During that first initial conference, we talked about the many issues and pending developments in The Bronx. Now this year’s conference will be solution-oriented focused on the issues surrounding the controversial topic.
Please note: SPACE IS LIMITED and you must purchase tickets in advance. If you are a Bronx resident and cannot purchase a ticket in advance, there will be a total of 15 tickets at the door exclusively for Bronx residents ONLY and will be available at a discount of $7. A valid ID showing your Bronx address must be presented so that we can ensure that these tickets go to Bronx residents ONLY.
UPDATE: Due to a huge response for the gentrification conference, we are no longer holding 15 tickets at the door on the day of the event for Bronx residents who cannot purchase tickets online. Instead, we are asking that those interested in the 15 tickets to kindly purchase them at the BDC BEFORE the 17th. You can do so Mon – Fri between Noon and 6pm. Please call us at (718) 993-3512 to make sure tickets are still available before coming.
More information straight from the BDC below including links to purchase your tickets as well as the schedule of events for the conference.
Our second annual gentrification conference at the BDC will provide South Bronx residents with the opportunity to learn about and discuss issues surrounding gentrification. The conversation will focus on solutions to gentrification.Please note due to interest you must purchase an advance ticket to attend. Thank you for your understanding.
PURCHASE TICKETS AT: http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/11482054:00PM: Before and after photo slideshow of the Bronx. Featuring work from: Jika González, Edwin Torres, Berthland Tekyi-Berto, Austin Crimmins, Mansura Khanam, and David Delgado4:15PM: Photographer Burroughs Lamar slideshow and talk.5:00PM: My Brooklyn Screening
A documentary about the ways public policy is fueling gentrification and displacement in Brooklyn by director Kelly Anderson and producer Allison Lirish Dean.
6:30PM: Panel discussion with director of My Brooklyn Kelly Anderson and Professor Michael Partis (additional panelists to be announced shortly).
About the Panelists:
Michael Partis (https://medium.com/@chewitblingon) is an applied anthropologist and instructor in the Center for Ethnic Studies at CUNY Borough of Manhattan Community College. He is Chief Research and Policy Officer for Young Movement Inc., where he works on community-based economic development. He also is the co-founder and co-director of The Bronx Brotherhood Project, a community-based youth development program designed to provide college readiness and adult male mentorship to low-income Bronx Black and Latino high school males. Michael is the founder of the Hip-Hop Thought Project (http://smartpawns.tumblr.com/)
Kelly Anderson’s most recent film is My Brooklyn, a documentary about gentrification and the redevelopment of Downtown Brooklyn. Her other work includes Never Enough, a documentary about clutter, collecting and Americans’ relationships with their stuff, and Every Mother’s Son, a documentary she made with Tami Gold about mothers whose children have been killed by police officers and who have become national spokespeople on police reform. Every Mother’s Son won the Audience Award at the Tribeca Film Festival, aired on POV, and was nominated for a national Emmy for Directing. Kelly’s other documentaries include Out At Work (also with Tami Gold), which screened at the Sundance Film Festival and was broadcast on HBO. She is a Professor in the Department of Film and Media Studies at Hunter College (CUNY).
Suggested donation: $15, $7 Bronx residents, 18 and under free.
The Bronx Documentary Center is located at 614 Courtlandt Avenue at the corner of E 151st Street and is easily accessible by subway at the 2/5 trains at 3rd Avenue and 149th Street or a number of buses such as the 2, 4, 15, 19, 41, SB41, or by car. A 24 hour parking lot is located directly adjacent to the BDC.
Bess Myerson, 1945, upon being crowned Miss America – the first and only Jewish woman to have won the title. / Image credit: AP
Without much as a whisper of her passing, Bronx born and raised Bess Myerson, America’s first and only Jewish Miss America, passed away last month on December 14th at the age of 90. She was known as the woman who refused to change her name so it wouldn’t sound too Jewish.
Myerson, who was crowned Miss America in 1945 just days after the end of World War II, lived in Van Cortlandt Village area of The Bronx with her family at Shalom Aleichem Cooperative, one of the country’s first residential cooperatives.
Later in her life, she was constantly by the side of her friend, another former Bronxite, the late Mayor Ed Koch. Many accused Myerson of being the late Mayor’s cover up “companion” as accusations and rumors constantly swirled about that he was gay.
The New York Times reported on her death:
Ms. Myerson was one of a select group of American figures to parlay pop culture celebrity into positions of influence in the public square. She led two New York City agencies, Consumer and Cultural Affairs; advised three presidents; championed social causes; and supported powerful political careers. She also sought one for herself, entering a much-watched primary race for the United States Senate. For a long time she seemed rarely out of the news.
The headlines began the night she walked down the runway at the Warner Theater in Atlantic City, a musically talented daughter of a house painter from the Bronx wearing the most coveted crown in the land — an honor she would come to rue as narrowly defining her.
Bess Myerson, a New York house painter’s daughter who was crowned Miss America in 1945 and whose vibrant career as a television personality and consumer affairs activist was sullied by a tawdry municipal scandal involving her lover, has died at 90.
According to public records, she died Dec. 14 in Santa Monica, Calif., her town of residence. Her death was not announced publicly, marking an uncharacteristically obscure end to a life of dazzle and tumult.
