Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams on Tuesday revealed a $200 million plan to revitalize the Kingsbridge Armory.
The joint effort, with equal contributions of $100 million from both the state and the city, aims to transform the historic structure and its surroundings, while also boosting economic activity.
The armory, which originally opened in 1917 as a military facility, was added to the National Register of Historical Places in 1982. However, it has remained mostly unused since 1996, though it did serve as an emergency center during Hurricane Sandy, during the COVID-19 pandemic and in the aftermath of a fatal fire that killed 17 people in the Bronx two years ago.
Two previous attempts to develop the site were unsuccessful.
“The redevelopment of Kingsbridge Armory has been attempted two times, and now we’re going to get it done. And we’re going to do it right,” Adams said.
In 2009, under Mayor Mike Bloomberg, the city proposed developing the space into a mall. But the proposal was defeated when the developer refused to pay workers a living wage.
Then in 2013, the Bloomberg administration proposed a giant ice skating rink at the location.
“The Kingsbridge National Ice Center will be the first year-round ice sports facility located in the Bronx,” Bloomberg said at the time.
That project never got off the ground, due to a court battle between the developer and the city’s economic development corporation over funding for the project. Eventually, the city terminated its contract with the developer.
City officials said it will be different this time around.
“The money I think you’re referencing was for a past project that turned out to be not financially viable in which there was a potential for a state loan in that and that now has been converted into a grant thanks to the governor’s leadership and puts in a much more positive position,” said Andrew Kimball, president and CEO of the NYC’s Economic Development Corporation.
Officials have committed to making sure that construction and jobs at the armory will be union labor and include hiring from the local community.
The new redevelopment proposal is the result of about 4,000 community stakeholders coming together to brainstorm ideas for the 570,000-square-foot space.
“This happened because of engaging a community, a community that was so desirous to be at the table, feeling that they had a real voice that mattered,” Hochul said about the process ahead of Tuesday’s announcement.
“This building is extraordinary. The largest armory in the nation. We don't do things small. This is New York City. We’re always going to have the largest, the best. And when this was completed, it had a purpose, a military purpose right in the residential community. But when you come here, you don't want to think about the past, you want to think about the future and the great potential,” she added.
Adams also emphasized that the broader vision behind the redevelopment is to bolster the surrounding community.
“What good is it to build this structure if we don't have a plan for the neighborhoods that surrounds this structure? That is what our vision is going to do,” he said.
The plan aims to create opportunities for Bronx residents by generating more than 1,800 jobs and up to $10 billion in economic impact, according to Adams.
A specific plan for the armory has yet to be decided upon, according to Maria Torres-Springer, deputy mayor for economic and workforce development. She noted that the city will put out a request for proposals in September.
The goal of the project is for the site to become a hub for entrepreneurship, film and TV, sustainable manufacturing, urban agriculture and emerging technologies.
Torres-Springer said the city is hoping to break ground on the project by 2027.