BronxNet TV: Highbridge Construction’s Economic Impact on the Bronx
As broadcast on BronxNet TV “Open”, May 13, 2026
Link to broadcast story
BronxNet TV “Open”: Highbridge Construction’s Economic Impact on the Bronx
On this episode of OPEN, Mitchell Netburn, President and CEO of Samaritan Daytop Village, discusses the Highbridge housing development in the Bronx, a project injecting millions into the local economy through job creation, local hiring, and support for small businesses.
TRANSCRIPT OF SEGMENT
Welcome back. A major new housing development in the hybrid section of the Bronx is not only addressing the need for affordable and supportive housing, but also generating significant economic impact during construction. A new report highlights millions already flowing into the local economy through job creation, local hiring, and investment in small businesses. Joining us to discuss the project and its impact is Mitchell Netburn, President and CEO of Samaritan Daytop Village. Thank you so much for joining us, Mitch.
Thank you for having me.
Tell me about Samaritan Daytop Village.
Sure. Samaritan Daytop Village is over 65 years in existence, and we provide a huge range of services for people with various challenges, whether homelessness, mental health issues, substance use, older adults, youth with behavioral health issues, you name it. And our mission is to improve lives by helping people help themselves. We have facilities in all five boroughs of New York City and surrounding counties and almost 30 programs in the Bronx itself.
Wow. And what is this new housing development that you guys are developing?
It’s really exciting. We are developing a building in the Highbridge section of the Bronx. It is just north of the bridge itself, Highbridge. When it’s completed in a little over a year, it’ll have a total of 422 units. 316 of those will be permanent housing for what’s referred to as affordable housing and supportive housing. And, additionally, there’ll be 106 units for large families who are unhoused.
Wow. And why that section of the Bronx?
Well, we have owned that piece of property since the early 80s. So, we were able to build this relatively large building to meet the affordable housing crisis that’s in New York City as well as the crisis around homeless issues. And sort of in one place, we can help address both of those.
And you guys have been helping thousands of people. You know, what are some current issues that you guys see when it comes to housing? Do people come to you guys concerning housing issues?
Absolutely. I mean, there’s an affordable housing crisis, not just in New York City, but really almost everywhere in the world. And so many of our clients, when they finish treatment programs, or they get their job and they’re ready to find housing, they just can’t afford it. And it’s really so frustrating because they’ve done all the work and just can’t afford the rent. One of the aims of this building is to be able to have them live in a wonderful location in a beautiful state-of-the-art building that’s very green and healthy, with lots of outdoor space and rooftop gardens that they can afford.
Wow. And just tell me a little bit about some of the amenities that come with it. You know, these buildings now are getting more and more fancy. They got pools, some of them got gyms. Tell me a little bit about that.
Sure. We have three rooftop gardens. One will be urban farming to teach people about healthy eating, which is so important. It is on a large piece of property. We have lots of walkways where people can walk and exercise – areas where the kids can play. We will have a community space in the building to be determined, but it’ll either be a daycare or maybe a licensed medical clinic. There will be a place where people have bicycles, a small gym. But, you know, most importantly, a beautiful, safe place for people to live that also will enhance the local community.
Wow. And let’s talk about the money aspect of it. You know the economic report that you guys recently came out with.
Yeah. You know, people usually talk about these buildings when they’re all done… There’s a ribbon cutting… We want to talk about the impact it’s having while we’re constructing it. And so, you know, we have done a study and already there’s been $23 million that has gone into the local community. About close to $6 million has gone to local businesses in the Bronx. And a majority of that actually to businesses in the South Bronx where this is located. In addition, there are roughly 350 to 400 people working in this building every single day. We estimate that they’re spending about $35,000 a week and local restaurants, bodegas, convenience stores, you name it. So there’s a tremendous impact already that’s happening. Most of those workers, over half of them live in the Bronx, most in the South Bronx. We’re very proud of that fact. There’s already been a major impact in the local community even before it’s opened.
Well, I like that. The Bronx building in the Bronx. So, I’d like that line. Tell me, will residents be able to come to you guys to get into the building? How’s that process looking? Where do they have to go? Yeah.
