City on the Edge: Climate Change and New York City
Dozens of Potential ‘Brownfields’ Dot the Banks of the Bronx River. How Should They Be Redeveloped?
The public has until Oct. 20 to weigh in on the Southern Boulevard Brownfield Opportunity Area Study, which looks to “outline and identify opportunities to transform some of the vacant and underutilized properties along the Bronx River waterfront into new community assets,” according to Reece Brosco, the brownfields program manager at Youth Ministries for Peace and Justice, the group working with New York's Department of State on the project.
The report identified about 30 “strategic sites” in the study area, which spans both sides of the Bronx River between Starlight Park to the north and Soundview Park to the south, that could potentially used for affordable housing, green space, climate resiliency measures and other public uses, the group said.
“That goes to show the potential of what you could actually do from a site that was contaminated,” said David Shuffler, YMPJ’s executive director.
What started in 2009 to seek out climate commitments from business and government leaders attending the United Nations’ September General Assembly, Climate Week now includes hundreds of events citywide, both official and grassroots. Here’s how to get involved.
Opinion: Gov. Hochul’s Five Bridges Project Pours More Concrete into Bronx Wounds
“I stand shoulder‑to‑shoulder with community groups demanding: fix the bridges — but don’t build a park‑spanning bypass. Instead, invest in highway capping, green buffers, clean transit service, and safe walking and biking paths.”
