The senior center at Edenwald Houses in the northeast Bronx reopened on Thursday, Oct. 22, after being closed for more than two decades. It reopened together with the development's renovated community center and its child care center, and it now carries the name of Walter J. McNeill, who has led the Edenwald Tenant Association for 33 years. McNeill put the wait at 25 years.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Deputy Mayor Leila Bozorg, New York City Housing Authority CEO Lisa Bova-Hiatt, the development partners and residents cut the ribbon on all three spaces.

What is inside the senior center

The renovated Edenwald Senior Center has a commercial kitchen, an event space and a computer lab, and it offers more social services than before. R.A.I.N., short for Regional Aid for Interim Needs, a Bronx nonprofit, provides meals and help with transportation.

The community center and the day care

The Edenwald Community Center, run by Mosholu Montefiore Community Center, reopens with youth programs, a new storefront and better accessibility.

The Susan Wagner Day Care, the child care center on the campus, has a rebuilt outdoor play area, new flooring and plumbing, accessibility upgrades and full lead paint abatement.

The work on the community and senior centers cost $8.1 million and covered new heating, cooling, electrical and mechanical systems along with new flooring, walls, windows and carpentry.

Part of a $783 million rebuild

Edenwald is the Housing Authority's largest development in the Bronx and its third largest in the city, with 2,035 apartments and nearly 5,000 residents. The centers are one piece of a $783 million modernization of the whole development under PACT, the program through which NYCHA brings in private partners to fund and carry out repairs while the authority keeps ownership and residents keep their permanent affordability and succession rights.

NYCHA and a committee of Edenwald residents chose the partner team of Camber Property Group, Henge Development and SAA | EVI in 2021. Financing closed and construction began in 2023. Beyond the centers, the Edenwald Community Plan covers lead paint removal, mold remediation, better security, new apartment interiors, free Wi-Fi across the development, landscaping and new outdoor spaces.

Citywide, the city says PACT has brought 170 NYCHA developments into planning, construction or completed renovation, accounting for nearly $17 billion in repairs.

What comes next

The senior center, the community center and the day care have reopened, and the rest of the development-wide work continues under the PACT plan. The city's announcement does not give the centers' hours; residents can get them from the Edenwald Tenant Association and from the operators, R.A.I.N. for the senior center and Mosholu Montefiore Community Center for the community center.

Sources