Construction begins on the tallest building in the South Bronx

*Construction has begun on what will be the South Bronx’s tallest building at 355 Exterior Street just south of the 145th Street Bridge.*

Almost overnight, the South Bronx grew a glittering skyline of market rate luxury rental towers along the Harlem River with many of them rising as tall as twenty five stories as the gentrification of Port Morris and Mott Haven began several years ago.

Now, the slowly growing sprawl of luxury towers is creeping further north along the Harlem River as construction begins on a 43 story development in what will be the tallest building in the South Bronx and second tallest in the borough once it’s completed (River Park Towers are currently the tallest).

First announced in late 2020, construction has begun at 355 Exterior Street, a waterfront property that was once owned by Verizon and billed as the largest development site available in New York City at the time which sold for a whopping $59 million in an all cash transaction a year prior in 2019.

The site sits right between the 145th Street bridge at 149th Street and the Madison Avenue Bridge at 138th street an is within walking distance to the 149th Street and Grand Concourse subway station along the 2, 4 and 5 lines, and the 138th Street and Grand Concourse on the 4 and 5.

*355 Exterior Street residents will have to access the building under the Major Deegan Expressway.*

While no details have recently emerged on the development from the owners, The Lightstone Group, when the sale was finalized, it was reported that the development would include 2,000 units of housing of which 30% would be set aside for “affordable” housing and the remaining units would be market-rate luxury.

*Rendering of the development posted at the construction site at 355 Exterior*

According to plans filed with New York City Department of Buildings, the 43 story building will reach a height of 400 feet (the same height as Tracey Towers up in the North Bronx) and will have 710 residential units spread across 554,846 square feet with an additional 10,651 square feet of commercial space.

Plans also include for parking for 325 vehicles as well.

The face of the South Bronx is changing and will continue to change and in a decade, it will be completely unrecognizable.

Ed García Conde

Ed García Conde is a life-long Bronxite who spends his time documenting the people, places, and things that make the borough a special place in the hopes of dispelling the negative stereotypes associated with The Bronx. His writings are often cited by mainstream media and is often consulted for his expertise on the borough's rich history.