News shared May 19 that the required Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) and public hearings for the latest Kingsbridge Armory redevelopment plan are about to kick off appear to signal that it’s full steam ahead for the beleagured site. This is despite a pending lawsuit filed at the end of March against the City, 8th Regiment Partners, the winning bidder, and NYC Economic Development Corporation (EDC) by losing bidder, Agallas Equities.

 

Meanwhile, as the first public hearing for the winning proposal, “The Kingsbridge Center (“El Centro Kingsbridge”), announced in late January, takes place on Wednesday, May 28, some residents we spoke to want to better understand what type of housing will be implemented under Phase II of the project. Some are already anxious it may constitute supportive housing services for persons living with substance addiction who frequent the area, as well as the nearby Kingsbridge Underpass, which New York City Mayor Eric Adams visited last year.

 

“From training troops during World War I to distributing supplies after Hurricane Sandy, the Kingsbridge Armory has served our city for more than a century,” said Adams in the context of the ULURP kick off. “With the ambitious vision our administration has put forward for this space and the $200 million investment we are committing to bring it to life, we’ll begin work on the next chapter in this distinguished history.”

As reported, in addition to that $200 million, a further $2 million was pledged in support of the project by the Office of the Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson, $12 million from the Office of City Council Member Pierina Sanchez (C.D. 14), along with a $1.05 million grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), with the support of Congressman Adriano Espaillat (NY-13), all in hopes of finally putting the long-underutilized site to use for something other than filming occasional episodes of “The Penguin.”

 

Adams added, “We will create hundreds of affordable homes, support 21st-century industries, generate over $2 billion in economic impact, and give residents of the Bronx, and all New Yorkers, the world-class space they deserve.”

 

The New York City Charter requires that certain actions reviewed by the NYC Planning Commission undergo a ULURP, a standardized procedure whereby applications affecting the City’s land use are publicly reviewed. The Charter also mandates timeframes within which such reviews must take place. Key participants are typically the NYC Department of City Planning (DCP), the NYC Planning Commission, community boards, borough presidents, borough boards, the city council, and the mayor.

 

Gov. Kathy Hochul said of the ULURP launch, “Communities across the Bronx will be connected, delivering jobs, cultural education, and recreation. The redevelopment of the armory will bring families and residents together and uplift the community for generations to come.”

 

Meanwhile, Bronx Community Board 7 (CB7) District Manager Karla Cabrera Carrera and CB7 Chair Yajaira Arias said, “Bronx Community Board 7 and the community look forward to continued conversations on the proposed redevelopment of the Kingsbridge Armory.”

According to City officials, and as reported, the aim of the latest plan is to turn the historic, long-vacant, City-owned Armory, located in the Kingsbridge Heights section of The Bronx, into “a thriving, community-centered hub that delivers economic opportunity, social infrastructure, and cultural vitality for Bronx residents.”

 

Meanwhile, the lawsuit filed against EDC, the winning bidder, and various current and former politicians and City officials broadly alleges “a troubling pattern of political interference, procedural violations, and apparent intellectual property theft that [allegedly] corrupted what should have been a fair and transparent [RFP] public process” for the redevelopment of the City-owned Armory.

 

An RFP (Request for Proposal) is a business document that announces a project, describes it, and solicits bids from qualified contractors to complete it. Agallas Equities has also asked NYC Department of Investigations (DOI) to investigate a potential conflict of interest in relation to the selection of 8th Regiment Partners.

City officials said the 8th Regiment Partners’ proposal was selected “after a rigorous request for proposal process that was informed by a nine-month public engagement process with over 4,000 community members,” which ultimately produced the “Together for Kingsbridge Vision Plan.” Click here to read more of what they had to say on the lawsuit.

 

More recently, Agallas Equities has also criticized the mayor over apparent plans to open a microchip production plant at the armory as part of the redevelopment. Agallas cited health and other risks associated with the potential plan. For more on this and the City’s response to the criticism, click here.

 

As reported, City officials said Phase I of the selected project will consist of “a mixed-use development with a state-of-the-art venue space and entertainment uses, sports fields [for local youth academies], cultural and commercial space, light industrial manufacturing space, an educational facility focused on workforce development, and over 25,000 square feet of dedicated community space.” They said this phase is centered around the 180,000 square foot, column-free drill hall located within the Armory and is expected to be completed by 2030.

 

They said Phase II consists of the redevelopment of the adjacent “National Guard site” [also on the grounds of the Armory site] and will include around 450 units of permanently affordable, rental housing adjacent to the main Armory building [drill hall]. It is expected to be completed by 2032. As reported, on March 3, 2022, NYS Office of General Services, NYS Military & Naval Affairs, and the U.S. National Guard held ground-breaking ceremonies for a $10 million upgrade to the two annexed buildings used by the National Guard situated on this site adjacent to the main Kingsbridge Armory drill hall, along West 195th Street.

