Rendering of 700 Gerard Avenue/Image Credit: Partners for Architecture and Historic Preservation Consulting, LLC.
The new building would be the first new development in the historic district. On September 17, 2019, the Landmarks Preservation Commission voted to approve a Certificate of Appropriateness to construct a new five-story school building on a lot at 700 Gerard Avenue, Bronx which is located within the Grand Concourse Historic District. The lot, located on the east side of Gerard Avenue between East 153rd and East 157th Streets, is currently used as a parking lot and is above an existing underground subway tunnel. The new building would house the American Dream Charter School, a sixth to twelfth grade dual language charter school. Partners for Architecture is the architectural firm for the project.
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Image Credit: NYCEDC
The Bronx Museum, a cultural hub, is looking for a creative partner to help modernize the Bronx Museum. On July 7, 2021, the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) released a Request for Proposals to solicit plans from interested architects to design a new South Wing Atrium and entrance for the Bronx Museum of the Arts in the Concourse Village section of the Bronx. (more…)
New crosswalks and wider meridians help make the Grand Concourse safer for pedestrians. Image Credit: DDC
Phase 4 of the project will begin in April 2021. On August 12, 2020, the Department of Transportation, Department of Design and Construction, and Department of Environmental Protection, along with Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. and Council Member Vanessa Gibson, announced the completion of Phase 3 of the reconstruction of Grand Concourse in the Bronx. (more…)
The Doe Fund breaks ground on affordable housing development at 3188 Villa Avenue in the Bronx. Image credit: The Doe Fund.
The development will provide onsite supportive services for residents. On December 7, 2018, The Doe Fund broke ground at 3188 Villa Avenue, located in the Bedford Park/Special Grand Concourse District of the Bronx to begin construction of a 68-unit affordable and supportive housing development. The Doe Fund is partnering with Chase Community Development Banking to finance the construction, as well as the Department of Housing Preservation and Development, NYCHA, the Corporation for Supportive Housing, and the Human Resources Administration. (more…)
Carol Samol
As director of the Department of City Planning’s Bronx Office, Carol Samol uses zoning tools to promote sustainable economic development in the Bronx. She has also participated as a leader in a broader City effort to reform the City’s Uniform Land Use Review Procedure’s pre-certification process.
Journey to the Bronx. Samol grew up in the upper Ohio Valley near Wheeling, West Virginia and studied English at Berea College, a small liberal arts college in Kentucky. Berea College admits academically promising students who are able to attend for free so long as they work in some capacity for the school. After graduation, Samol moved to the Bronx where she earned a Master’s Degree in Philosophy from Fordham University. Philosophy served as an extension of Samol’s English studies, allowing her to expand her analytic skills. Samol searched for a practical application of her studies, ultimately developing an interest in urban planning. She attended New York University’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service and earned a Master’s in Urban Planning. Samol says that she felt an instant and personal connection to the Bronx, the borough where she continues to reside. Ultimately, Samol knew that she would help work towards the borough’s redevelopment.
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