Mayor Adams, BRP Companies, and Hudson Companies Break Ground on 420 New Affordable Homes in Melrose, Final Phase of Larger “La Central” Project in The Bronx

June 20, 2025

Video available at: https://youtu.be/PZfBtONdnNA

Phase II of “La Central” Housing Development Will Create Two New Buildings, Hundreds of New Affordable Units 

Once Complete, Entire La Central Project Expected to Deliver Over 1,000 Affordable Homes, Community Facility Space, and Retail Space Over Coming Years

Project Made Possible by Joint Venture Between Adams Administration, Hudson Companies, BRP Companies, ELH-TKC, Breaking Ground, J.P. Morgan, and Comunilife

Announcement Part of Mayor Adams’ “City of Yes for Families” Plan, Builds on Adams Administration’s Record as Most Pro-Housing Administration in New York City History

NEW YORK – New York City Mayor Eric Adams, BRP Companies, Hudson Companies, J.P. Morgan, and project partners today broke ground on Phase II of the “La Central” housing development to bring 420 new affordable homes to the Melrose neighborhood of the Bronx. Phase II will include a range of unit types from studios to four-bedroom apartments as well as 63 supportive housing units for formerly homeless New Yorkers. The new phase is expected to cost $343 million, with the Adams administration contributing over $137 million through the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD). Phase II will also include 13,000 square feet of community facility space, 1,500 square feet of retail space, and 7,000 square feet of new public gardens. This second phase marks the final stage of the La Central project, which will create a total of more than 1,000 mixed-income homes as well as a YMCA, a production studio, and extensive green space for Bronxites. Today’s announcement continues to build on Mayor Adams’ “City of Yes for Families” plan to create thousands of new homes across the city and create more family-friendly neighborhoods from Coney Island to Inwood. City of Yes for Families also builds on the Adams administration’s record as the most pro-housing administration in New York City history. In addition to creating record amounts of affordable housing two years in a row, passing the first citywide zoning reform in 60 years, and advancing five neighborhood plans to create jobs and new housing across the city, the new housing created through City of Yes for Families will help New York City reach Mayor Adams’ moonshot goal of creating 500,000 new homes by 2032. Throughout this week alone, the Adams administration is advancing nearly 2,000 new homes across the city to help families find an affordable place to live.

“Making New York City the best place to raise a family means building more affordable homes, and for the past three-and-a-half years, that’s exactly what we have done. We already passed our Bronx Metro North Plan to bring thousands of new homes and jobs to the borough, and with this groundbreaking, we are taking another major step forward in delivering for the Bronx, once again,” said Mayor Adams. “While this groundbreaking marks the final phase of La Central, it does not mark the end of our administration’s commitment to creating more homes in the Bronx and across New York City. We will continue that work every single day, in every borough.”

“The realization of the La Central development, a decade in the making, is proof of what happens when we invest in more than just buildings — and instead when we invest in people, believe in pushing boundaries, and expect more from what affordable housing can deliver for our communities,” said HPD Acting Commissioner Ahmed Tigani. “From the YMCA in Phase I to the community gardens and the telescope managed by Bronx High School of Science in Phase II, every element of this project reflects a promise we made: to meet the vision and values of a community that held our work to a higher standard. We are delivering deep affordability, sustainable design, and supportive housing for our neighbors who need it most. I want to sincerely thank and congratulate everyone who made Phase II a reality; because of your dedication, hundreds of New Yorkers will have a safe, stable place to call home. Some may discover a passion for science, others a love of nurturing their environment — and many will grow into the next generation of leaders, continuing the fight to bring more housing and hope to every corner of our city.”

“As we embark on bringing Phase II to fruition and move towards final completion of the La Central project, over 1,000 vitally needed affordable residences will have been created for the South Bronx as we strive to help fill the void in housing offerings across the city,” said Andy Cohen, managing director, BRP Companies. “This project further underscores our long-standing commitment to ensuring that equitable, sustainable, and community-focused housing opportunities are delivered and provide a lasting impact to residents and the surrounding neighborhood.”

“Today’s groundbreaking marks a major milestone in our long-standing commitment to bringing much-needed affordable and supportive housing to the South Bronx and New York City,” said Marlee Busching-Truscott, managing director of development, Hudson Companies. “La Central has been over a decade in the making and will ultimately deliver over 1,000 high-quality and sustainable homes through an inclusive, community-focused development. We’re deeply grateful to Mayor Adams, City Hall, and our co-developers for their partnership as we work together to tackle the city’s affordability crisis.”

