State moving ahead with remediation of two South Bronx brownfields

The public has just a few weeks to comment on remediation plans for two former industrial sites in the South Bronx, one in Longwood and the other in Hunts Point. The areas received preliminary approval from the state earlier this month to begin remediation.

The building currently located at the 401 Hunts Point Avenue brownfield site, which is used to fabricate sheet metal. By Usha Sookai.

The brownfields – land contaminated with dangerous chemicals, usually due to previous industrial use – stretch from 644 to 650 Southern Boulevard in Longwood, and 401 Hunts Point Avenue to 1360 Drake Park South. There are over 1,000 sites like these across New York City, dozens in the Bronx and, according to EPA estimates, up to 1 million across the country.

Though the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) says the Longwood brownfield does not pose a “significant threat” to public health or the environment, the Hunts Point site harbors chemicals like carbon tetrachloride, trichloroethene, and tetrachloroethene, which can result in nervous system dysfunction, immune deficiency, organ damage, and cancer, for people with high exposure levels.

But cleaning the contaminated sites is expensive. It will cost an estimated $2.5 million to remediate the 650 Southern Boulevard site and between $500,000 and $1 million for the Hunts Point site. In New York State, the Brownfield Cleanup Program helps finance remediation by providing tax credits for the applicant once the work is completed.

In September 2023, Joel Leifer of 650 Southern Boulevard LLC, which owns the Longwood complex, applied to the program. The owner of 401 Hunts Point Avenue, Darlene Rebak of 401 Hunts Point LLC, did the same in February 2023. Pending public comment, the DEC approved the applications in January 2024 and July 2023, respectively, officially kickstarting the process. Both applicants hired environmental consulting firms to conduct the research necessary to form remediation plans.

The building at the 650 Southern Boulevard, which has most recently been used to store cleaning supplies. By Usha Sookai.

Remediation plans for both sites include excavating and refilling the area with clean soil, removing underground storage tanks, treating contaminated groundwater, and testing the soil for lasting chemicals. Due to the chemical contamination at 401 Hunts Point Avenue, the location’s plan also includes monitoring air and groundwater, installing building fixtures to prevent vapors in the ground from escaping into the air, and implementing a plan to ensure the safety of employees working onsite.

The environmental engineering firm Haley Aldrich will manage the 650 Southern Boulevard site. Another firm, Terraphase, will manage the 401 Hunts Point Avenue project.

The program is funded through the New York State budget for 2022, which allocated $1 billion over ten years for the State Superfund Program, which includes the Brownfield Cleanup Program.

Remediation work is set to finish on the 650 Southern Boulevard site in February 2026. The 401 Hunts Point Avenue site remediation will finish this December, and will be monitored until November 2025.

The building at the 650 Southern Boulevard, which has most recently been used to store cleaning supplies.

Once cleanup is complete, DEC records show that Darlene Rebak plans to sell the 401 Hunts Point Avenue building. Joel Leifer looks to redevelop 650 Southern Boulevard into a nine-story in-patient drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility.

“New York State has a proven track record of successfully investigating and cleaning up contamination across New York City and the state, including sites in the Brownfield Cleanup Program,” a spokesperson for the DEC told the Express in an emailed statement.

Maximino Rivera, who is part of Rainbow Garden of Life and Health in Melrose, which learned it has a contaminated brownfield beside it, has been trying to get the DEC to be more proactive notifying the public about remediation efforts throughout the Bronx. Since 2021, Rivera and other Rainbow gardeners have been pushing the DEC to open a local office to oversee the many clean-ups in the Bronx.

“When it comes to the South Bronx,” Rivera said, the DEC “don’t treat you like you’re in Madison Avenue. They treat you like you’re in Melrose Avenue.”

According to Rivera, members of the garden have had to fight for transparency at every step.

“People come to our community and they think that we don’t exist,” he said. “If we don’t get involved, people don’t care in the community and when we get involved, ‘we don’t want to deal with you,’” he continued, referring to the DEC’s reaction to the garden’s involvement.

The public has until October 21 to share comments on the 650 Southern Boulevard plan. They can contact DEC Project Manager, Shawn Roberts at (518) 402-9799 or shawn.roberts@dec.ny.gov. The public comment period for the Hunts Point site closes even sooner: September 28. Contact Madeleine Babick, DEC Project Manager for the 401 Hunts Point Avenue site, at (718) 482-4992 or Madeleine.babick@dec.ny.gov. Bronx Community Board 2 can share further information.