For the transitional housing, also known as shelter, for that, people have to apply through the City. They make that determination. For the the units, there will be a lottery. That’s the way these things work. So people have to be eligible for those units. There’ll be a lottery, which we have an outside group conduct so it’s all fair. But we know a lot of people are going to want to live in this building.
And then looking ahead to 2027, what will success look like for Highbridge? Not just for residents but for the Bronx as a whole?
Sure. For the residents, as I said, it’ll be a wonderful, beautiful space for them to be in. There’s great views from there. There’ll be a lot of services on site. We estimate that we’ll employ about 100 people once it’s open. Our preference is always to hire people from the local communities. So that’s an impact down the road, which will be lasting. Those services will help people with job skills, with any issues, that come up in their lives. So there’ll be staff on site to help people maintain that housing and to be good citizens and good neighbors. Also for the community, those people are going to be spending a lot of money in that community. So that’ll add to that as well. As I said, we have community spaces – those will be open to the community. It’s a spectacular-looking building, and it’s a very green building. It’s what’s referred to as passive house. So it means it’s really state-of-the-art building. And it shows that people can live there. I think, as you know, there are high rates of asthma in the Bronx. This building is going to help contribute to a healthier environment for the residents and the community – a lot of the green spaces and things like that. So it’ll have a very lasting impact on the Bronx once it’s completed. But it already is and that’s what we’re here today to talk about – that it’s already had a major positive impact on the community in the Bronx.
Nice. And what about the people who live in the shelters and things like that? Like you know, will they be able to move into the building? Do they have like a certain section for them? How does that look?
They won’t really have a preference for that building. I’m sure many of them will want to because, you know, it’ll be right next door. But again, we place them in places where they can if they’re available units and they qualify and they’re eligible, they certainly can go there. But the permanent housing – 316 apartments – those you know will be for people from not just from the shelter by any means.
Okay. Nice. And tell me when you guys say you’re developing. What does that exactly mean? Are you guys doing the whole look of the building? Do you guys come up with the floor plans and things like that?
Yeah. Yeah. So pretty much all that. So first of all we had owned this property, as I said, since the early 80s. The total cost of this building is $335 million. You know, a lot of money. It’s a big building. Developing means that we applied to both the City of New York and the State of New York as well as to other entities – CitiBank, Richmond Housing, and others to help us get the funding for this. We got the funding. We did a competitive process to pick the architect. The same thing for the contractor. And then, as you said, the floor pans, the amenities, how it’s going to look. We were also mindful that it’s next to a historic bridge. We wanted to build a building that’s not just beautiful, but respect that. So we try to keep it as far away from the bridge as we can. It has angles so that it has little impact. But it is a spectacular building that lots of people will see because there’s nothing to the west of it. And, we think it’ll become a beacon for the Bronx. And that it will really be a showcase and people will notice it and see that. And, you know, the Bronx is going through a revitalization. We think this will be a piece of that as well.
And just talk about a little bit about the importance of that. You know, we’ve been having so much fires going on… houses, buildings are falling down, collapsing. Why is it necessary and why is it such a good time for Samaritan Daytop to come in and build this building with green space and other amenities for community members?
I mean, as you said, there’s both the affordable housing crisis, but buildings are, you know, in disrepair. They’re not being fixed. There are unscrupulous landlords. And again, what we want to be is a model for other nonprofits as well as for for-profit developers. That you can build these types of buildings for affordable and supportive housing and for shelters. You can do them, they can be beautiful, they can be green, it can be done. It’s just a matter of having the will to do that and the vision. We’re hoping that this will be replicated. Again, we talked about the asthma rates in the Bronx. This is a green building. We hope there’ll be more of those incredibly energy-efficient buildings. We also hope it’ll spur local businesses in the Bronx to get into manufacturing or selling energy-efficient windows and things like that. But I think this shows that it can be done. And the people who are going to live in the building deserve nothing less than that. W>e’re just so proud that we had all these great partners from government and others to be able to build this building.
Well, thank you so much, Mitch. That was really great. We look forward to the building opening in 2027.
Great. We invite you to the ribbon cutting.
Yes, definitely invite us.
Definitely.
For more information, you can visit their website at samaritanvillage.org. Don’t go anywhere. We’ll be right back with more “Open” right after this.