“La Central exemplifies the power of public-private partnerships in creating vibrant, connected communities,” said Sharmi Sobhan, head, J.P. Morgan Community Development Banking’s East Region. “J.P. Morgan’s deep-rooted presence in New York drives our commitment to housing affordability and community growth and we know this project will pave the way for a brighter future for hundreds of Bronx residents.”

The entire “La Central” project will include over 1,000 affordable homes,
community space, and retail space for residents of the Bronx. Credit: FXCollaborative

Upon completion in 2028, Phase II will offer a diverse mix of affordable apartments reserved for households earning between 30 and 80 percent of the Area Median Income. It will include 114 units for extremely low-income households, 106 units for very low-income households, and 198 units for low-income households, as well as two units for the building’s supers. The development features modern amenities, sustainable building practices, and community-focused spaces designed to foster connection and well-being. Building E will include a telescope remotely controlled by Bronx High School of Science on the rooftop while a large central courtyard surrounded by the La Central apartment buildings will also be completed in this phase.

Funding for Phase II comes from a range of public and private financing sources, including tax-exempt bonds from the New York City Housing Development Corporation, subsidy from HPD, Reso A funding from New York City Councilmember Rafael Salamanca, Low Income Housing Tax Credits, Brownfield Tax Credits, and New York State Energy Research and Development Authority grants. Red Stone Equity Partners is the tax credit syndicator and J.P. Morgan is providing credit enhancement. 

The overall La Central development, comprised of five distinct buildings, delivers over 1,000 affordable housing apartments to the Bronx community. La Central Buildings A and B, which opened in 2021, are fully affordable, mixed-income, mixed-use developments with nearly 500 apartments. Building A is also home to a state-of-the-art YMCA. Building D, completed in 2019, provides 160 supportive and low-income apartments. La Central participates in the NYSERDA Multifamily Performance Program and LEED for Homes. The two new buildings created through the final phase will be designated Building C and Building E.

Since entering office, Mayor Adams has made historic investments to create more affordable housing and ensure more New Yorkers have a place to call home. The Adams administration is advancing several robust neighborhood plans that, if adopted, would deliver more than 50,000 units over the next 15 years to New York neighborhoods. In addition to the Bronx-Metro North Station Area Plan and the Atlantic Avenue Mixed-Use Plan, both of which have been passed by the New York City Council, the Adams administration is advancing plans in Midtown South in Manhattan, as well as Jamaica and Long Island City in Queens.

Moreover, last December, Mayor Adams celebrated the passage of “City of Yes for Housing Opportunity,” the most pro-housing proposal in city history that will build 80,000 new homes over 15 years and invest $5 billion towards critical infrastructure updates and housing. Last June, City Hall and the City Council agreed to an on-time, balanced, and fiscally-responsible $112.4 billion Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 Adopted Budget that invested $2 billion in capital funds across FY25 and FY26 to HPD and the New York City Housing Authority’s capital budgets. In total, the Adams administration has committed $24.7 billion in housing capital in the current 10-year plan as the city faces a generational housing crisis. Mayor Adams celebrated back-to-back record breaking fiscal years, as well as back-to-back calendar years, in both creating and connecting New Yorkers to affordable housing. Last spring, the city celebrated the largest 100 percent affordable housing project in 40 years with the Willets Point transformation. 

Building on the success of City of Yes for Housing Opportunity, Mayor Adams unveiled his City of Yes for Families strategy earlier this year to build more homes and create more family-friendly neighborhoods across New York City. Under City of Yes for Families, the Adams administration is advancing more housing on city-owned sites, creating new tools to support homeownership, and building more housing alongside schools, playgrounds, grocery stores, accessible transit stations, and libraries.

Further, the Adams administration is using every tool available to address the city’s housing crisis. Mayor Adams announced multiple new tools, including a $4 million state grant, to help New York City homeowners create accessory dwelling units that will not only help older adults afford to remain in the communities they call home but also help build generational wealth. In addition to creating more housing opportunities, the Adams administration is actively working to strengthen tenant protections and support homeowners. The Partners in Preservation program was expanded citywide in 2024 through a $24 million investment in local organizations to support tenant organizing and combat harassment in rent-regulated housing. The Homeowner Help Desk, a trusted one-stop shop for low-income homeowners to receive financial and legal counseling from local organizations, was also expanded citywide in 2024 with a $13 million funding commitment.

Finally, Mayor Adams and members of his administration successfully advocated for new tools in the 2024 New York state budget that will spur the creation of urgently needed housing. These tools include a new tax incentive for multifamily rental construction, a tax incentive program to encourage office conversions to create more affordable units, lifting the arbitrary “floor-to-area ratio” cap that held back affordable housing production in certain high-demand areas of the city, and the ability to create a pilot program to legalize and make safe basement apartments.