At the time, the NYS Division of Military and Naval Affairs told Norwood News in part that the site in question, at 10 West 195th Street, was originally the administrative annex of the “massive Kingsbridge Armory” [drill hall] next door, built between 1912 and 1917. “The New York National Guard transferred title to the Kingsbridge Armory to New York City in 1996,” they said.

 

We were further informed [in 2022], “The two National Guard buildings now beginning their upgrade were first constructed to complement the larger armory structure in 1950 and 1957. They include administrative, storage and training spaces as well as a vehicle storage building. They will continue to house 100 NY Army National Guard Soldiers of Bravo Battery of the 1st Battalion, 258th Field Artillery.”

 

Renovation plans for the upgrade provided to us in 2022 are attached. To view a short video of these two now-renovated, annexed buildings, as they appear today, though covered by some trees, click here. They are roughly three stories high and currently do not block the view of the main drill hall’s roof. Some photos taken on Monday, May 26, are also attached.

Norwood News asked the NYS Division of Military and Naval Affairs for comment on the redevelopment of the “National Guard site” to include the 450 units of permanently affordable rental housing and asked how this would impact upon their current operations. A representative said on May 27 the agency was aware of the latest plan for the reuse of the Kingsbridge Armory site, including the area which currently houses their “armory and logistics facility adjacent to the building.”

 

“Over the years, the division’s position has been that we are prepared to move from the two annex buildings, but we will require a new location in The Bronx for an armory to replace our current facility,” the representative said.

 

As reported, City officials said the redevelopment of the armory is expected to generate an economic impact of nearly $2.6 billion over the next 30 years, creating over 3,000 construction jobs and 360 permanent jobs in the process. They also said construction will be executed under a project labor agreement, ensuring fair wages and benefits for construction workers.

 

The Northwest Bronx Community & Clergy Coalition (NWBCCC) has long been a key stakeholder in the redevelopment of the site. Back in 2013, as part of redevelopment discussions on the now-abandoned Kingsbridge National Ice Center (KNIC) project, NWBCCC worked tirelessly, as part of a wider community stakeholder group called CAC, to broker with KNIC Management, the then-chosen developer of the proposed ice center, a historic, first-of-its-kind community benefits agreement (CBA).

On the latest ULURP kick-off, the organization said, “For over three decades, our communities have organized to ensure the Armory not only serves the people of the Bronx but becomes a model of justice, sustainability and equity. Now, we must remain vigilant and organized to ensure what was promised to our community becomes a reality: family-sustaining union jobs, affordable housing, environmental sustainability, anti-displacement protections for local businesses, co-governance and community ownership.”

 

As reported, NWBCCC joined some local small businesses located along Jerome Avenue and East Kingsbridge Road for a rally in December 2024 amid growing concerns that the commercial leases for these local, small businesses were at risk, as their landlords had apparently begun considering more lucrative offers in light of the impending Armory redevelopment plan.

 

The organization recently held a multi-faith vigil outside the Armory on Sunday, May 18, on the last day of Bronx Week 2025, and later said it would be preparing residents “to [show] up powerfully” at the upcoming public hearings on the Armory redevelopment. On Monday, May 26, we spoke to some residents of the area and asked for their opinions on the housing element of the project.

One man said, “I think that it’s long overdue. I think the housing is very good, depending on the type of selections that they make. If it’s beneficial for the area and for the person that’s moving in, I’m all for it, but if it’s going to turn into a rehab type center or something like that, right across the street from Kingsbridge College (Kingsbridge Heights School, P.S. 86), I don’t think this is the best area to do that, especially with the type of resurgence this neighborhood is having.”

The man added, “They need to really engage with the community and be serious with that.” We asked how many stories he thinks would be acceptable to devote to housing as part of the redevelopment, and if he believed the chosen location for housing was a good one. “It can be,” he said. “But again, we have a lot of ‘interest,’ he said, adding air quotes.

 

Seemingly alluding to the possibility of gentrification at the site over time, he added, “So, depending on that ‘interest,’ like any other building that they say that they’re going to put up anywhere in the five boroughs, a specific amount is going to this [e.g. market rate], another amount is going to be this [e.g. affordable housing]. How many years will it take before the first factor, first phase, gets phased out; it’s a cycle.”

 

Asked if he thought housing along West 195th Street would ruin the Armory’s esthetic, he said, “I mean everybody wants to draw everything on The Bronx and this and the other. I mean Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island, we all have the same esthetics, but the problem is that this has such a beauty to it that if you add control i.e. airspace, which everybody rents, I mean, you know how that goes. How high is enough? 20 stories? You know then you overshadow the little sunlight that we do get.”

