Bankside: $1 Billion Plan for Mott Haven Waterfront Crystallizes; Leasing Begins Fall 2021

By Ondel Hylton | From The Bronx Thursday, April 1, 2021

All renderings of Bankside courtesy of ArX Solutions via Brookfield Properties and Hill West Architects

The Bronx is booming again and like its greatest housing surge of the 1920s that built tens of thousands of apartments for the upwardly-mobile seeking to upgrade from Manhattan tenements, this new wave centers on the borough's central and southwest neighborhoods hugging the Harlem River shoreline. Initially envisioned as an extension of Manhattan when amalgamated into the city in 1898, the borough of 1.435 million inhabitants loosely carries the Manhattan street grid but is decidedly more sympathetic to the hills, ravines, and pre-existing streets that date back to when the area was part of Westchester County.

The underrated borough is the only part of New York City connected to the mainland. Its three great parks — Bronx Park, Van Cortlandt Park, and Pelham Bay Park — are among the city's largest, endowing the Bronx with the highest acreage of park space per capita in the city. While one would not perceive this from the trenches of the Cross Bronx Expressway or rattling on an elevated subway above graffiti-scrawled rooftops, a string of ambitious waterfront developments buffering the Harlem River will further improve the borough's optics while providing acres of new parkland and thousands of apartments priced in reach of most New Yorkers.

(ArX Solutions)

Spurred by the city's never-ending housing crunch and deindustrialization, the city rezoned the Mott Haven-Port Morris waterfront in 2005 and 2009 with baked-in stipulations to provide parkland and affordable housing. In 2015, Mayor Bill de Blasio pumped $200 million in capital improvements to the Special Harlem River Waterfront District to stimulate the construction of some 4,000 units. The most impressive scheme to crystalize so far has been Brookfield Properties' Bankside, a 1,350-unit mixed-use master plan straddling the Third Avenue Bridge. The two-phase venture sprawls 4.3 acres and will ultimately cost $950 million to build.

Earlier this week, Brookfield announced that phase one, known as “Third at Bankside,” has fully risen. Composed of three towers standing 25, 25, and 17 stories tall, the phase will begin leasing its 458 rental apartments this fall. Moreso, 30 percent of apartments will be income-restricted through the Affordable New York program, so expect an affordable housing lottery in the coming months.

Harlem River waterfront from the Madison Avenue Bridge (March 2021)

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Bankside's first phase, 'Third at Bankside' from the Third Avenue Bridge

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The third tower at Third at Bankside recently topped out construction

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Phase two beginning to rise at 101 Lincoln Avenue

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“Brookfield is committed to the future of the Bronx and we are proud to hit these major milestones as we advance the Bankside development.” -Alireza Esmaeilzadeh, Senior Vice President, Development, Brookfield Properties.

Bankside Site Plan

The plan was designed by the multi-family housing experts at Hill West Architects with Whitehall helming the interior design. Aesthetically superior to the scores of mundane high-rises that have defined the borough's skyline for decades, the team specified facades of glass, weathered masonry and brick, and dark metal accents to reflect the area's industrial history.

Brookfield partnered with Building Skills NY to hire and train construction workers living in nearby communities. According to a press release, "Through this collaboration, more than 20 workforce training partnerships have been established with local community colleges and community and faith-based partners. These partnerships will ensure that the construction companies and subcontractors for the project have local job candidates from the South Bronx and that the local hires have the support and skills to retain these jobs long-term."

Rendering of phase 2: Lincoln Bankside at 101 Lincoln Avenue (ArX Solutions)

A recent visit to the construction site shows that phase two has just emerged out of the ground. Knighted "Lincoln at Bankside" at 101 Lincoln Avenue, this larger phase will comprise 921 apartments in four conjoined towers, and like the first phase, residents will enjoy forever views of the Manhattan skyline, New York estuary, and its many bridges. Furthermore, amenities peppered throughout the complex will include on-site parking, fitness and wellness facilities, resident lounges, rooftop terraces, and more than 850 feet of a public esplanade along the riverfront.

Bankside's 34,000 square feet of public parkland is being designed by MPFP and will feature native plantings and custom seating areas to foster community interaction. The plan will also include 15,000 square feet of local retail which includes space for a tech-based community center run by an unannounced local nonprofit.

The site is within walking distance to both the newly-renovated 138th Street-Grand Concourse subway station serving the 4 and 5 trains and the 138th Street-Third Avenue station serving the 6 train. Bankside's location at the foot of the Third and Willis Avenue bridges also allows for easy access to Manhattan and the FDR Drive. The bridges have protected pedestrian/cycling walkways that may one day connect to a recently-funded Harlem River esplanade on the Manhattan side. Furthermore, the district is opportune for a New York Ferry launch that may be provided once it achieves an optimal density of residents. Several large-scale plans are envisioned to the north and east of Bankside that will give an entirely new face to the South Bronx.