How Can the City Save the Bronx ‘Hub’ from Drug Addiction?
Let 2025 be the year City Hall finally fulfills its longstanding commitments to revitalize The Hub commercial district in the South Bronx.
The Post has verified that the “Broadway of The Bronx” continues to be swamped with drug users, homeless individuals, discarded drug paraphernalia, and dirt — not only after a cleanup effort this past fall but also following our exposé.
A significant initiative from the de Blasio era aimed at salvaging the area was the opening of Roberto Clemente Plaza in November 2018; its designers envisioned the $16 million project as the “Herald Square of The Bronx,” a “green oasis amidst the chaos.”
Unfortunately, locals report that the nearby chaos quickly overwhelmed the plaza.
The Post encountered individuals using drugs in broad daylight, others showing signs of overdose, and some contorted into the “fentanyl fold.”
“These streets are full of zombies,” stated Emilio Morales, general manager of the notable Opera House Hotel located on East 149th Street. “It’s never been as bad as it is now.”
How did we reach this point: public displays of drug-related depravity amid streets bustling with shops, shoppers, commuters, and schoolchildren?
In addition to the evident neglect, The Hub hosts numerous methadone clinics, addiction treatment services, and needle exchange programs.
Morales and other Hub business leaders are still looking for a tangible response from City Hall to their calls for action.
A letter sent in 2021 to Mayor Bill de Blasio promised regular inspections and $8 million to combat the opioid crisis in The Bronx; Eric Adams’ administration subsequently initiated a “comprehensive, multi-agency approach” to tackle drug activity and its resultant issues in The Hub, which included a significant crackdown this past October and November — yet the squalor returns.
Long-time residents and observers have noted that this haven for drug users has eluded lasting solutions for over 40 years — but that’s no reason to give up.
Clearly, what’s necessary is not just a continued police presence but the relocation of many of the progressive social programs targeted at addicts: disperse them widely.
The Hub is also a prime candidate for Mayor Adams’ new “Every Block Counts” initiative, which aims to address long-standing crime and quality-of-life challenges in neighborhoods. Rather than resigning to the depravity and deviance, City Hall should adopt a comprehensive strategy.
Adams often asserts that “prosperity and public safety go hand-in-hand”; he must turn this assertion into reality in The Hub.
