Beyond Flint: ‘My community breathes different air than the white community’
Category Archives: Media Coverage
Fresh Direct Bronx dilemma: Health or jobs? -Al Jazeera Americas
Environmental racism: Bronx activists decry Fresh Direct’s impact
2013 At-a-Glance
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Cancer hitch-hikes on South Bronx highways (Mott Haven Herald)
“Air pollution in the South Bronx may be more dangerous than previously believed. For more than a decade residents, politicians and advocates have pressed to curb air pollution in the region with a focus on the epidemic of asthma and other chronic pulmonary conditions. Now the International Agency on Cancer Research, a branch of the World Health Organization, is warning that outdoor air pollution causes cancer.” See full reporting from the Mott Haven Herald here.
National Resources Defense Council Asks “Will Fairness Prevail in the South Bronx?”
The National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) submitted an amicus brief in support of the South Bronx Unite lawsuit to block FreshDirect from relocating its trucking operation to a South Bronx neighborhood with asthma rates eight times the national average. Last week, NRDC posted the below excerpt on its blog – available in full here.
NRDC: “Will Fairness Prevail in the South Bronx?”
“This week, a South Bronx community might have a rare chance at environmental justice.
In 2012, the city approved a proposal to relocate online grocer Fresh Direct’s headquarters from Queens to the Harlem River Yard site in the Mott Haven community of the South Bronx.
Under the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act (“SEQRA“), anytime New York City or State agencies take an action that may have significant adverse environmental effects, they are required to conduct an environmental review before moving forward with the project. This review requires that the acting agencies evaluate all potential environmental impacts, identify all practicable mitigation measures for such impacts and, ultimately, select any alternative action that will minimize or avoid environmental harms to the maximum possible extent.
It’s a great system that requires everyone involved to take a hard look at any proposed action and think of ways to minimize related environmental harm to the community. The SEQRA process has improved (or even halted) countless projects that would have otherwise been much more environmentally damaging.
In this case, however, the quality of environmental review that the city and state conducted was uncharacteristically poor. In fact, the government made many of its determinations about the project’s environmental impacts on the basis of a 20-year-old environmental impact statement from an entirely different project.
But the neighborhood has changed significantly since 1993 and is more residential than when the original environmental evaluation was done. The current Fresh Direct project is also a departure from the development that was originally envisioned on the site 20 years ago, so much of the environmental review is based on a project that will never be, instead of the project that’s actually expected to be sited there.
NRDC, which isn’t a party to this dispute, weighed in with a “friend of the court” amicus brief, asking the court to rule that this environmental review was inadequate and undercuts the purpose of New York’s environmental review statute. At minimum, the government should update its old review to consider changes in the character of the neighborhood and the project, and to closely evaluate viable design alternatives that could mitigate the project’s impacts on the community.
As attorneys on both sides of this case argue it out in court today, let’s hope that everyone remembers SEQRA’s purpose and what’s really at stake here – public health and environmental protection, as well as fairness for a community that often seems to get the short end of the environmental stick.”
Statement on IDA’s Approval of Subsidies for FreshDirect
South
Bronx Unite (SBU), New York Lawyers for the Public Interest (NYLPI), and Good
Jobs New York (GJNY) Condemn New York City Industrial Development Agency’s (IDA’s)
Bronx Unite (SBU), New York Lawyers for the Public Interest (NYLPI), and Good
Jobs New York (GJNY) Condemn New York City Industrial Development Agency’s (IDA’s)
Approval of Subsidies to FreshDirect
New York, NY – July 23, 2013 – This morning the Board of the New York City Industrial Development Agency voted to approve the issuance of tens of millions of dollars in City subsidies to FreshDirect to help facilitate the company’s proposed relocation to the South Bronx. South Bronx Unite (SBU), New York Lawyers for the Public Interest (NYLPI), and Good Jobs New York (GJNY) issued the following statements in response:
“Hospitalization rates for asthma in the South Bronx are 21 times higher than those of more affluent parts of New York City,” said Libertad Guerra, professor, resident and South Bronx Unite petitioner. “IDA’s approval of this subsidy for FreshDirect makes the City directly complicit in exacerbating the devastating health crisis in the South Bronx, implicating every New York City taxpayer with them. We urge the entire city to boycott FreshDirect until it stops its plan for the South Bronx.”
