NEW YORK — Hunts Point Produce Market will get the funding long needed to update its aging infrastructure — $100 million for the market and $40 million for the surrounding south Bronx neighborhood.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams unveiled this allocation initiative among 70 others in his “Rebuild, Renew, Reinvent: A Blueprint for New York City’s Economic Recovery” plan in a market tour and press conference March 10.
“This is an amazing gem that we have in this city,” Adams said, holding up a plastic clamshell container of fresh strawberries. “It has been ignored. All we have to do is just give it a little polish, a little love, a little care, and it will shine for many more generations to come.”
The Hunts Point area is home to the largest fresh produce wholesale distribution facility of its kind in the U.S., according to the city plan. The city will support the redevelopment of the Hunts Point Produce Market, recognizing its vital role in the food supply chain, supplying 25% of the city’s fresh produce.
“A resilient food system is central to the city’s future and will be integrated into neighborhood planning work across the city,” the plan says.
Hunts Point needs an update to its infrastructure, toll revenue system, sewers and phone systems, market CEO and General Manager Phillip Grant told The Packer in October 2021.
The market was built at the 113-acre south Bronx location in 1967 with railway logistics in mind, when 53-foot trailer trucks didn’t exist, so traffic patterns have become more congested. But the Sheridan Boulevard flyover project was completed by 2019, and a Hunts Point project has been underway to provide direct access to the Hunts Point Produce Market from both the Bruckner Expressway and the new Sheridan Boulevard.
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More than 78,000 vehicles travel to the Hunts Point peninsula of the Bronx daily — including 13,000 trucks using local roads.
“We need to leverage our public-private partnerships and relationships with community partners to support our businesses, business improvement districts, entrepreneurs, cultural partners and chambers of commerce to create a more inclusive economy,” Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson said in a news release. “Every industry has been impacted by the pandemic, and we need to make sure we provide them with the necessary resources to come back stronger than before.”
Joel A Fierman, president of Fierman Produce Exchange at the market, said he’s thankful for the support from the mayor’s office to continue supplying fresh fruits and vegetables at affordable prices and keep 1,400 good union jobs.
“It’s very refreshing to all of us who have worked so hard through the pandemic to have the city’s support,” Fierman said.
“… The details of how and when the money will be spent are just in the beginning phases of planning,” but the renewed interest in updating the market’s infrastructure looks promising, he said.
Market merchants have been supporting the city’s food infrastructure for one of the most densely populated regions in the U.S. for more than a century, Grant said.
“We are excited by his commitment to revitalizing and updating this important food resource for millions in our city and tens of millions across the region,” he said. “We look forward to working with the mayor and his economic development team on plans to allow the market to continue serving all New Yorkers and our region for decades to come.”
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