Last year, the Bowery Residents’ Committee (BRC), a nonprofit serving homeless individuals, acquired 626 Pelham Parkway South on Bolton Street—the former Apple Bank site. BRC now plans to demolish the building and construct a 9-story development with 106 Single Room Occupancy (SRO) units, each under 275 square feet.

These units will not include private kitchens—a basic necessity for independent living. Many future residents will be transitioning from shelters, with significant mental health and substance use challenges. They deserve housing that supports stability—not conditions that risk prolonging hardship.

Housing without dignity is not a solution.
Concerns about this model are not hypothetical. Reporting has highlighted how homeless advocates warn that stacking multiple floors, relying on shared common spaces, and “warehousing” large numbers of individuals with varying mental health needs can increase conflict and even lead to violence when not properly designed and supported.
Advocates have also raised concerns about weak city oversight of nonprofit housing providers, questioning whether enough accountability exists to ensure safe, effective care. Without strong monitoring, proper staffing, and adequate services, these developments risk failing both residents and the surrounding community.
This project is also funded with public money—our tax dollars. We have a right to demand that these funds are used to create housing that is safe, humane, and truly supportive—not substandard.
The Bronx deserves better.
Our community—including Bolton Street residents and the White Plains Road Business corridor—should not bear the impact of poorly planned housing. More importantly, vulnerable individuals deserve housing that promotes recovery, dignity, and independence.
Better solutions exist:
Include individual kitchens 
Reduce density to allow individualized care
Provide strong on-site mental health and substance use services
Ensure proper staffing, safety, and real oversight
This is not about opposing housing—it’s about demanding better housing.
We call on elected officials and city agencies to halt this project and require a redesign that meets humane, safe standards.
If we don’t act now, this decision will impact our community for decades.
Sign this petition today. Demand accountability. Demand dignity. Demand better.
Once construction begins, it will be too late