“Offering FreshDirect an enormous subsidy to build a diesel trucking facility in an area with the highest rate of asthma in the
nation is criminal. And to add an enormous warehouse, underground parking lot and fueling station in a South Bronx waterfront flood zone is a gross misuse of taxpayer money, particularly in the wake of Hurricane Sandy,” said Harry Bubbins, Director of Friends of Brook Park and South Bronx Unite lawsuit petitioner. “This is an out-the-door extravagance of an out of touch Mayor wasting our tax money. The IDA approval of this subsidy undermines all the efforts that went into Bloomberg’s multi-billion dollar plan to protect our coastline and better utilize open space to absorb storm surges. The site on which FreshDirect proposes to build is directly next to two power plants on our vulnerable coastline.”
nation is criminal. And to add an enormous warehouse, underground parking lot and fueling station in a South Bronx waterfront flood zone is a gross misuse of taxpayer money, particularly in the wake of Hurricane Sandy,” said Harry Bubbins, Director of Friends of Brook Park and South Bronx Unite lawsuit petitioner. “This is an out-the-door extravagance of an out of touch Mayor wasting our tax money. The IDA approval of this subsidy undermines all the efforts that went into Bloomberg’s multi-billion dollar plan to protect our coastline and better utilize open space to absorb storm surges. The site on which FreshDirect proposes to build is directly next to two power plants on our vulnerable coastline.”
Gavin Kearney, Environmental Justice Director at New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, added, “Today the IDA voted to waste millions of taxpayer dollars to subsidize a project that will bring 1,500 diesel truck trips every single day to the South Bronx—a community already suffering from high rates of asthma, cardiovascular disease and numerous other health problems created by diesel exposure. The health and quality-of-life impacts of this project will be severe. The vague promises of jobs and clean trucks made to justify this massive hand-out are just that—promises made to put an appealing public relations veneer on a rotten proposal. FreshDirect squeezed tens of millions of dollars out of the City without obligating itself to hire residents of the South Bronx or obligating itself to run clean trucks. While today’s vote is unfortunate, it is nowhere near the final word. Numerous government approvals remain and we continue to seek justice for South Bronx residents through the courts.”
Bettina Damiani, Project Director of Good Jobs New York, stated, “Today, FreshDirect was approved for one of the largest corporate
giveaways of city subsidies during the Bloomberg Administration. Despite its multi-million dollar price tag and rhetoric from officials, there are no job related recapture provisions from the IDA that requires FreshDirect to create any good jobs for Bronx residents. In what is possibly the last major action by the IDA board of this Mayoral administration, taxpayers and Bronxites are again expected to fork over subsidies for an unaccountable and environmentally
destructive subsidy deal in one of our poorest neighborhoods.”***************************
NYC COMPTROLLER LIU STATEMENT ON CITY’S
$127 MILLION FRESH DIRECT GIVEAWAY
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giveaways of city subsidies during the Bloomberg Administration. Despite its multi-million dollar price tag and rhetoric from officials, there are no job related recapture provisions from the IDA that requires FreshDirect to create any good jobs for Bronx residents. In what is possibly the last major action by the IDA board of this Mayoral administration, taxpayers and Bronxites are again expected to fork over subsidies for an unaccountable and environmentally
destructive subsidy deal in one of our poorest neighborhoods.”***************************
NYC COMPTROLLER LIU STATEMENT ON CITY’S
$127 MILLION FRESH DIRECT GIVEAWAY
Details Small-Biz Tax Cut to
Spur Economic Development
Spur Economic Development
***************************
NEW YORK, N.Y. – City Comptroller John C. Liu today cast the lone “no” vote on the Industrial Development Agency’s $127 million subsidy for Fresh Direct, which received final authorization. He stated the following:
“This was a bad idea when it was first voted on a year ago, and it’s an even worse one today. New York City needs jobs, particularly in the Bronx, but this is a wasteful way to do business that picks taxpayers’ pockets in order to reward fat cats.
“During the Bloomberg Administration, the Economic Development Corporation has doled out hundreds of millions of dollars in corporate welfare to companies that fail to deliver on their promise of jobs for New Yorkers, and we have no reason to believe this will be any different.
“Even if the EDC’s dubious projections turn out to be accurate, the Fresh Direct deal will go down as yet another Bloomberg big business boondoggle. Spending roughly $127 million to create 964 new jobs—$131,397 per job—just doesn’t make economic sense.
“Instead of these big corporate giveaways, our tax dollars would be better spent helping level the playing field for a truly vital engine of job growth in New York City, small businesses.”
