Community Board Chaos Erupts Over Fresh Direct
Mott Haven Herald
By Anacaona Rodriguez Martinez
Voting process leaves Board 1 members, residents angry, confused
As lawyers and representatives of FreshDirect came to address South Bronx residents and Community Board 1 at a June 27 meeting in advance of the company’s proposed move to Port Morris, the response they received from the community was a resounding: “Not so fast.”
After numerous residents spoke out against the move at the gathering at Hostos Community College, and three spoke out to support it, a lawyer and a spokesman for the online grocer reiterated previous promises to bring jobs with benefits and other perks for Bronxites.
Responding to repeated criticism that the company’s delivery trucks and employee traffic will add to local pollution problems, spokesman Richard Leal countered that the company’s promises of converting to an all electric trucking fleet within five years should put residents at ease. As the result of a special agreement between the state and the Galesi Group that manages the Harlem River Yards where FreshDirect hopes to build, the board and Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. have 30 days to decide if the deal should go forward, before passing it on to the mayor. Mayor Bloomberg would then have 20 days to render a decision.
