Down to the Wire for the Armory Vote

Nothing new to report on the Kingsbridge Armory shopping mall negotiations, other than the fact that there is a stated City Council meeting scheduled for Monday morning at 11 a.m.

[Scroll down for all our coverage this week on the negotiations. It's a veritable Russian novel of Armory posts.]

Monday is the last day that the Council has to weigh in on the Armory proposal. At this point, it's any one's guess as to how this will end.

On one hand, the borough president, the retailers union and a coalition of strong community voices are telling the Bronx delegation to vote the project down. On the other hand, the mayor's office and several construction unions are pushing hard for this project to go through.

Will they take the deal or shut the project down and start over?

We'll see on Monday.

And, as always, stay tuned.

Diaz Opposed to Administration's Living Wage Compromise Proposal for Armory

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. is joining the Kingsbridge Armory Redevelopment Alliance (KARA) and the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Workers Union (RWDSU) in opposition to a compromise on living wage jobs at the Kingsbridge Armory, a proposal currently being mulled by the Bronx City Council delegation.

The still murky and complicated proposal would create a fund that Armory mall employees could opt into and would augment their checks. The proposal would not guarantee a living wage ($10 an hour plus benefits) for Amory employees, something Diaz has fought for since August.

For more details on the compromise deal, click here.

“From the first day I got involved in the issue of the redevelopment of the Kingsbridge Armory, I made it crystal clear that I would not support this project unless it included a guarantee that the employees at the future retail center would be paid a living wage. Though the wage supplement provisions that the Bloomberg administration has put forward represent a major step forward compared to our negotiations six months ago, there is no guarantee. With that said, I will continue to oppose this project, and I urge the members of the City Council to do the same,” said Borough President Diaz in a press release.

Diaz said that while he opposes the project as is, he's encouraged by the work and progress made by his office, community leaders and other Bronx elected officials.

He also says he's hopeful that this fight will lead to a change in how the city and state does development in the future. He wants to see legislation mandating living wage for employees at projects where developers receive city and/or state subsidies and tax breaks.

Live from City Hall: Armory Negotiations Heating Up

We're live from City Hall, where a bunch of reporters, KARA reps, union folks and Related Companies officials (also just saw Avi Kaner, part-owner of Morton Williams supermarkets, which has its headquarters across from the Armory) are milling about, playing the waiting game.

All of us are waiting for an update on negotiations between the city and the Bronx delegation of the City Council on an Armory community benefits that would include guarantees of living wage jobs ($10 and hour plus benefits).

Earlier today, we reported that negotiations fell apart last night.

At about 10 a.m., Council member Joel Rivera, who, along with fellow Bronxite Annabel Palma, is taking a leadership role in these negotiations, made an announcement that the Council was prepared to vote down the plan unless the delegation heard from the city and/or Related (at this point we can lump them together as one negotiating team) in an hour.

Clearly, the city came back to the table and the two sides have been talking for the past couple of hours. A little before noon, Rivera and the delegation went from the Council side of City Hall over the mayor's side, which means that perhaps these talks are going higher up the ladder or have entered a new phase.

I just heard from KARA representatives that the main sticking point appears to be which party is ultimately responsible for making sure employees at the revamped shopping mall are paid a living wage.

On Monday, the Bronx delegation put forth a proposal that would create a fund that would subsidize wages at the Armory mall. That's still the proposal on the table. But if the fund doesn't pay fully for the wages, which appears likely, who is responsible for paying the rest of the wage? Related, the owner of the property? The city, which is pushing the project? Or tenants, the shop owners at the mall?

What's clear is that, from all the attention being placed on providing living wage jobs at city-subsidized development projects like the Armory, the issue is not going away any time soon.

And we may not get a definitive answer on negotiations anytime soon. A meeting of the entire Council, scheduled for 1:30 p.m., has been postponed because of the Bronx delegation's deliberations with the city.

Just saw the entire Bronx delegation briskly pass by, going from mayor's side back to the council side. Are they weighing the merits of the city's latest compromise? Lunch?

All Rivera would say is: "we're working, we're working." Well, that's something.

One last tidbit for now: Council member-elect Fernando Cabera (14th District) is in on the negotiations. Where's Maria Baez?

Stay tuned.