Deadline Looms for Council's Ruling on Related's Bronx Mall

The fate of a massive development project in the Bronx proposed by the Related Companies, the real estate giant that built the Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle, is hanging in the balance.

The project, which includes a mega-mall with 1 million square feet of retail space, has already received approval from the City Planning Commission and the local community board. But the project has one more hurdle to clear in the City Council, which must vote by February 8.

"People are just starting to realize that the ULURP clock is running out and we have to take action," Council Member Joel Rivera said, referring to the land-use application process. "Time is not on our side."

Mr. Rivera, the council's majority leader, said negotiations with Related are underway to hash out community concerns, but he said most Bronx council members are likely to back the overall plan. Mr. Rivera is supporting the project, which will replace the dilapidated Bronx Terminal Market, where two dozen merchants and hundreds of employees still sell produce and other goods.

The Gateway Mall, as the project is called, could be the first major litmus test for the newly constituted council. The council just elected a new speaker, Christine Quinn, and its vote will send a signal on where it stands on development and organized labor.

While the Bloomberg administration and the developer are expressing optimism about the plan's prospects for approval, opponents are slamming the proposal and pressuring council members to reject it. They have criticized it as a "sweetheart deal," citing connections between the administration and Related and the fact the site was not put out for public bidding.

A lobbyist who represents merchants that would be displaced by the project, Richard Lipsky, disputed the notion the plan has strong council support and said the Bronx delegation is still "very much in play."

"There is a lot of opposition to the deal and to the prospect of the project being a Trojan horse," Mr. Lipsky said.

Mr. Lipsky, who also represents unions and small supermarkets, called on the council to block the project unless Related agrees to bar BJ's Wholesale Club and Wal-Mart from the mall. He also said the council does not have enough time to properly review the project.

Related has already said it has no plans to bring in Wal-Mart. The council has in the past rejected projects in the final phase of land-use review process because of opposition to stores like BJs and Wal-Mart.

Ms. Quinn has not made public her position on the Gateway Mall. A spokeswoman for her, Maria Alvarado, said via e-mail that the "speaker's position on the matter will be determined after hearing from all the interested parties during this process."

Both the city and Related have argued that the development will be a desperately needed shot in the arm to spur economic activity and create jobs in a now blighted section of the borough. They have also pointed out the project has "overwhelming support" from leaders in the borough, including the president of the Bronx, Aldofo Carrion.

David Stearns, a spokesman for the marketing firm representing Related, the Marino Group, said the council generally yields to elected officials that represent the area and noted that land use approvals have nothing to do with the stores that occupy a site.

Last week Council Member Helen Foster told The New York Sun that unless there is a greater effort to find a new space for the existing merchants, who were ordered out by a state Supreme Court judge, there will be "bumps and bruises" in the final land use review.

Complicating matters is that the council does not yet have committees in place following the recent election, so its window for taking up the matter is narrowing. Ms. Quinn and the council's Rules Committee scheduled to approve committee assignments next week, giving the Land Use Committee three weeks to act.

Related paid already $42 million for the lease, but the city agreed to reimburse the company if the project falls through and has said it would provide millions of dollars in tax breaks. If the council rejects the application, Mayor Bloomberg can veto its action. But most council votes are veto-proof.