Construction crews are bracing neighboring properties along East Tremont Avenue as a new public charter school building rises on a site that once housed the demolished remains of a former structure. The project, led by Next Generation Charter School, is expected to welcome its first students in 2028, bringing a new K-5 option to families in Parkchester, Van Nest and the surrounding East Bronx.
According to News12 New York, the developer behind the project, Andrew Esposito of Apex Development Group, expects construction to be completed by spring 2028, with students moving into the building later that year. The building's design, Esposito said, remains a preliminary rendering subject to change, but current plans call for roughly 60,000 square feet of space that will include science labs, art studios, separate cafeterias and a full-size gym. That figure differs from a project listing published by nyccip.com, which puts the building at approximately 59,000 square feet and describes it as a six-story structure in the Van Nest neighborhood expected to house about 700 students.
When classes begin, the school plans to serve kindergarten through second grade, with three classes per grade and 78 students total, per the News12 report. Next Generation Charter School is currently authorized to serve students through fifth grade and plans to add one grade per year, though school leaders intend to seek approval for expansion through eighth grade when the charter comes up for renewal.
Why Leaders Picked This Stretch of East Tremont Avenue
Malik Russell, executive director of Next Generation Charter School, said the East Bronx area deserves a great public school option, according to the same News12 account. School leaders chose the East Tremont Avenue location specifically to serve current neighborhood families as well as people who may move to the area in the years ahead, Russell said. The broader Next Generation organization already operates schools serving kindergarten through 12th grade in Highbridge, and Russell said teachers and administrators in the network look like the students they serve and often come from the same communities.
Russell described the organization's approach as one that combines academics with helping children speak up for themselves and building relationships with families, while prioritizing the hiring of educators who reflect the communities they serve, per the News12 report. The surrounding area is preparing for new housing and the future Parkchester/Van Nest Metro-North station, a shift that could reshape who lives nearby by the time the school opens its doors.
A $60 Million Financing Deal Behind the Build
The construction effort is backed by a $60 million debt package that Apex Development Group and Knickpoint Ventures secured for the acquisition and construction of the school at 1780 East Tremont Avenue, according to Commercial Observer. That financing included $30 million in nonprofit loans alongside $30 million in New Markets Tax Credit allocations, the outlet reported, with project sponsors contributing roughly $7 million in equity on top of that. Apex is serving as both developer and general contractor on the project.
Nuasin Next Generation Charter School signed a 45-year lease with the project sponsors in the summer of 2025, Commercial Observer reported, and the site itself was previously home to an unoccupied auto repair shop. The project falls within a 46-block swath of the city's Metro-North rezoning, an area expected to bring 7,000 new residential housing units to the immediate vicinity, per a separate project page from Apex Development. The school sits near a future Metro-North Railroad station anticipated to serve the population growth spurred by that housing push, Commercial Observer noted.
Space Built for Growth, Floor by Floor
Even as the building takes shape, its early years will look different from its eventual footprint. The new school is expected to use the upper four floors initially, with the first two floors remaining temporarily unoccupied until enrollment grows, according to the nyccip.com project listing. That phased approach mirrors the school's broader grade-expansion plan, adding capacity as its student population increases year over year.
Separately, NYCR-CDE provided $15 million in New Markets Tax Credit financing tied to construction of what that listing describes as a new K-12 public charter school in the Bronx, a grade-span description that differs from the fifth-grade authorization and eighth-grade renewal plans described elsewhere. As a public charter school, Nuasin Next Generation is governed by a Board of Trustees, according to the organization's own materials. For now, the groundwork along East Tremont Avenue marks the first visible step toward a campus that East Bronx families won't be able to walk into for another two years.
