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Mott Haven School Campus

The New York City School Construction Authority plans to construct a new school campus in the Concourse Village section of the Bronx on a seven-acre site at East 153rd Street and Concourse Village West. The $235 million project would be the single biggest project in the largest school construction plan in the history of New York City. The proposed campus would accommodate four schools consisting of one 544-seat charter school, one 573-seat intermediate/high school, and two 549-seat high schools. The eastern portion of the site would be developed with playing fields and open space. City officials have said that schools are needed before 2009 to alleviate overcrowding. South Bronx Churches, a coalition of neighborhood congregations, nonprofit agencies and tenant and homeowner groups, pushed the administration to build the complex and helped develop the site plan.

The site has hosted a rail yard, a laundry, a service station and a manufactured gas plant, leaving behind mercury, lead and the suspected carcinogen benzene. The SCA has a plan to minimize toxic exposure for the new school's students as well as the thousands of students who attend schools nearby. To that end, the city has allocated $30 million for the cleanup. Opponents of the plan and local officials say they are doubtful the School Construction Authority can totally eradicate the problem of soil and groundwater contamination that exceeds state environmental standards. Students and teachers at P.S. 156, a school built on stilts next to the site, have complained about rashes and headaches, which they assert are related to the area’s environmental issues.

On January 9th, 2007, the City Council unanimously approved a re-submitted plan after receiving assurances that the administration would consider clean-up recommendations by an independent consultant. The administration previously pledged $30 million to clean up the 6.6-acre Mott Haven site, but agreed last month under pressure from community groups to work out a plan to have the area independently tested for pollution. The opposition remains concerned that approval wasn’t delayed until the independent review was completed.

The independent study, done in January 2007, commissioned by the community and paid for by the city disputed previous findings. While the City planned to excavate soil up to 14 feet deep for the actual buildings, areas considered for the athletic fields and open space would not be given the same treatment and would be covered with synthetic turf and pavement. The new study challenged the viability of completing appropriate cleanup for the site for the estimated $30 million and urged complete removal of all toxic hot spots on the site in order to avoid potentially hazardous and serious health risks.

In April 2007, community opponents and environmentalists filed a lawsuit against the City claiming the School Construction Authority did not meet all the necessary requirements under the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA). Other advocates state they are not taking the appropriate measures necessary to insure the long-term safety on the site. The City refutes these claims saying the entire process has been transparent and they have voluntarily worked with the community towards a solution. Due to the engineering used to control the pollutants on the site, community members are fighting for a long-term plan to monitor the effectiveness of these controls and catch potential breakdowns or leakages in the future.

As a result of the court case, the Department of Environmental Conservation released a plan to monitor the site in the long run. In February 2008, community opponents called for the City to pay for a consultant to review the feasibility of the plan. The City has refused to pay for this review and claims they have already exceeded legal requirements by paying for last year’s review. A private funder has offered the community $11,000 for the review in order to help promote transparency while the City is moving forward.