhood, but it could also
disrupt it, she said.
“What does a project of that
magnitude mean for the community?”
Bravo said. “We need
to make sure that it’s built appropriately.
It will change the
dynamics of the area.”