FreshDirect South Bronx Move Back in Court
A Deal Riddled with Controversy for More than Four Years
The Appellate Division, First Department (27 Madison Avenue), will hear oral arguments on Thursday, March 17th
, at 2:00, on the appeal of the constitutional issue of whether public land can be used for purely private benefit. The subject of the case is FreshDirect’s move to State-owned waterfront land in the South Bronx, which would bring upwards of 1,000 diesel truck trips through a community facing asthma rates eight times the national average from the more than 15,000 diesel trucks already crossing the neighborhood every day.
Harlem River Ventures, the developer subleasing the land to FreshDirect, received a sweetheart deal from the Cuomo administration 21 years ago that allowed the developer to reap a $60+ million profit while paying the State a little over $5 million. During that time, the developer has subleased the land to a host of environmentally degrading uses that have contributed to the health crisis in the South Bronx, including fossil fuel power plants, 8,000 ton per day waste transfer stations and truck distribution hubs for FedEx and the New York Post.
“We have a health epidemic in the South Bronx, and our City and State policies are exacerbating it,” said Professor Monxo Lopez, co-founder of South Bronx Unite and a plaintiff in the case.
“No other community would be expected to trade our ability to breathe for a promise of low paying jobs,” said Mychal Johnson, another co-founder of the group spearheading the challenge.
Last October, South Bronx residents met with Mayor Bill de Blasio, City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and senior members of the city's Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) who promised to look into the changes to the project that would trigger the need for a new inducement resolution from the NYC Industrial Development Agency (NYCIDA).
According to the Bronx Department of Buildings, the FreshDirect footprint has increased by more than 50% since originally reviewed and approved by NYCEDC/NYCIDA. Originally proposed as a 423,530 square foot facility with a $127 million subsidy, the project now stands to be built as a 637,882 square foot facility with a nearly $140 million subsidy. No oversight or approvals have been given for the significant increase in project size and subsidy.
Meanwhile, FreshDirect continues to be the source of controversy where, in recent months the company has been cited as a source of un-subsidized grocer Fairway’s danger of possible bankruptcy as well as a source of over-congested City streets and new legislation to study the impact of trucks in Manhattan. In addition, Larry Scott Blackmon, former Parks Department employee hired by FreshDirect, is alleged to have violated the New York City Charter’s conflicts of interest law when he negotiated a sponsorship package with the Parks Department on behalf of the company during a one year ban on appearing before the agency.
