Harlem Board Rejects One45 Development, But Battle Continues

HARLEM, NY — A Harlem community board voted unanimously Wednesday to reject the proposed "One45" development, its most formal step yet in opposing the two-tower project on 145th Street and Lenox Avenue that would also include a new museum of civil rights.

The vote by Community Board 10 came near the end of a tense, three-hour meeting in which members and neighbors once again pressed developer Bruce Teitelbaum to change the income levels and sizes of the roughly 220 affordable units that are included in the project — along with more than 600 market-rate homes.

The board's non-binding vote will send the project to Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, whose office will have 30 days to review it before making its own recommendation. The City Council will get the final say on the project sometime this summer.

During Wednesday's meeting, Teitelbaum said he was open to making changes — especially to the size of the apartments, most of which are studios or one-bedrooms in the current proposal. But that was not enough to sway the board, which was still voting on Teitelbaum's original plan.

Among the meeting's most contentious moments was a five-minute exchange between Teitelbaum and newly elected Councilmember Kristin Richardson Jordan, who has come out strongly against the development, arguing it would displace Black residents and contribute to Harlem's gentrification.

After Teitelbaum referred to a past meeting with Jordan in which he had expressed openness to altering the income levels, Jordan accused him of mischaracterizing their conversation, since he ultimately went forward with the proposal without changes.

"I really don't understand why, if you are actually genuine about working on this, why you wouldn't pull the proposal so we can actually work on it," she said.

Teitelbaum dismissed calls to withdraw the proposal, which he said was the culmination of more than four years of work. But he asked Jordan to meet with him again to discuss her concerns — a request that the lawmaker rebuffed in real-time.

"I’m just going to urge the board to vote this down, and I’m just going to continue my crusade to shut this down," Jordan said.

Green energy plan floated

Before the vote, Teitelbaum and his team urged board members to look past One45's residential units and focus on other aspects of the project, which would replace a block previously home to low-rise retailers and gas stations. One45's two 363-foot-tall towers would also include a new headquarters for the Rev. Al Sharpton's National Action Network, ground-level retail space, offices, and the four-story museum devoted to the Civil Rights Movement in the North.

Also included is a proposal to build a geothermal energy system underneath One45, which would power nearby blocks including the Esplanade Gardens development, and which Teitelbaum said would be the "first residential, district-wide green energy plan in the country."

But the board's resolution opposing the project focuses largely on the residential component, especially the proposal to peg most of the affordable units to 60 percent of the area median income — about $50,000 for a single person.

The document also raises other concerns, like whether the influx of more than 1,000 residents into the development would negatively impact neighborhood infrastructure like the nearby 3 train station at 145th Street, whose small platform fits only six subway cars.

"The existing transportation hubs are not equipped to support the increased density," the resolution reads, according to a draft shared with Patch.

Reached by Patch on Thursday, Teitelbaum said his team was "proceeding with our plan" despite the board's discouraging vote. He also reiterated a pledge made during the meeting to approach Mayor Eric Adams's administration for a possible tax subsidy: which, if granted, would allow for more affordable units to be built.

"I will join any stakeholder who wants to join with me to do that," he said.

Related coverage:

• Harlem Board Grills One45 Developers Over Affordability, Impact
  
• Harlem's Massive 'One45' Development Faces Neighbors' Scrutiny
• Harlem's New Action Network HQ To Tower Over Neighborhood