This plan’s recommendations cover a range of issues and are a mix of concrete City or community-led commitments, suggestions for local stakeholders, and potential avenues for CBO-led advocacy (noted as Advocacy recommendations) to address citywide issues or goals that go beyond the purview of the City. Recommendations have been identified as achievable in the  Near Term  (0-3 years),  Medium Term  (3-6 years), or  Long Term  (6+ years). Recommendations that are in process, but not complete, are labeled as ongoing.

Through partnership between Hunts Point and the City of New York, our vision is for Hunts Point to be a safe, healthy, thriving community for all residents—especially youth and families—visitors, and businesses. Our goals include:

I. Healthy Bodies & Minds: Develop resources and programs that encourage healthy bodies and minds.

II. A Livable Environment: Create infrastructure that supports a safe, clean, and resilient neighborhood for everyone.

III. Connectivity: Ensure transportation across various modes is safe, efficient, convenient, and affordable.

IV. Shared Prosperity: In coordination with local community-based organizations (CBOs), create an inclusive economy that fosters prosperity for workers and residents, supports local businesses, and prepares youth to participate in the local and regional economy.

V. Accountability: Support community work through better coordination and planning with the City and increasing the financial resilience and sustainability of community-based groups.

Close The Vernon C. Bain Center And Repurpose The Parking Lot:

Constructed in 1992, the Vernon C. Bain Correctional Center is a 625-foot, 800-bed floating jail and roughly six-acre parking lot, just outside the FDC. While originally intended as a temporary solution to alleviate jail overcrowding during the “War on Drugs,” the barge is still used as the Bronx processing facility for inmates entering the system and as a holding facility for those awaiting trial without bail. The Adams administration is committed to closing this facility, as directed by the Borough-Based Jail Plan. The site will be transferred out of DOC jurisdiction. In dialogue with the community, there will be a process to repurpose the parking lot adjacent to where the barge is currently docked.

Make Hunts Point Safer for Residents and Workers:

Community members want to feel safer in their neighborhood. They want more street lighting at key interventions to make travelling at night safer for residents and workers and they want safer intersections for pedestrians. Street safety is of particular importance in Hunts Point because of the large number of streets and intersections that are heavily used by trucks. Trucks can be particularly dangerous to pedestrians due to their size and lack of maneuverability. Using crash data, NYC DOT will redesign key intersections and streets to make them safer for and more accessible to pedestrians. NYC DOT will also explore the potential for additional lighting and other visibility improvements on streets.

Make Hunts Point A Model Of Industrial Resilience And Sustainability:

Hunts Point is the heart of the city’s food system. As such, ensuring the peninsula is resilient to the impacts of climate change, now and in the future, will be critical to protecting the food supply. Parts of the industrial area are vulnerable to coastal storm surge today, with these risks only increasing in the coming decades. Extreme weather could also cause energy outages that debilitate the food supply chain and impact public health. While progress toward a resilient Hunts Point has already begun, the City will continue to invest in protecting Hunts Point’s most vulnerable facilities and identify the next phase of resilience investments.

Additionally, the City and State will study opportunities to develop the FDC's first comprehensive energy plan to create a state-of-the-art green, sustainable, and resilient industrial complex on a timeline that supports the City’s ambitious carbon neutrality goals. The City will commence energy audits to identify opportunities to improve energy efficiency, facilitate truck electrification, and continue to advocate for funding to redevelop the Produce Market into a modern, efficient facility.

Upgrade And Expand Open Space:

The City will expand and upgrade existing parks throughout the neighborhood, including enhancing Barretto Point Park and exploring building a comfort station at Riverside Park. The City will also explore potential street and wayfinding improvements to make it easier to reach existing parks and greenspace. To ensure the greenspace is adequately maintained, residents, CBOs, and businesses should form a parks alliance to advocate for maintenance funding.

Create A Gateway To Hunts Point:

The Bruckner Expressway and Bruckner Boulevard physically divide Hunts Point from the rest of the Bronx—the boulevard is difficult to cross, while the elevated expressway structure creates a dirty, loud, unsafe, and unlit environment. To make these less of a physical barrier, the City and the State will explore strategies to improve conditions at Bruckner underpass crossings to improve drainage, provide seating, and lighting. The City will also regularly maintain the green space on the medians of roads throughout the peninsula.

To ensure that the new Metro-North station is integrated into the neighborhood and acts as a gateway to Hunts Point, MTA, DOT, and DCP will improve wayfinding, lighting, and signage around the new station. To promote new and existing retail in the area surrounding the station, NYCEDC and DCP will explore future zoning changes to encourage active uses on Garrison Avenue. To pay tribute to Hunts Point’s deep cultural and historic legacy, CBOs, supported by government resources, should seek opportunities to install public art that represents Hunts Point.

Connect Hunts Point Residents To Local Jobs:

While there are a significant number of job opportunities in Hunts Point, its residents are unemployed at a higher rate than residents of most other neighborhoods, and very few live and work in the neighborhood. NYCEDC and SBS will work with Council Member Salamanca’s office and local CBOs to organize consistent jobs fairs in the community and develop workforce programming that will connect Hunts Point residents to local jobs. In addition, SBS will partner with FDC tenants to post their open positions and screening opportunities on the Workforce1 website.

Improve Access To Healthcare:

To help improve public health in the community, NYCEDC and Urban Health Plan will work together to expand semi-annual mobile clinics, awareness campaigns, vaccinations, and screenings to reach those who are less likely to visit a primary care provider due to lack of insurance or time. In addition, Urban Health Plan will open a new health clinic in the third phase of The Peninsula redevelopment. To ensure the clinic meets local needs, a health assessment should be conducted by the selected healthcare provider to determine the services it will offer.

The City and local partners will also explore the potential for an urgent care facility on the peninsula, particularly one that is open 24 hours to serve workers who may experience workplace injuries or other emergency needs.

Create Economic Opportunities And Increase Access To Food Through An Urban Agriculture Hub:

Urban agriculture can create economic opportunities, address food justice issues, and bring affordable fresh food into the hands of residents. There is also an opportunity to expand urban agriculture to include cannabis, creating economic opportunities that build community wealth in areas, like Hunts Point, that were adversely impacted by the War on Drugs. The City will explore the potential for a “Hunts Point Agriculture & Food Justice Hub” to support urban agriculture, new opportunities around cannabis, and food entrepreneurship.

What we learned from the Community:

After reviewing the survey responses, and notes from all of our meetings and interviews, we created a list of what we learned is most important to the people of Hunts Point.