NYC Housing Plan for New Train Stations Moves Forward

New York City’s Planning Commission has begun public hearings on rezoning for the city’s plan to build 7,500 homes in proximity to new Metro-North stations that are under construction in the Bronx.

Four new train stations are being built along an extension of the New Haven line that will connect Metro-North service to Penn Station, an MTA project known Penn Access.

Last year, Mayor Eric Adams proposed the rezoning of large swaths in Manhattan, Brooklyn and the Bronx to permit residential development as part of his “Moonshot” plan to build 500K new housing units in NYC in the coming decade.

The rezoning in the Bronx will bring housing and commercial development to two of the new Metro-North stations, at Parkchester and Morris Park. The 7,500 homes will include 1,900 units reserved for affordable housing; up to 1.2M SF of commercial space also is part of the plan.

The Penn Access project also includes the construction of new stations at Hunts Point and Co-op City, but the rezoning proposal doesn’t cover those areas.

Most of the speakers at this week’s City Planning Commission hearing supported the rezoning proposal, which was endorsed by Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson, Gothamist reported.

“This project is not just about transportation, not just about four additional stations in the East Bronx, but it really represents an incredible once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to expand many of our communities, to add additional value, and to really drive smart economic growth,” Gibson said during the meeting.

However, several residents of the neighborhoods that will be rezoned expressed concern that the areas will become too congested, with one suggesting the local Community Board needs to try to scale the plan down to less half of its proposed size, the report said.

The Planning Commission is expected vote on the rezoning before the end of the year. The plans also require the approval of the City Council.

The $2.8B Penn Access project is scheduled to be completed in 2027, but because the MTA is using an Amtrak right-of-way to connect with Penn Station, it has already faced some delays as the two mega-agencies resolve disagreements, Gothamist reported.

Penn Access service will rely on tracks on the Hell Gate Bridge, which is also used by Amtrak, to take trains from the Bronx into Queens and then into an East River tunnel to Manhattan and Penn Station.

In January 2023, Adams proposed to rezone a wide swath of Midtown Manhattan to facilitate new housing. The proposal encompassed a 46-block area from W. 23rd to W. 41st streets, where NYC wants to erase zoning restrictions that limit uses to offices or manufacturing, allowing dozens of aging office buildings to be converted into apartments.

Adams estimated that the Midtown area covered by the proposal-which stretches from Chelsea up through the Garment District-can yield 20,000 housing units.