An affordable housing building planned for the site of the Fine Fare supermarket in Allerton has the go-ahead from the city now that a 2560 Boston Road rezoning has been granted to Slate Property Group.
The 10-story building will bring 333 units and a renovated supermarket, which will relocate nearby during construction.
The building is being financed by the city’s Mix and Match Program, so all the units are required to be capped at 80% and 120% of the area median income (AMI).
A City Council spokesperson told the Bronx Times that 50 units will be allocated for formerly homeless households, 67 units will be reserved for households making 40% AMI, 83 will be for 50% AMI and 133 will be for 90% AMI. There will be 84 studios, 149 one-bedroom units, 50 two-bedroom units and 50 three-bedroom units, according to the spokesperson.
While it’s not legally binding, the developer agreed to the AMI and bedroom breakdown in a written letter of commitment and didn’t make any indication that they would go back on their word, according to the City Council spokesperson.
But Wiley Norvell, Slate’s spokesperson, struck a different tone.
Norvell described the income limitations and bedroom breakdowns as separate from the City Council negotiations and emphasized that they haven’t been finalized and “are still being developed as the project moves forward.”
Norvell did say that none of the units will have an AMI limit of more than 90% and half of the units will be set aside for Community District 11 residents. The site will have 6,750 square feet of community facility space and 117 parking spaces, 67 of which will be reserved for residents, Norvell said.
The proposal didn’t “fare” well with Bronx Community Board 11, as a motion to support the zoning failed by a 17-7 vote in December.
The AMI limits for the units were contentious among some residents, who said the so-called affordable apartments wouldn’t actually be reasonable for locals.
But in a May 12 newsletter, local Councilmember Marjorie Velázquez tried to dissuade those concerns.
She said New York City public school salaries range between $55,275 to $80,721 with an average salary of $66,193, and health care workers earn between $51,193 to $76,902 with an average salary of $69,307, which qualify for units in the new building. Tamara Bonet-Cardona, Velázquez’s communications director, said their office got these figures from the City Council’s Planning and Land Use Division.
“The growing need for housing in our community is a daily struggle for many, and I know the full board and the public are not against affordable housing,” Velázquez said. “As a community, we must ensure our neighbors have access to safe, affordable housing that meets their unique needs.”
Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson also threw her support behind the project, saying in a Jan. 12 recommendation that the 10-story building would become a “defining landmark” for the neighborhood and create a “gold standard” for Allerton.
The City Council Land Use Committee unanimously approved the rezoning on May 10 with one member of the 13-member committee absent. Bronx Councilmembers Rafael Salamanca, Kevin Riley and Pierina Sanchez, who sit on the Committee, all supported the proposal.
The full 51-member City Council then unanimously passed the rezoning with two members absent on May 11. Mayor Eric Adams did not veto the project during a mayoral review period, so the zoning can proceed.
Adams’ office did not comment on the mayor’s stance on the project, deferring to the NYC Department of City Planning.
“These approved land use actions clear the way for a Bronx project with over 330 homes and a new supermarket blocks away from the subway and from great open space at Bronx River Forest,” said Joe Marvilli, deputy press secretary for the city planning department. “It’s an example of transit-oriented development that will serve a wide range of New Yorkers. We look forward to seeing it come to fruition.”
The project made its way through the council after the body also unanimously approved a controversial rezoning planned for Bruckner Boulevard, another housing complex proposed for the site of a grocery store in Velázquez’s district. That proposal has been facing a legal challenge from local Throggs Neck residents.
Reach Aliya Schneider at aschneider@schnepsmedia.com or (718) 260-4597. For more coverage, follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @bronxtimes
