Moshik Regev, managing partner at 5 Boro Real Estate, believes that Hub-South Bronx needs fresh ideas around new development.
It’s what led 5 Boro Real Estate to purchase a single-story corner building at 2970 Third Ave. and turn it into a 100,000-square-feet mixed use building offering retail and commercial space.
“We’re aiming to build a development here that will provide essential services, but would also be able to go to a community board and receive a standing ovation,” Regev told New York Busi- ness Journal.
Though the project requires no board approval or government input, Regev wants to work with community partners to find ways to lease the available space to businesses and services that would be most beneficial to members of the community.
Commercial space, he predicts, will be leased to healthcare and education tenants with some possibly going to various non-profit organizations that are bound by funding requirements to Hub-South Bronx zip codes.
The retail space, Moshik says, will be geared to filling a gap that currently exists in the neighborhood, such as a locally-owned grocery store or perhaps a healthcare facility similar to an urgent care.
The current retail options nearby include Marshalls, Burlington Coat Factory, Rainbow, and Aldi’s.
Prospective tenants, so far, he says, are companies that are searching for a chance to have a footprint in the Bronx or looking to further expand their presence along the Hub-South Bronx corridor.
Regev, who has been a developer in the Bronx since 2004, says he’s seen tremendous growth in the Bronx but feels that some people continue to have negative attitudes about the bor- ough. Four years prior, he primarily focused on Brooklyn but found himself drawn to the Bronx due to the underdog status that has been displayed towards the borough.
“There are times that it very much feels like the Bronx is the ugly duckling of the five boroughs,” Regev said. “You can find proof of this because the only thing that developers want to talk about here is affordable housing.”
While affordable housing is important, he says, there is often a gap between those eager to build affordable housing and those who are building services, such as commercial and retail space, to accommodate the growing population and their varying needs. “People need a place to live but they also need groceries, medical care, therapeutic resources, and other needs as well,” Regev said.
He says 5 Boro Real Estate Partners is directing its efforts here and throughout the Bronx to- wards filling the gap between affordable housing and services.
“We’re pretty bullish on the Bronx here,” Regev said. ““People and businesses here deserve de- velopers who believe in a strong future for this community and that’s who we’re trying to be.”
Source: Hub-South Bronx is overdue for better develop- ment efforts, says developer Moshik Regev