 

Another resident of the area, Robert Bowman, who said he is an active serviceman with the U.S. Navy since 2001 and works as a culinary specialist chef, said, “I do believe that out of respect, we do need to preserve and protect the building and I don’t agree with the renovations or update, other than to the armory. itself.”

Informed about the two-phase, multi-use plan, and limitations on what can be done to change the esthetic of the building due to its historic nature, he added, “I believe we should just leave the armory here as it is right now. I like it how it is. I wouldn’t agree with too much renovation. I don’t agree that they should put all of the extra stuff in there.”

 

Asked if he preferred to see it empty, Bowman said, “Yes.” Asked what he would say to people who want to see more housing in the area, Bowman said, “Once again, I don’t agree, you know, that they need any updates. I believe it should prevail the way it is.”

 

We asked what he would say to people who say the building is just sitting there barely used, it’s a nice building, housing is needed in the area, and they want to put it to use, he said, “I believe things happen for a reason. I mean, it’s a reason why [it] is empty and it’s the reason why there’s no multi-centers and apartment buildings in there. You know, I believe they need to protect it and preserve it and leave it as it is.”

Asked if he liked walking around the area and admiring its esthetic, Bowman said, “Yes, absolutely. We need to protect and preserve it, and protect our soldiers, and make sure that they safe, so I believe they just need to stay there, solely, just solely soldiers there and military personnel need to just stay there. I don’t believe they need anything extra, other than that.”

 

We also spoke to a local family and asked for their thoughts. Speaking in Spanish, the father said, “I don’t think it’s a good idea because this is a landmarked historical building or something. I think it holds a lot of significance for a lot of people, and there are so many places that they could put housing that they don’t have to choose this location specifically.” We mentioned that housing was needed in the area and the man said, “Housing, yes, is needed, but there are many places that they can use still.”

 

Also speaking in Spanish, the mother of the family then said, “This, they have to preserve because, for example, during the pandemic, they used it as a food distribution center and that is needed when those kinds of things happen.” We mentioned the two-phase approach and the planned facilities for community use in the main drill hall. The mom then said that maybe a multi-use plan could work, but it would depend on the people who would be housed at the site.

“If they allow people of little means to live there, who need somewhere to live, and who contribute to society, yes, but if it’s simply for people who are going to just use it as a benefit and then you’re going to have delinquency and things like that, then no,” she said. Asked how many stories high of housing they felt would be acceptable, they said five or six.

 

“Something small, something that doesn’t take away from what it is, the structure, and the significance of it and what it represents….that it shouldn’t be a big change because this is what they call it, a landmark, so a lot of modification would affect that,” the mother said, gesturing at the main drill hall and arched roof.

 

For her part, Sanchez, a co-chair of the “Together for Kingsbridge Community Visioning Process,” said in part that the community had a once-in-a-generation opportunity to get the project right, and “to deliver a project as beautiful, dynamic, and resilient as the people that call the Bronx home.”

 

She added, “From the start, I have made my intentions clear. I will evaluate this proposal thoroughly and center the guiding principles that our community articulated in the Together for Kingsbridge Vision Plan: to prioritize youth, uplift older adults, foster intergenerational relationships, create jobs and wealth for local workers, grow a regenerative, Bronx-centered economy, and maximize community ownership.”

She said as part of her review, she would also work with local stakeholders to seek community benefits with clear structures for accountability and ongoing community governance. “In the coming weeks, my team looks forward to strong participation from Bronxites at the Community Board 7 public hearings. We must ensure that the redevelopment of this great structure is both transformative and equitable for generations to come.”

 

Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson sees the armory as a “true engine of opportunity for the Bronx.” She said in part, “This historic redevelopment will deliver not just jobs and housing, but a space where our youth can thrive, our culture can shine, and our community can grow.”

 

Others appeared to sing from the same hymn sheet, with Gabriella Sottile, a principal at Maddd Equities, one of the partners behind 8th Regiment Partners, also saying the firm would work hand-in-hand with the community to deliver “a place of opportunity and a gathering space for all.”

 

Meanwhile, Gary LaBarbera, president of NYC and NYS Building and Construction Trades Council, said the ULURP certification was a crucial step to bringing well-paying union construction jobs to hard-working New Yorkers from Kingsbridge Heights and neighboring Bronx communities. “We applaud NYCEDC and 8th Regiment Partners for advancing this project and our members look forward to skillfully and efficiently driving this project forward while pursuing the middle-class opportunities it creates for them and their families.”

Joy Construction, the other partner behind 8th Regiment Partners, has an address at Fulton Street in Manhattan, and Maddd Equities has an address on Long Island.

 

According to the lawsuit documentation, EDC is a domestic public benefit corporation organized under the not-for-profit corporation law of the State of New York, with a principal place of business in Manhattan.

 

Dates for the upcoming public hearings are included in the flier attached above.