Borough residents could lose out on a popular fruit and vegetable market if the city doesn?t agree to build a new facility for the Hunts Point produce market.

Matthew D?Arrigo, co-president of the Hunts Point Terminal Produce Cooperative Association, says vendors outgrew their current building, which they lease from the city, 15 years ago. The plan for a new facility would cost between $450 and $500 million, D?Arrigo estimates.

?It would hold 50 percent more product than this current market holds,? he says, acknowledging that the city may not have the resources to build a facility of that magnitude in these tough economic times.

If the city doesn?t come through on a deal before the market?s lease expires in 2011, the popular market could move out of the Bronx and relocate to New Jersey or Westchester, where talks are already in the works.

D?Arrigo expects to hear back from the Department of Economic Development in the coming weeks to discuss the financial planning of the project, and if it is viable.