Fresh Direct Deal Blasted by South Bronx Residents and Activists
DNA Info
By Patrick Wall
BRONX — Armed with jeers and a banner reading “Rotten Deal,†South Bronx residents and activists blasted a package of public incentives worth nearly $130 million designed to entice Fresh Direct, the online grocer, to move its operations from Queens to the Bronx.
Thursday's hearing came two days after city and state officials announced that Fresh Direct had rejected a similar offer from New Jersey in favor of New York's€™s subsidy package, part of which must still be approved by a city oversight board. In return, the company promised to create nearly 1,000 new jobs and invest $112.6 million to build a new headquarters at the Harlem River Yards in Port Morris.
At the meeting, proponents of the plan said the move would boost the economies of the city and the Bronx. But critics denounced the deal, which they said offered few rewards but real risks for the South Bronx, and had been arranged without residents€™ input.
