Morrisania Air Rights

The Morrisania Air Rights is located in the Melrose section of the Bronx.

Morrisania Air Rights is New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) public housing project consisting of three buildings, 19, 23, and 29-stories tall. There are 843 apartments housing some 1,952 residents.^{[Ref 1]} It was designed by the architectural firm, The Eggers Partnership also known as Eggers & Higgins. The projects were completed in 1980 over Metro-North Railroad tracks, taking advantage of the air rights above the tracks. This method of construction allowed a new housing project to be built without tearing down any buildings or displacing any residents.^{[Ref 2]} This saved on costs considerably and may be one of the reasons why NYCHA was able to build such a large project during a period when few public housing units were built, even in New York City. The planning for the project began in 1971, but construction did not begin until the late 70s.^{[Ref 2]} The project used a method of construction developed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology that relies on steel trusses rather than closely spaced steel columns. This allowed the railroad to remain in operation during construction.^{[Ref 2]}

References

1. ^ NYCHA Housing Developments, Morrisania Air Rights.
2. ^ ^{a b c} City Is Planning Housing Over Bronx Rail Tracks, By STEVEN R. WEISMAN, May 26, 1971, New York Times.