A vacant lot in University Heights won’t be vacant much longer.
A 160.000 square foot waterfront parcel, located on 320 W. Fordham Road, is currently being shopped to potential bidders and developers according to a listing by realty firm Massey Knakal.
Offered at $30 million, the site, also known to some as ‘Fordham Landing’, offers a developer over 500,000 square feet for residential development and almost 1,000,000 square feet for community use.
Current renderings in the works depict a five-building residential complex harboring the Harlem River, even though this has been deemed ‘just an option’ as nothing has been officially decided yet concerning the vacant lot site, according to Massey Knakal.
Eventhough the site carries a hefty asking price it is only one-tenth the price of a similar site in Manhattan and one-fifth the price of a vacant site in Broohlyn or Queens, the broker claims.
“It’s a straight up bargain,” said Karl Brumback, vice president of Massey Knakal, who stated that the price, proximity and scale are all at a premium.
In the 1980s, during the Ed Koch-era, the site was rezoned R-7 for hi-rise residential development. However, the lot has remained mostly vacant since then, only used occasionally for truck storage.
Though the site is somewhat isolated, its only a stone’s throw away from the Harlem River and just off the Major Deegan Expressway, is adjacent to Metro North’s University Heights station and is only minutes from Manhattan via the IRT 1 train, just across the University Heights Bridge.
“We hope that this project generates more overall awareness about what this site, along with the north Bronx has to offer to the rest of the borough,” said l Brumback. “With the belief that the Bronx is on the rise, we hope that the developer will contribute to the borough’s move upward.”
Massey Knakal handled the sale of the Capri-Whitestone Motel, near Ferry Point Park, to the city for use as a homeless shelter.
