At the Hub in the South Bronx, shopkeepers say what used to be a busy commercial crossroads now feels like a daily grind of chaos. Since Roberto Clemente Plaza was fenced off last July, they report that open-air drug use has migrated onto sidewalks and into doorways, scaring off customers and leaving staff to scrub away needles and human waste. Longtime owners talk about constant harassment, a sharp drop in foot traffic and leases that suddenly feel more like financial traps. Some say they are cutting hours, and a few are quietly planning an exit if conditions do not turn around.
Benjamin Engel, program manager for the Third Avenue Business Improvement District, told reporters that “when it was open, it was four to five ambulances a day responding to overdoses,” and managers now describe needles, feces and aggressive behavior as routine outside their storefronts. Lincoln Hospital runs a medical outreach bus on Bergen Avenue that hands out hygiene kits, snacks and water, and the city’s Department of Social Services says outreach teams are on the ground every day and have placed 15 people into shelters so far this year, as reported by News 12 The Bronx.
Plaza closed after a multiagency push
The plaza itself was shut down and barricaded in July 2025 after the mayor’s office launched a multiagency response that brought in a mobile command center and a heavier police presence, according to THE CITY. Coverage and residents warned at the time that while the sweep might make the square look cleaner, it mostly displaced people into the surrounding streets instead of fixing deeper problems with housing, addiction treatment and sanitation, a concern highlighted by Gothamist.
Policing, outreach and public health messaging
The NYPD says a dedicated team now patrols the Hub and that two officers are posted at Roberto Clemente Plaza around the clock, according to local reporting. City agencies insist that enforcement is being paired with outreach and public health work. The NYC Health Department urges New Yorkers to call or text 988 for confidential mental health and substance use help, according to the NYC Health Department, and city health data show overall overdose deaths trending down even as some Bronx neighborhoods continue to lose neighbors to drugs, according to the NYC Health Department.
Merchants around the Hub say they want more than barricades. They argue the city needs to finish plaza renovations, keep up regular sanitation and commit to a coordinated plan that links enforcement with housing and treatment so shoppers feel safe coming back. Local leaders and elected officials previously pressed the city to crack down on the open-air drug market, and business groups say any real fix will require sustained investment in services as well as policing. For now, shop owners are tallying up their losses and hoping the next round of action does more than shift the problem a block down the road.
