Zeta Charter School Signs 65,000 SF Lease in the Bronx

NEW YORK—Zeta Charter Schools has signed a 65,000-square-foot lease deal for a new elementary school at 1910 Arthur Ave. in the Bronx.

Called Zeta Bronx Tremont Park Elementary, the school is scheduled to open in August 2021 for the 2021-2022 academic year and will ultimately serve students in pre-K through fifth grade, according to Transwestern Real Estate Services, which brokered the deal.

Transwestern Partners Lindsay Ornstein and Stephen Powers and Vice President Thomas Hines provided occupier solutions services for Zeta Charter Schools. Transwestern also represented the school last year in its 98,000-square-foot deal at 425 Westchester Ave. in the South Bronx for Zeta Bronx 1, which is also expected to open for the 2021-2022 academic year.

“We are thrilled to have found a home in Bronx Community School District 12, where there is incredible need and demand for high-quality charter seats,” says Emily A. Kim, CEO of Zeta Charter Schools. “This building will enable Zeta to provide a world class, next-generation charter school to hundreds of children in Central Bronx.”

She adds, “The current COVID-19 crisis presents a challenging time for all of us, and especially underserved families in the Bronx. We feel deeply grateful for this incredible opportunity to serve even more families and provide students in the Bronx with a high-quality school that they deserve.”

After a nearly year-long site search, the Zeta Charter Schools and Transwestern team chose 1910 Arthur Ave. for its central location, proximity to public transportation and ability to accommodate a phased-in occupancy strategy as Zeta Bronx Tremont Park Elementary grows.

The nine-story building formerly served multiple tenants, primarily medical offices. Transwestern worked closely with the extensive project team to ensure the building’s suitability to be transformed into a school. In addition to the light-filled floorplate, the building offers excellent fitness options for the students with Tremont Park across the street and plans to utilize the building’s rooftop for additional play space, Transwestern officials state.

“By selecting an experienced development partner with an existing building that can be converted quickly for school use, we were able to save Zeta Charter Schools significant time and expense in delivering Zeta Bronx Tremont Park Elementary to the community,” says Ornstein. “We are thrilled to be working alongside Zeta Charter Schools as we continue to look for additional opportunities for them to open more state-of-the-art educational facilities in the future.”

The Zeta Charter School commitment was structured as a leasehold condominium, which offers significant savings to nonprofits by utilizing the organization’s tax-exempt status. The building ownership, Joyland Group, was represented internally in the transaction.

Zeta Charter Schools currently has two New York City-based elementary schools, Zeta Bronx 1 and Zeta Inwood 1, and is opening two new Bronx elementary schools in 2020.