Mamdani, Schumer Push Developers to Keep ICE Out
The mayor, along with other elected officials, wants the owners of parking lots and garages across the five boroughs to keep ICE out of their properties.
Last week federal immigration enforcement officers dressed as construction workers approached and shot Oscar Belgal while his five-year-old son sat in the same car. Now some politicians are turning to private-sector partners to help rein in ICE activity across New York City.
Before the shooting, lawmakers representing Manhattan exclave Marble Hill and surrounding Bronx neighborhoods had already spent weeks voicing concerns about ICE staging its enforcement activities in a nearby parking lot owned by developer Kingsbridge Associates and mega-retailer Target.
Those calls reached a fever pitch Friday, when Mayor Zohran Mamdani and dozens of political figures, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, signed a letter appealing to property owners across New York City. The letter explicitly requests that any owners and operators of parking lots and garages not rent, lend or otherwise make their properties available for ICE as staging grounds for enforcement operations, noting that many New Yorkers who rely on those facilities are immigrants.
The Shops at Marble Hill isn’t the only place where ICE stationed their vehicles in the city, with federal officers also using two bank parking lots in Queens and a garage in Manhattan whose owner has already removed ICE vehicles from his property. With federal operations continuing apace after a busy summer of enforcement in New York City, local government has made a point to restrict ICE use of city-owned property for its operations, according to the letter.
“Kingsbridge Associates, I have to say, from the moment of my first call, has been great. They said that they did not know that this was occurring in their parking lot and they said they would look into what they could do and take action to get ICE off their parking lot,” Council member Pierina Sanchez, who represents part of Marble Hill, said. “Here’s the trouble: Kingsbridge is part owner of the parking lot and the other owner is Target. Beyond saying that they had no prior knowledge, they have said nothing affirmative as far as their future approach to if they see ICE in one of their parking lots.”
Target has no cooperative agreements with ICE, according to a spokesperson.
Kingsbridge, owned by Washington Square Partners, emphasized that the shopping center should be a safe and welcoming environment for all visitors.
“We recognize the distress and concern surrounding the recent incident involving ICE at Marble Hill and its impact on our neighbors. Management did not authorize ICE or other federal enforcement activity at The Shops at Marble Hill,” Washington Square Partners President Paul Travis said in a statement. “Our parking areas are intended for customers visiting the center. We are closely monitoring the property and maintaining communication with our neighbors and their representatives.”
Sanchez acknowledged that the city’s powers and leverage are limited, but is weighing other methods to get property owners to align with sanctuary city policies under increasing pressure from the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement blitz.
“Should tax credits be looked at in terms of the corporations and the entities that the city has been subsidizing over the years? Absolutely, categorically yes. Wherever the city is giving subsidies, there should always be alignment with our core values.” Sanchez said. “We are a sanctuary city. We do cooperate in the case of 170 serious crimes, but not for civil immigration enforcement, and that’s what was happening on that parking lot.”
What we’re thinking about: Any developers and industry lobbyists heading to the Somos conference next month, hoping to preview the legislative agenda or rub shoulders with lawmakers? If changing tides in Albany and NYC are leading back to San Juan, let’s connect at ben.miller@therealdeal.com.
A thing we’ve learned: The construction of the original Rockefeller Center complex was completed 87 years ago, when the final structural rivet was driven into 30 Rockefeller Plaza, then known as the RCA Building. The now-famous Christmas tree tradition started before the whole project was even finished, when construction workers in 1931 pooled their money to purchase a 20-foot balsam fir, which they decorated with handmade garlands.
Elsewhere…
— Innovative Urban Village, a new complex slated to provide nearly 2,000 affordable units in East New York, cut the ribbon on its first phase buildout Thursday, with a bevy of local, state, and national political figures in attendance, as covered by TRD’s Lilah Burke. The site sits on a former parking lot of the Christian Cultural Center megachurch, offering a preview of what state-level efforts to boost development on land owned by religious institutions could produce if they fare better in Albany this coming session, City Limits reported.
— The city is spending millions on services for the city’s homeless population, but more New Yorkers are sleeping outside than ever before as both figures tripled between 2019 and 2024, according to state comptroller data. An inefficient and largely uncoordinated street outreach program is to blame, VOCAL-NY executive director Jeremy Saunders and other nonprofit leaders told Gothamist.
— Many New Yorkers are increasingly considering leaving the city entirely, according to new affordability data from Honan Strategy Group. Nearly half of survey respondents said they are likely to leave the five boroughs within the next five years due to the cost of living. Paying for rent or a mortgage was the greatest cost burden, cited by 46 percent of respondents as their biggest financial strain, with utilities, groceries and healthcare also ranking high among costs, City & State first reported.
Closing time
Residential: The most expensive residential sale recorded Friday was $7.6 million for 255 East 77th Street, 5D. The Upper East Side condo is 3,200 square feet. Compass’ Alexa Lambert, Alison Black and Shelton Smith had the listing.
Commercial: The most expensive commercial transaction was $28.5 million for 23-50 Waters Edge Drive. The multi-family apartment is six stories and 146,500 square feet of gross floor area. Ciampa Bay Terrace LLC is listed as the buyer.
New to the Market: The highest price for a residential property hitting the market is $13.5 million for 110 Boerum Place, Unit PH402. The Downtown Brooklyn new-construction condo is 4,000 square feet. IAvdoo & Partners Development Marketing’s in-house team has the listing.
Breaking Ground: The largest new building permit filed was for a proposed 90,710-square-foot, 14-story residential building at 540 West 29th Street in Chelsea. Robert Bianchini of ARC Architecture + Design Studio is the applicant of record.
— Joseph Jungermann
