New Riverfront housing with views of NYC
By Griffin Scarborough
Few places in Westchester County have changed as dramatically over the past two decades as the Yonkers waterfront.
Massive investment has turned an area of abandoned industrial sites, warehouses, and aging riverfront property into one of the most exciting development opportunities in the area. Massive luxury apartments overlook the beautiful views and riverside walkways. New public offerings bring foot traffic to the neighborhood. And developers noticing success continue to announce projects expected to result in thousands of additional housing units. The opening of Hudson Piers, a $585 million development that city officials describe as the final and largest piece of the downtown waterfront revitalization effort, marks the culmination of a redevelopment project decades in the making.
The project represents a greater priority being centered by Yonkers. Since the 2000s, Yonkers has been separating itself from its former identity as an industrial city. Instead, politicians wish to create a city known as a destination for residents, businesses, and curious outsiders. These priorities are perfectly exemplified by the historic restoration of the Saw Mill River. Once the centerpiece of Yonkers and a symbol of its manufacturing might was restored to emphasize natural beauty and public space. The partially underground, industrial tool was converted to allow for new parks and businesses resulting in massive investment into the area and improvements in quality of life. City leaders envisioned a waterfront, and future developments, that would embody the same goals. Residents should be reconnected with the Hudson River while creating an environment attracting private investment. Projects such as River Park Center, new residential developments, public parks, and infrastructure improvements reflected that vision.
There is little doubt that the strategy has produced results.
Recent development has brought billions of dollars in investment to Yonkers: $2 billion at the lowest estimate not even accounting for the expansion of business around developments. New apartment buildings have brought thousands of new residents to the waterfront and downtown areas. The city also improved quality of life for new and old residents by expanding public access to the river, creating miles of waterfront paths, and developing other amenities that were not possible in the industrial era of the previous generation. The previously highlighted Hudson Piers development alone will add 1,400 apartments, retail space, and the publicly accessible waterfront walkway. Such projects have reshaped Yonkers into one of the fastest-growing cities in the state.
There is also a broader economic benefit to consider. Introduction of new residents increases demand across local restaurants, stores, and various service providers. Property tax revenue has also risen along with existing property values. Housing built around transportation hubs, such as the Metro-North stations have also attracted the type of resident who commutes back into Manhattan for work. A metro ride from the riverfront properties to Midtown can take as few as 30 minutes, creating a new selling point many did not previously understand.
Yet the success of the waterfront raises important questions about what kind of city Yonkers is becoming.
One of the most significant concerns is if job generation is being undervalued in the face of massive housing investment. While residential buildings are incredibly sought after, office space, industrial facilities, and large-scale commercial employers are not interested at the same rates. As such, many of the new developments are designed around easy access to New York City rather than around employment opportunities within Yonkers itself.
Long time Yonkers residents are now left to think, is Yonkers at risk of becoming a commuter city rather than a booming employment center and destination in itself. This new type of resident may contribute to local economy through spending habits, but if the city’s new, large investments increasingly find work elsewhere, Yonkers will become solely dependent on residential development.
The concern is not that Yonkers lacks economic development entirely. The most recent budget even has indicated development in areas such as film production and entertainment through growth in the Studio facilities and related industries. The issue is instead that residential construction on the waterfront greatly outpaces industrial or office development. The question for politicians is then whether the city’s economic future can remain healthy if housing continues to grow faster than the local employment opportunities.
Another concern involves affordability.
Hudson Piers has included affordable housing units in its plan for construction. City officials state that about 10 percent of the apartments are reserved as affordable housing (140 units). Some residents find this percentage concerning or insufficient to address the region’s affordability issues.
Detractor concerns are not simply if affordable units are being built, but instead the purpose of the redevelopment effort. Who is intended to benefit from such massive housing investment? Many of the waterfront buildings bring luxury experiences to tenets: river views, access to high-paying Manhattan jobs, luxury amenities. While housing supply will be benefitted, critics assert that the development serves high income renters likely relocating from outside Yonkers rather than longtime residents.
None of these concerns diminish the transformation along the Hudson River. The redevelopment has miraculously turned formerly run-down, historical, industrial land into a beautiful and useful residential area. The river is now publicly accessible and walkable, breathing new life into an area once depressed by historical neglect.
But as Hudson Piers nears completion and new developments are expected to be introduced resulting from such a great success, residents and policy-making alike must think about how they want developments to shape the city. The next phase of the city’s evolution may depend on a balance between apartments and job creation. Or the city may be shaped by percentage or affordable versus luxury housing. As investment flows into Yonkers, the city will change. And Yonkers residents should pay close attention to how.
Griffin Scarborough is a graduate student at New York University’s Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, where he is pursuing a Master of Public Policy. His work focuses on local government, public safety, and public policy. He has worked with the Police Reform Organizing Project (PROP), studying policing and judicial systems, and with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce on public policy and economic issues. He is particularly interested in opportunities related to public policy, government, and civic affairs. He can be reached at grifscar@gmail.com.
