The Peninsula
Transforming the Bronx by developing affordable housing and promoting mixed-use, mixed-income and healthy communities
The Peninsula Development Team, led by Gilbane Development Company along with Hudson Companies and Mutual Housing Association of New York (MHANY), was selected by the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) and the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) to transform the former Spofford Juvenile Detention Center in the Bronx’s Hunts Point community into a 5-acre campus featuring 100% affordable housing, good jobs, and recreational space.
Project Overview
The development team is working closely with long-time community stakeholders and operators, including The Point Community Development Corporation, Urban Health Plan, Sustainable South Bronx, The Knowledge House, Casita Maria, Rocking the Boat, and BronxWorks.
The $300 million project will create approximately:
- 740 units of 100% affordable housing
- 52,000 square feet of publicly accessible open space
- 50,000 square feet of light industrial space
- 53,500 square feet of community facility space (includes the ACS daycare facility)
- 15,000 square feet of commercial space
The Peninsula is a 5-building, 3-phased development, with phase I completed in 2022, phase II to be completed in 2026, and anticipated completion of phase III in 2028. The new live-work community is expected to create both permanent jobs in growing sectors of the South Bronx economy as well as temporary construction jobs. The development team surpassed a 35% MWBE goal in Phase I. Additionally, the development team will participate in HireNYC, a free NYCEDC program that connects the City’s workforce development services to various projects.
Additionally, an 18,000-square-foot health and wellness center operated by Urban Health Plan, a lead community sponsor of The Peninsula, will connect residents with quality primary and specialty healthcare services and employ emerging health-tech professionals.
- Recipient of the 2021 NYC Brownfield Partnership Big Apple Award for Community Open Space, the 2020 Citizens Housing Planning Council NYC Impact Award for Community Development, and the 2020 Architect’s Newspaper Best of Design Awards
- Targeting LEED® Gold Certification – the development plan incorporates 52,000-SF of publicly accessible open space including walkways, benches, fountains, and a green roof in addition to a solar panel system (120,000-130,000 kw)
- Project will be the first in New York State to use an aerobic digester —a kind of biological machine in which microbes quickly devour and process food waste to convert into organic fertilizer
- Co-developer, MHANY hosts free affordable housing informational sessions, increases neighborhood participation, and provides necessary resources for residents to best be served
- Many retail, commercial, and industrial tenants are Bronx-based organizations operating in and around the Hunts Point area, including minority and women-owned businesses and local food entrepreneurs
“Yes, we have to build communities. And yes, we are creating jobs. But more importantly with this [project], it builds hope. It builds a spirit. For the Gilbanes and Hudsons of the world, thank you for taking on this project. It shows that you are doing more than building or planning for profit, you are planning with a purpose…This can serve as a blueprint for how development is done from now on in the City of New York.”
Ruben Diaz Jr.
Former Bronx, NY Borough President
Quick Stats
- Location: Bronx, NY
- Market: Affordable & Mixed-Income Housing
- Size: 913,000 SF
- Units: 740
- Date Completed: June 2022 (Phase 1)
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Awards:
- ULI New York, Excellence in Affordable Housing Finalist
- New York City Brownfield Partnership, Big Apple Brownfield Award for Community Open Space
- Citizens Housing Planning Council NYC, Impact Award for Community Development
- Architect’s Newspaper Best of Design Awards, Category: Urban Design
913,000
740
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