At a press availability, Liu spoke about his proposals to end subsidies for big corporations and instead create $400 million in savings for small businesses. In particular, he called for:
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Eliminating the City’s General Corporation Tax for the 240,000 businesses with annual tax bills under $5,000
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Exempting businesses that make less than $250,000 in annual income from the City’s Unincorporated Business Tax
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Reducing fines on small businesses
Background
In April 2013, Comptroller Liu released The People’s Budget, which details his proposals to eliminate giveaways for big corporations and cut taxes and fines for small businesses by $400 million. More info is available here (particularly on pages 5 – 8 and 41 – 42):
In March, 2012, Comptroller Liu released an audit that found the EDC gave $318 million to companies that didn’t deliver the promised jobs:
In February 2012, Comptroller Liu’s Office voted against approving the Fresh Direct subsidy:
Upcoming: FreshDirect Returns to CB1 Wednesday, July 10
When: Wednesday, July 10, 5:30 pm
Where: Community Board 1 Office – 3024 3rd Avenue, Bronx
We need everyone to come out to the CB1 office this Wednesday, July 10, at 5:30 pm, to show FreshDirect that the community REJECTS their request for a land use plan modification to build a 500,000+ square foot warehouse/parking lot on our waterfront that will bring 1,000 more diesel trucks every day through our asthma-saturated community. Wear your “STOP FRESHDIRECT” T-shirt, or email us if you didn’t get one last time.
Background:
(1) http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20130701/mott-haven/chaotic-community-board-meeting-ends-without-decision-on-freshdirect-plan
(2) http://www.welcome2thebronx.com/wordpress/2013/06/28/freshdirect-visits-community-board-1-16-months-announcing-intentions-to-move-to-the-bronx/
* * *
The community board is being reassembled this Wednesday to address and provide comments to the City Planning Commission on the narrow issue of whether FreshDirect should be allowed to have a land use modification in light of a restrictive covenant placed on the land they propose to occupy. City approval of FreshDirect’s proposed land use modification depends upon a finding that the proposed changes will:
(1) Not cause“overutilization of adjacent street systems”;
FreshDirect violates this requirement. Fresh Direct will cause overuse of already congested local roads and bridges: Despite their self-serving traffic analysis that treated their large diesel trucks as if they were cars, considerable concerns persist as to the impact Fresh Direct’s 2,000 daily truck and vehicle trips will have on local traffic and traffic inside the Yard (not to mention the air pollution).
(2) Not result in excess bulk and density on any portion of the Yard;
FreshDirect violates this requirement. Fresh Direct will result in excess bulk and density: Fresh Direct would occupy twice the acreage (13 acres) and building square footage (a 500,547 s/f warehouse) of the originally designated Wholesale Flower Market (5-7 acres). To make matters worse, the Yard is in a flood zone. With the certainty that additional and more extreme flooding will occur at increasing rates, such development (including its underground parking and refueling station) is ill-advised and dangerous.
(3) Not conflict with the project objectives of reducing local and regional truck traffic by importing goods into the City via rail while providing economic development benefits to the South Bronx and the City. FreshDirect violates this requirement. Fresh Direct conflicts with the public objectives established for the Yard. Since it prevents operation of the intermodal terminal, will intensify congestion on local roads, and fails to offer living-wage jobs, Fresh Direct fundamentally conflicts with the City’s and State’s public objectives for this state-owned land.
(4) Not materially interfere with the operation of the intermodal terminal; FreshDirect violates this requirement. Unlike the originally-planned Wholesale Flower Market, Fresh Direct plans to locate a truck parking lot entirely within the 28 acres reserved and zoned solely for the intermodal terminal. Fresh Direct’s traffic, including its need to access the Yard through Alexander Ave., would prevent the operation of the intermodal terminal.
Research the reasons for opposition to Fresh Direct.
The recent article in the NY Times has driven up the traffic to our site in the thousands today. The issue for us is about Environmental Justice in the South Bronx and not about individuals. We encourage you to review in depth the extensive information on this website, much of it was not shared with the community and only obtained through Freedom of Information requests. Start with our blog posts below this. We welcome everyone to join our campaign platform. Thank you.
Re-envisioning Our Waterfront: No More Dumping on the South Bronx
See articles about the packed event:
DNA – Urban Planners Propose Green
Alternatives to FreshDirect’s Bronx Facility (January 29,
2013)
Mott Haven Herald – Residents push for greener waterfront (January 28, 2013)
Daily News – Residents come out to support visions
for Harlem River Yard that include ball fields and bike paths, but not
FreshDirect (January 28, 2013)