'It's been building for a while now': The Bronx is in the midst of a residential renaissance - Bronx Times

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The Boogie Down Bronx is slowly becoming the place to live.

In 2023, the Bronx accounted for 35% of new housing completions in 2023 and a recent report from the NYC Department of City Planning shows the Bronx had the highest number of finished units in new buildings of all five boroughs (9,842); Brooklyn had held this distinction every year since 2012.

Mott Haven, specifically, is experiencing a new era of revitalization with thousands of new units built or coming online. The South Bronx neighborhood led the city in completions with 2,326 new building units, including 921 at 101 Lincoln Ave.

Development booming in Mott Haven

The recent surge in development does not surprise Andrew Barrocos, CEO and founder of MNS, which is leading the leasing effort at Maven in Mott Haven for RXR.

"Mott Haven has had a ton of development going on in the area," Barrocos said. "Mott Haven is a great pocket. You have availability to the city with subway lines."

Barrocos told the Bronx Times many Bronxites and other New Yorkers are flocking to these new developments in Mott Haven because it is near Manhattan, where many of them work.

The bustling waterfront in Mott Haven has seen a boom in the past couple years. In addition to Maven, the community is now home to Third At Bankside , Lincoln At Bankside and The Bruckner House .

Maven is located at 2413 3rd Ave.Photo courtesy RXR Realty

Maven is a new ground-up, 27-story residential tower located at 2413 Third Ave. Developed by RXR, the project features 200 residences, 60 of which are rent stabilized for middle-income household, as well as 81 onsite enclosed parking spaces and electric vehicle charging stations. The building is situated minutes from the Third Avenue Bridge and 4/5/6 trains.

The $950 million Bankside development includes a total of 1,379 apartments, 30% of which are rent stabilized through the city's Affordable New York program. The two projects are linked by the waterway on both sides of the Third Avenue Bridge, which connects the Bronx to Manhattan. In addition to its seven residential buildings, the project offers 34,000 square feet of public waterfront space along the Harlem River, 15,000 square feet of retail and a mix of community facilities.

The 12-story Bruckner House includes 255 market-rate apartments and 110 affordable apartments. The Bruckner House offers apartments ranging from studio to two-bedroom residences and a robust amenities program spanning 30,000 square feet, including a rooftop lounge and pool, outdoor theater, mini golf as well as countless wellness amenities and entertainment spaces including a pool table lounge and VR Lounge.

'The Bronx is beautiful'

While Brooklyn was once the hip place to be, the Bronx is slowly following suit, Barrocos said. A big part of that is the cost of land is cheaper in the Bronx and many people have been priced out of finding homes in Brooklyn, he said.

According to Barrocos, the influx of development in Mott Haven and other parts of the borough will make the "stigma of the Bronx" go away.

"For a long time, it's been challenging to build south of 125 ^th Street in Manhattan," he said. "The Bronx is beautiful. The Grand Concourse is one of the nicest streets in New York City. It's got a lot of history."

James Power, a partner at Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP., advises and represents private developers and cultural, educational and health care institutions on real estate development and land use issues in New York City. Power, a Bronx native, told the Times he is not surprised about the increase in development in the Bronx.

In 2023, three large projects were approved through ULURP (Uniform Land Use Review Procedure) in the Bronx. They were all private applications: 2560 Boston Road; 333 units, 1460-1480 Sheridan Blvd., 970 units and 521 East Tremont; 205 units.

"People in the real estate community have realized the South Bronx is a great opportunity," Power said. "It's been building for a while now."

With great access to transit, the waterfront and Manhattan, he sees this trend of development continuing.

Mott Haven isn't the only place where development took place in 2023. Last year, New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR), New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD), City and State officials, Douglaston Development, The New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) and community partners, opened 2850 Webster Ave., a 12-story, 188-unit affordable senior housing development located adjacent to The New York Botanical Garden's 250-acre grounds, the first phase of the two-phase, mixed-use project.

The new development at 2850 Webster Ave. consists of 188 units for seniors.Photo Steven Goodstein

The second phase of the plan at 2868 Webster Ave., which will be unveiled this fall, includes another mixed-use development with 258 residential units for low-income households along with an additional 8,000 square feet of grocery space on the ground floor of the building.

CEO of Douglaston Jed Resnick said although development increased in the Bronx, 2023 was an "unusual year in NYC" because politicians let 421-a a tax abatement program expire, which grants up to 35 years of property tax benefits to newly built multi-unit buildings.

Also known as the Affordable Housing of New York Program, the Independent Budget Office of New York City (IBO) estimates that existing 421-a exemptions will continue to cost the city significantly until fiscal year 2056. Properties in both Manhattan and Brooklyn will account for 83.5 percent of the total cost.

"We need to modernize zoning rules," he said. "We need to make it easier to build. Everyone wants cheaper housing, but no one wants housing on their block. I think fundamentally people are afraid of change."

Resnick said in order to address the rising population in NYC, basement apartments must be legalized, homes must be built near the newly planned Metro North stations and politicians must find ways to cut through red tape and allow developers to build more."

"The Bronx needs housing," he said. "The Bronx has some of the city's oldest housing and a growing population."