Gentrification and displacement are real concerns, as are the effects of underdevelopment on lower-income residents in inner cities. In many cases, opponents of development projects misunderstand gentrification and displacement and misstate the evidence to support their opposition. Likewise, there is a misunderstanding about the positive impacts of development in these communities.
Professor Lance Freeman, who was a city planner at NYCHA and a local who literally wrote the book about gentrification in Harlem, is now a nationally recognized expert on these matters. Professor Raj Chetty likewise has completed extensive studies on mobility and displacement in neighborhoods like Harlem.
Lance Freeman is a Professor in the Urban Planning program at Columbia GSAPP. His research focuses on affordable housing, gentrification, ethnic and racial stratification in housing markets, and the relationship between the built environment and well being. Professor Freeman teaches courses on community development, housing policy and research methods.
Dr. Freeman has published several articles in refereed journals on issues related to neighborhood change, urban poverty, housing policy, urban sprawl and residential segregation. Dr. Freeman is also the author of the book There Goes the Hood: Views of Gentrification from the Ground Up (Temple University Press).
He also obtained extensive experience working with community development groups while working as a Community Development coordinator for the North Carolina Institute of Minority Economic Development and as a Research Associate at the Center for Urban and Regional Studies in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Raj Chetty is the William A. Ackman Professor of Economics at Harvard University. He is also the Director of Opportunity Insights (formerly the Equality of Opportunity Project), which uses “big data” to understand how we can give children from disadvantaged backgrounds better chances of succeeding.
Chetty's research combines empirical evidence and economic theory to help design more effective government policies. His work on topics ranging from tax policy and unemployment insurance to education and affordable housing has been widely cited in academia, media outlets, and Congressional testimony.
Lance Freeman - Displacement and destinations among residents of gentrifying neighborhoods
Raj Chetty - The Impacts of Neighborhoods on Economic Opportunity New Evidence and Policy Lessons
As certified, the One45 For Harlem will create 100 additional residential units and 11% additional permanently affordable units than the previous plan. The newly certified plan does not include office space nor a museum. Most significantly, we have been working
closely with Council member Salaam who supports our efforts to build more housing in Harlem and create desperately needed jobs.
Also new is the addition of Concern Housing, a nonprofit organization with 50 years of experience producing affordable and supportive housing in New York. Concern has a proven track record built on a commitment to community engagement and is working to connect with Harlem residents at a grassroots level.
This newly configured development team is prioritizing community impact programming and investment. This includes, but is not limited to:
The city is in a housing crisis, which has only grown more severe since this project was first proposed. Renters need more high-quality, accessible, and affordable housing in their own neighborhoods. The statistics are alarming –about one in every three New Yorkers are extremely rent burdened, meaning they spend at least half of their income on rent. On any given night, over 62,000 residents - mostly families with children - experience homelessness.
We need to build more housing - not only in Central Harlem, but in every New York City neighborhood - to meet demand and provide the stable, affordable housing our neighbors deserve so they can grow their families and thrive in the place we all call home. The proposed development addresses this need and will make hundreds of units available for renters with a wide range of income levels at a time when they are in short supply.
Of note, CB10 ranks near the bottom of all community districts in the amount of new construction development of affordable housing over the past 10 years and the pipeline is equally lacking.
Leading up to the announcement of this second proposal, the One45 development team has prioritized community engagement and feedback. The new proposal was conceptualized and refined with community engagement and feedback and aims to create a development that serves not only residents, but the wider community.
That is why we have worked to create a range of programming that will benefit both One45 residents and the community at large, including but not limited to:
Our team is in ongoing contact with a broad range of community stakeholders and looks forward to working with key elected officials like Council Member Yusef Salaam, as well as other elected, civic, faith, and community leaders to ensure this effort is a success. Our goal is to quickly and comprehensively address any questions or concerns, and to work hand and glove with the community as we move ahead with this process.
One45 features two buildings on a shared physical footprint and with a shared ideological goal – providing high-quality housing for renters at a variety of income levels. The architects and design team are taking special care to integrate the buildings so that all residents can enjoy amenities and common areas in each location.
One45 will provide housing in a location previously used only as commercial and office space, creating affordability while reducing homelessness. The certified plan requires mandatory inclusionary housing to be 30% of the nearly 1,000 new housing units, which will be permanently affordable at AMI ranges of 10% at 40% AMI, 10% at 80% AMI, 10% at 120% AMI.
The team has briefed Council Member Salaam on the new One45 vision, and we greatly appreciate that he has provided his conceptual support for this undertaking. In addition, we have briefed and are in regular communication with key city agencies and members of Mayor Eric Adams’ leadership team, as well as a wide range of local advocates, residents, organizations, and elected representatives at all levels of government. We will continue our active outreach efforts with the aim of building a wide breadth of support for this important undertaking.
One45 will include units of affordable housing set aside for residents of the local community. This specification ensures that there are units set aside for existing Harlem residents. We will work to connect individuals and families in Harlem with affordable and high-quality housing opportunities in their neighborhood.
Harlem – which is disproportionately impacted by pollution and unhealthy air quality – sustainability must be central to any new development. Buildings are the source of over two thirds of all carbon emissions in the New York City, consuming 95% of electricity and using 80% of water. To help curb that impact, the One45 proposal includes a high-performance and energy efficient building systems.
Throughout the design process, additional green energy technologies will be studied and considered, including fuel cells, solar energy, battery storage, and Wastewater Energy Recovery, and Snow Melt.
One45’s proposed district energy system also utilizes adiverse set of energy sources to provide heating and cooling throughout the community. This advanced electrification approach uses state-of-the-art heat pump technology to increase efficiency and lower environmental impact. For more information, please visit the Sustainability tab on this website.
One45 is a $600M+ investment in Harlem. Data shows that the creation and development of affordable and supportive housing generates economic activity and encourages economic spending far after it opens.
During construction, 100 units of housing generate an average of about 121 construction jobs, 64 indirect jobs, and 50 induced jobs – down the line, it creates 32 permanent jobs and at least four jobs at the building. Just 100 units of housing generate $26 million in economic spending during construction and $10 million after construction is complete. The One45 proposal will createover 900 new units, which is expected to create hundreds of new jobs and millions in economic spending annually.
In addition to activating and generating a well-lit streetscape with improve safety, One45 will lead to more direct private and public investment, spending & lending, which will be used to help existing residents and businesses in the form of credit provision, business loans, infrastructure upgrades, and expanded economic opportunities. One45 will start to address enduring problems like congestion, public health, schools, redlining, and more that have long been ignored.
Besides creating affordability and reducing homelessness, One45 will also help lower rental costs for the broader Harlem community. A 2018 working paper from the Furman Center, for example, found that building more housing lowers rents overall, while limiting housing supply increases rents for everyone. To that end, scholars found that new buildings decrease nearby rents by 5-7 percent, while Fannie Mae researchers discovered that every 10 percent increase in housing stock causes a rent/sale price reduction within 500 feet of the new building.
We strongly believe that One45, once complete, will contribute to Harlem’s long-term economic health and lower rents and improve the standard of living for all area residents.
No; there are currently no residents living in the proposed One45 development space. No one is being displaced.
Local businesses will benefit too. Once development is complete, One45 will work off a small business preference program, giving existing commercial tenants the option to return to the site for business and installing an incentive program to provide below-market rent and preferential space for local and MWBE business.
This project, if approved by all necessary oversight and regulatory agencies, will be completed in 2029.