The future of the Thompson Building remains unsettled as redevelopment plans for the Bronx Psychiatric Center property have shifted. The six-story structure, abandoned and covered in graffiti, stands on the state-owned campus near Buhre, St. Theresa and Wilkinson avenues, where Pelham Bay residents can see it from their homes.
In an account by the Bronx Times, Sandi Unger, a Bronx resident and member of the state hospital's board of visitors, said she has documented conditions at the Thompson and adjacent Parker buildings. Unger described the buildings as open and accessible to vandalism; the report said a state official told her that removing the graffiti would cost at least $100,000.
The Bronx Times also reported that Michele Torrioni, president of the Pelham Bay Taxpayers Association, raised the Thompson Building during a walking tour with local elected officials. She said she receives complaints about the graffiti and warned, “Leaving the graffiti there encourages others and it will spread like a cancer,” according to the outlet.
A Redevelopment Plan Years in the Making
Plans for the 33-acre state-owned property in Pelham Bay include affordable, market-rate and co-op housing, as well as commercial space and a hotel, according to the Bronx Times. The outlet reported that the prospective owner has not decided whether the Thompson and adjacent Parker buildings will be demolished or repurposed.
Jeff Klein, president of Allied Government Affairs, which represents Simone Development Companies, said the transfer of the 33-acre site was delayed after Empire State Development changed the project scope from an all-commercial plan to a mixture of housing and commercial development, as noted by Bronx Times. The Office of Mental Health did not respond to a request for comment from the station by deadline.
What Was Once Planned for the Site
The scope shift marks a departure from an earlier vision for the property. Back in 2015, Simone Development Companies submitted the winning bid to acquire and develop the 33-acre site at 1500 Waters Place in the Bronx, according to rew-online.com. That proposal envisioned two construction phases totaling nearly 1.9 million square feet of new and renovated commercial space.
Under the 2015 plan, the existing John W. Thompson Building was to be redesigned into a business hotel with meeting facilities and a community college, totaling 100,000 square feet. The Betty Parker Building, meanwhile, was slated to be reconfigured into 500,000 square feet of business or medical offices, the 2015 report noted. It remains unclear whether any of that earlier vision still applies to the project as it stands today.
The Center’s Current Role
The redevelopment plans concern property on the Bronx Psychiatric Center campus, which continues to provide psychiatric services. According to the New York State Office of Mental Health, the center provides inpatient, outpatient and related services, with inpatient hospitalization at its main campus.
An Eyesore With No Clear Timeline
For now, the buildings’ disposition remains uncertain, while the Thompson continues to draw complaints from nearby residents. Jay Cole’s Bronx Times report documented neighbors’ concerns as the campus sale stalled without a clear resolution.
