Creating Access to Healthy Foods: Bronx Project Will Serve Distressed Neighborhood

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The federal new markets tax credit is helping to finance a project in the South Bronx in New York City that will transform an underutilized municipal parking lot into an 88,000 square-foot mixed-use commercial and community facility.

The project, called Triangle Plaza Hub, will consist of a two-story building containing a Fine Fare Supermarket and campus for Metropolitan College of New York as well as an 8,000-square foot public plaza. The supermarket is being built in an underserved area as part of the city’s Food Retail Expansion to Support Health (FRESH) program.

Three NMTC Allocations

Three community development entities provided a total of $35 million in new markets tax allocation for the project: United Fund Advisors, $19.3 million; the Low-Income Investment Fund, $10 million; and Goldman Sachs Urban Investment Group, $5.6 million. The project is being financed with $10.3 million in new markets tax credit equity, a $14.8 million senior loan, $3.4 million in direct equity from Goldman Sachs, and $5.8 million from the New York Healthy Food & Healthy Communities Fund, a partnership between LIIF, Goldman Sachs, and Empire State Development, the state’s chief economic development agency.

“The Triangle Plaza Hub will provide the Melrose neighborhood with many new amenities and jobs, enhancing the area’s economy and helping the Bronx continue to flourish,” said Zachary Smith, chief operating officer for the New York City Economic Development Corporation, at the groundbreaking ceremony for the project. “This underutilized lot will be transformed into a vibrant mixed-use facility that will serve the community for years to come.”         “I am very excited with the development of Triangle Hub in Melrose,” said Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. “This green mixed-use commercial and community facility will positively impact the South Bronx community, providing residents with much needed access to fresh produce, new job opportunities, and higher education. This is a major development that will help us revitalize the area and at the same time will provide a shot in the arm to our local economy.”

The project is expected to create approximately 191 permanent jobs and 151 construction jobs, with opportunities for local residents, and will incorporate energy efficiency and green building principles with a minimum goal of LEED Silver Certification.

The developer is Triangle Equities, a diversified full service real estate company.

Location in Highly Distressed Area

The new development is located in a highly distressed area with little access to healthy food, a poverty rate above 30%, and unemployment of 1.5 times the national average.

The New York Healthy Food & Healthy Communities Fund helps underserved communities gain access to fresh produce and new job opportunities. The $30 million statewide program provide grants and loans to finance new food markets in underserved communities that lack access to affordable, nutritious, fresh food.

The new Fine Fare supermarket will join a list of 16 FRESH projects approved since 2009. The FRESH program was created in partnership with New York’s city council to increase access to food in underserved areas within the five boroughs by incentivizing the establishment and retention of neighborhood supermarkets.

The development site is part of the Bronxchester Urban Renewal Plan and New York City’s South Bronx Initiative. The development of the site will help fulfill stated goals strengthen and complement the existing commercial and retail corridor at “the Hub.” Centered at the intersection of Third Avenue, Melrose Avenue, and East 149th Street, the Hub is one of the busiest intersections in the Bronx, with more 200,000 pedestrians passing through daily.