Despite vigorous opposition from his constituents and Bronx Community Board 4, Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrión signed off on the ULURP application for the Yankee Stadium redevelopment proposal on Thursday.

   On Dec. 12, Borough President Carrión held a public hearing that local activists described as a “travesty.” Construction union members filled the hall early, and officials locked the door at 6 p.m., leaving as many as 150 community members out in the cold. Chants of “let us in” almost drowned out presentations by Yankees representatives who told community members not to worry about potential air quality impacts because the draft EIS says there won’t be any.

   Unfortunately, the draft EIS is dead wrong: The dramatic increase in parking in the vicinity will lead to many more vehicle trips and a congestion nightmare (see MTR # 513). As word has spread through the South Bronx about the proposal, increasing attention is being paid to the number of parking spaces for the project, which will bring an estimated 5,000 additional cars through local streets on game days and cause more traffic backups on the adjacent Major Deegan Expressway. Four new stadium parking garages, along with a plan to build a suburban-style mall on the nearby Bronx Terminal Market site, will pose an added public health risk to a neighborhood with the unfortunate distinction of having one of the highest asthma rates in the nation.

   The ULURP hearing was the second time Carrión’s constituents called on him to reject the plan. Over 250 residents showed up to speak at a Nov. 17 town hall meeting, only to be forced to sit through a 90-minute presentation by the Yankees. Their frustration was compounded when it became evident that not everyone who signed up would be able to speak. The Tri-State Transportation Campaign asked several questions about traffic generation that received poor responses — Yankees reps insisted that the extra parking garages are necessary to accommodate “attendance for high-stakes games” – and were not interested in discussing why the long-languishing Yankee Stadium Metro-North station is not an integral part of the plan.

   The following week, Bronx Community Board #4 voted down the plan. Again, a multitude of community members attended to express outrage, and a few board members noted their disgust at the city’s and the Yankees’ indifference to the increased traffic congestion and related impacts the big parking plan would bring to their community.   Although the board’s role in the Uniform Land Use Review Process (ULURP) is advisory, it is supposed to be taken seriously by the Borough President (whose ULURP role is also advisory), and by city government.

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