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The plan will allow for new residential development around two incoming Metro-North stations in Morris Park and Parkchester/Van Nest. It includes “critical modifications” to respond to locals’ concerns about retaining neighborhood character, according to Councilmember Kristy Marmorato.
Adi Talwar
A view of the train tracks near the proposed Morris Park Metro-North Station, set to open in 2027.Lea la versión en español aquí.
The City Council on Thursday voted to approve a sweep rezoning plan for the East Bronx, which aims to spur the development of some 7,000 new apartments around two Metro-North train stations planned for the area in the coming years.
The Bronx Metro-North Station Area Plan will rezone roughly 46 blocks surrounding a commuter rail line in the Morris Park and Parkchester/Van Nest neighborhoods, looking to capitalize on new transit options near two of four Metro-North stations to open in the Bronx in 2027.
The zoning changes will allow for housing development in parts of Parkchester/Van Nest that are currently zoned only for commercial and manufacturing uses, and increase the amount of housing allowed both there and in residential districts of Morris Park, according to the Council.
NYC Dept of City Planning
The pink shows the areas targeted under the proposed Bronx Metro-North plan.
The approval comes as the city faces its greatest scarcity of rental units in several decades, and as Mayor Eric Adams’ administration seeks to pass a more comprehensive rezoning, the City of Yes for Housing Opportunity, that would make it easier to build citywide, including around transit stations.
City Council District 13, where much of the rezoning area is located, saw just 369 new affordable apartments built between 2014 and 2023, ranking 39 out of the Council’s 51 districts when it comes to housing development, according to a tracker produced by the New York Housing Conference. Neighboring Council District 18, which includes Parkchester, saw 2,523 affordable units built during the same period.
The community boards that encompass the rezoning area issued mixed recommendations on the plan. Bronx CB11, which spans Morris Park, Pelham Gardens, Pelham Parkway and Van Nest, voted in favor of the rezoning, though cited concerns about needed infrastructure upgrades to accompany the growth it would bring. Bronx CB9, which includes Parkchester, similarly weighed in in favor.
Bronx CB10, which covers the Pelham Bay and Westchester Square neighborhoods, opposed the rezoning, saying in its recommendation that “building height remains a concern,” and calling for the plan to include more affordable home-ownership opportunities.
While community board votes aren’t binding, they can influence how the City Planning Commission and City Council negotiate the details of a land use deal. City Councilmember Kristy Marmorato, whose represents much of the rezoning area and has previously opposed high-profile housing projects in the district, voted to approve the plan Thursday.
“From the moment this proposal was introduced, I have been committed to ensuring it aligns with our community’s needs and aspirations,” the lawmaker said ahead of her vote.
“In response to your concern, we secured critical modifications to this plan,” she added. “This includes capping building heights, reinstating parking mandates and protecting our low density neighborhoods.”
Councilmembers say they also negotiated $500 million in local infrastructure investments to accompany the rezoning, including renovations to eight parks and playgrounds, and facility upgrades for seven schools. The money will also go to building a pedestrian plaza at the Morris Park station, plus transportation enhancements and drainage upgrades to prevent streets from flooding across the rezoning area.
City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams said that work “will have a lasting positive impact for the residents of the Bronx.”
“Confronting our city’s housing and affordability crisis requires creating more homes for New Yorkers,” she said in a statement. “The opening of new Metro-North stations in the East Bronx presents a unique opportunity to develop new housing and homeownership opportunities.”
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2 Comments
nyc homeower
Give it a few years for all these new apartment buildings to look like and become like another crime-filled. NYCHA.
Ronald Colangelo
This is trying to put 10 pounds of infrastructure in a 5 pound bag. 12 million for schools with the possible influx of thousands of students is not near enough. Kristy called up zoning in Throgs Neck bad for that neighborhood why is this project that is a lot bigger any better. 18 story buildings fit the Morris Park area? Only the giant building that NYHHC got to build on Jacobi come close to that. The way they talk is that all the tenants will be using Metro North stations to go to Manhattan is what they hope. Most of the money for this project will be for this project not for the rest of the area. The influx of 20,000 people to this area is going to put an undo strain on all bus and subway lines cause by those that don’t use Metro North