CPC okays 228-unit Blondell Commons; Council next
The City Planning Commission has unanimously approved Blondell Commons, still a source of controversy in the community, as part of the
Uniform Land Use Review Procedure.
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Calls for new Hutch Metro roads
From page 1 ing the new construction.
exit and entrance to the Hutch Metro
Center and an adjoining city 911 Call
Center. The site is currently accessed
by Marconi Street.
It was included in a group of recommendations
in a May 2015 NYC Department
of City Planning study of the parkway
between the Bronx-Whitestone
Bridge and Co-op City, said Kelleher.
A subsequent $1 million study completed
in 2018 by the NYC Department
of Design and Construction concluded
that the project and ancillary work
would cost over $127 million.
Given the price tag, the entire Bronx
NYC City Council delegation sent a letter
to Governor Cuomo on Monday, February
25 asking that the state split the
costs of the project.
“While the development in itself
paints a healthy economic picture for
the Bronx, it’s missing one very important
element: adequate and swift highway
access to and from the site,” stated
the letter, asking for state help in fi nanc-
Hutch Metro is in Councilman Mark
Gjonaj’s district, and he said that another
road would relieve congestion on
Marconi Street and Waters Place, which
often becomes jammed with cars.
The councilman said he believes
that the city and state would be investing
taxpayer dollars wisely, and pave
the way for an already planned future
expansion of HMC.
“This is economic development at its
best, creating infrastructure for future
investment and current needs,” said
Gjonaj. He believes that it is the responsibility
of the city to build roads like this
to further economic development.
The next step is to get the project
funded in both the city and state budgets,
stated Gjonaj, with Kelleher adding
that the street would traverse the development
from the parkway to Marconi
Street, and potentially also have the effect
of easing traffi c congestion around
nearby Jacobi Medical Center, Einstein
Hospital and Calvary Hospital.
Arlene Grauer, Country Club Civic
BRONX TIMES REPORTER, M 114 ARCH 15-21, 2019 BTR
Marconi Street is currently the principal means of getting in and out of the Hutchinson
Metro Center.
Association president, said she visits
HMC frequently and believes that the
access road is badly needed for safety
reasons.
“I think it is paramount that people
have more than one way in and out
of the Hutchinson Metro Center,” she
said, adding “My concern is the safety
and security of people using the medical
facilities as well as its employees. If
there is an emergency…it isn’t going to
pretty.”
the project had a good number of supporters
on both boards.
The project is in CB 11 but across the
street from CB 10, which is the community
board the Westchester Square BID
is located.
The approval by CPC was expected,
said Matt Cruz, CB 10 district manager,
because City Planning is a mayoral
agency and interested in building more
affordable housing.
“The community board understands
this was expected,” said Cruz. “Now
this goes before the NYC City Council
where Councilman Mark Gjonaj will
have a crack at it.”
Al D’Angelo, CB 11 chairman, said
that the board didn’t support the project
because there was community opposition
to the proposal.
A spokesman for Gjonaj said that
the councilman is still in the process of
making sure that community concerns
are addressed, such as the lack of students
seats.
The possible addition of a school
somewhere in the Square’s business
district would help address the fact that
the new building is zoned for a school
that is already at 150 percent capacity,
said the spokesman.
Some have suggested placing a charter
school in the building’s ground fl oor
space.
A hearing on the ULURP is scheduled
at the NYC Council on Tuesday,
March 19, said Gjonaj’s spokesman,
adding that their offi ce is in an ongoing
conversation with the developer.
Supporters of the mixed-use building,
which will have ground fl oor
commercial space and approximately
189,000 square feet of residential space,
hailed the CPC decision.
Alex Garoni, a Blondell Avenue resident
who represented the merchants
and plan’s supporters at a CPC public
hearing, said that this will be a positive
development.
“It is defi nitely going to help the community
and those needing affordable
housing,” said Garoni. “It will defi nitely
uplift the economy on the Square.”
Garoni, a former Westchester Square
merchant, said the commercial district
is in need of more foot traffi c and the additional
parking would help bring people
into the shopping area.
A statement from the developer,
Exact Capital, said that they were delighted
to have the support of CPC.
“With all of the benefi ts this project
presents to the community we are optimistic
the city council will approve it,”
read the statement. “Blondell Commons
provides much needed affordable housing
with a special allocation for veterans.”
The statement also read: “Signifi -
cant change in the form of development
is often met with questions and even resistance;
however the majority of residents
and business owners are enthusiastic
about this project, which refl ects
the attention we gave to their views.”
Sandi Lusk, leader of the Westchester
Square Zerega Improvement Organization,
expressed the opposite view, and
said that to get her organization’s support
the number of stories in the building
would have to be reduced, from nine
to six, to make it more contextual with
other Square properties
“I would say build it in the context
of the area,” said Lusk, adding that she
feels the project size is too extreme for
the community.