Uproar over Westchester Avenue shelter
A large crowd gathered at St. Helena’s School gym on Friday, April 11 to listen to plans about a proposed 165-person men’s ‘employment
shelter’ to be operated by contractor Samaritan Daytop Village. Schneps Media / Patrick Rocchio
During the St. Helena
town hall, Councilman
Ruben Diaz Sr. pledged
to hold a rally against
the shelter siting, which
will happen outside of
the shelter’s site on Monday,
April 29 at 6:30 p.m.
Assemblywoman Karines
Reyes started a petition
to demand zero sex
offenders at the new facility
in response to the
crowd’s reaction.
Christina Ramos, a
mother of a young child
who lives near the proposed
shelter, and attended
the meeting, said
she takes her child for
walks, and doesn’t believe
the shelter would
be conducive to a safe
environment.
Senator Luis Sepulveda
is planning to
host a follow up meeting
with the community,
along with Reyes, at St.
Helena’s Church on Friday,
May 3 from 6:30 to 8
p.m.
The senator is cohosting
the informational
meeting with the
project’s co-sponsors
DHS and Samaritan Village.
“When people hear the
words homeless shelter,
it is uncomfortable and
controversial, but I have
always said that people
have a right to housing…
that’s my guiding principal,”
Sepulveda said.
Since the shelter is
being built as an ‘asof
right’ project which
doesn’t require any special
permits, the senator
said he doesn’t believe
that rallies or protests
against the shelter will
be productive because
the city isn’t going to
pull back and there is no
way legally to stop it, he
said.
Rather than an all-out
fight, the senator would
like to control the type
of shelter going into the
location.
He would like to see
a shelter for families
or possibly low income
housing, he said.
“Let’s get something
the community could
work with, rather than
going out there and protesting
something coming
anyway,” said Sepulveda.
DHS spokeperson,
Arianna Fishman, said
that the agency wants
to emphasize it is an employment
shelter, and
that the new shelter ushers
in an era of phasing
out stop-gap measures of
the past by opening highquality
new sites.
building’s developer, Exact
Capital.
He said the compromise
will bring much needed affordable
housing for seniors
and young families into the
community.
“This was a hardfought
compromise that
will give us control over
what will get built,” said
Gjonaj, adding “I am just
glad that we are able to see
it through to the end.”
The site of the development,
1340 Blondell Avenue,
was a former auto salvage
yard.
Gjonaj’s chief of staff,
Reginald Johnson, said the
new confi guration will include
172 units versus the
proposed 228, 225 parking
spaces, and about 20,000
square feet of commercial
space that the developer
has indicated will be
leased, most likely, for an
educational use.
The chairman of the
Westchester Square Business
Improvement District,
John Bonizio, said that he
was pleased with the outcome.
Bonizio said that the
225-space parking lot is
going to attract different
types of businesses to the
Square because they will
know that parking is available.
He cited a growing
number of restaurants as
an example of the kinds of
businesses that could be
attracted to the area, although
it is not limited to
restaurants.
“Just like it does in
Manhattan, (the parking)
is going to give consumers
who come to the area by car
the opportunity to park in
a place where they are not
going to get ticketed,” said
Bonizio.
Additionally, the new
residents in the area will
increase foot traffi c in the
commercial corridor, said
Bonizio.
An increase in foot traffi
c has been a perennial concern
of Westchester Square
merchants, Bonizio said,
adding that the council’s actions
could spur other residential
development along
Blondell Avenue, replacing
the mostly auto-related
businesses with housing.
“It is a win for the community.
It is an important
thing to the community,”
said Bonizio. “I know that
there was a lot of opposition
and I understand it. If you
look at it overall, the community
needs to grow. If it
doesn’t grow it is going to
die.”
Idan Sims, an Exact Capital
spokesman, released
a statement to the Bronx
Times.
“The unanimous City
Council approval of the
Blondell Commons refl
ects strong support from
the community, including
neighborhood residents and
small business owners.
“The new 100% affordable
building to be developed
at 1340 Blondell
Avenue will be a welcomed
addition to an underutilized
site in the
Westchester Square section,”
it said.
The statement continued:
“The new building
will offer many appealing
features and amenities, including
a children’s playroom,
a fi tness room, a
large multipurpose room
and 225 parking spaces
that will also be available
to the public.”
In advisory roles, community
boards 10 and 11
both opposed the original
design.
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Councilman Ruben Diaz Sr. Schneps
Media / Patrick Rocchio
Blondell Commons
ULURP approved
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