A raven-haired, hazel-eyed beauty who stood 5-foot-10, Ms. Myerson was a captivating figure from the moment she was named the first — and still only — Jewish Miss America. Born to immigrant Jews from Russia, she was raised in a Bronx housing project and embodied an up-from-poverty success story that made her an overnight sensation and possibly the best-known Miss America in the contest’s history.
For decades, she enjoyed something close to reverence among a generation of Jews who had lived through the Holocaust and found in her win a symbol of Jewish assimilation and acceptance in an otherwise hostile world.
“In the Jewish community she was the most famous pretty girl since Queen Esther in ancient Persia,” author Susan Dworkin wrote in “Miss America, 1945: Bess Myerson’s Own Story,” a book published in 1987.
Behind the scenes, Ms. Myerson faced a thornier reality. In a time of rampant anti-Semitism, the Miss America pageant director urged her to change her name to make it sound less Jewish; she refused. As a Miss America representative, she found country clubs canceling her visits and corporate sponsorships dropping away. Bess Myerson, a Miss America tarnished by scandal, dies at 90 – Washington Post
NPR writes:
When Bess Myerson borrowed a bathing suit in 1945 to compete in the Miss New York City competition, she could not have known the wild wave she would ride during her life in the public eye.
Before Myerson competed in Atlantic City, N.J., for the title of Miss America, the director of the pageant tried to get her to change her name so it would sound less Jewish. Myerson rejected the advice and kept her name.
“It turned out to be one of the most important decisions I ever made,” she said in Susan Dworkin’s 1987 book, Miss America, 1945: Bess Myerson’s Own Story.
In the book, Myerson says, “Already I was losing my sense of who I was; already I was in a masquerade, marching across stages in bathing suits. Whatever was left of myself in this game, I had to keep, I sensed that. I knew I had to keep my name.”
While touring the country after winning the crown, she encountered “No Jews” signs, and many of the opportunities usually associated with winning the crown dried up. Disappointed at how she had been treated after her pageant win, she accepted an offer from the Anti-Defamation League to speak on the lecture circuit. The title of her speech was: “You Can’t Be Beautiful and Hate.” From Miss America To Tabloid Fodder: Bess Myerson Dies At 90 – NPR
Bess Myerson, 1945, upon being crowned Miss America – the first and only Jewish woman to have won the title. / Image credit: AP
Without much as a whisper of her passing, Bronx born and raised Bess Myerson, America’s first and only Jewish Miss America, passed away last month on December 14th, 2014 at the age of 90. She was known as the woman who refused to change her name so it wouldn’t sound too Jewish.
Myerson, who was crowned Miss America in 1945 just days after the end of World War II, lived in Van Cortlandt Village area of The Bronx with her family at Shalom Aleichem Cooperative, one of the country’s first residential cooperatives.
Later in her life, she was constantly by the side of her friend, another former Bronxite, the late Mayor Ed Koch. Many accused Myerson of being the late Mayor’s cover up “companion” as accusations and rumors constantly swirled about that he was gay.
The New York Times reported on her death:
Ms. Myerson was one of a select group of American figures to parlay pop culture celebrity into positions of influence in the public square. She led two New York City agencies, Consumer and Cultural Affairs; advised three presidents; championed social causes; and supported powerful political careers. She also sought one for herself, entering a much-watched primary race for the United States Senate. For a long time she seemed rarely out of the news.
The headlines began the night she walked down the runway at the Warner Theater in Atlantic City, a musically talented daughter of a house painter from the Bronx wearing the most coveted crown in the land — an honor she would come to rue as narrowly defining her.
Bess Myerson, a New York house painter’s daughter who was crowned Miss America in 1945 and whose vibrant career as a television personality and consumer affairs activist was sullied by a tawdry municipal scandal involving her lover, has died at 90.
According to public records, she died Dec. 14 in Santa Monica, Calif., her town of residence. Her death was not announced publicly, marking an uncharacteristically obscure end to a life of dazzle and tumult.
A raven-haired, hazel-eyed beauty who stood 5-foot-10, Ms. Myerson was a captivating figure from the moment she was named the first — and still only — Jewish Miss America. Born to immigrant Jews from Russia, she was raised in a Bronx housing project and embodied an up-from-poverty success story that made her an overnight sensation and possibly the best-known Miss America in the contest’s history.
For decades, she enjoyed something close to reverence among a generation of Jews who had lived through the Holocaust and found in her win a symbol of Jewish assimilation and acceptance in an otherwise hostile world.
“In the Jewish community she was the most famous pretty girl since Queen Esther in ancient Persia,” author Susan Dworkin wrote in “Miss America, 1945: Bess Myerson’s Own Story,” a book published in 1987.
Behind the scenes, Ms. Myerson faced a thornier reality. In a time of rampant anti-Semitism, the Miss America pageant director urged her to change her name to make it sound less Jewish; she refused. As a Miss America representative, she found country clubs canceling her visits and corporate sponsorships dropping away. Bess Myerson, a Miss America tarnished by scandal, dies at 90 – Washington Post
NPR writes:
When Bess Myerson borrowed a bathing suit in 1945 to compete in the Miss New York City competition, she could not have known the wild wave she would ride during her life in the public eye.
Before Myerson competed in Atlantic City, N.J., for the title of Miss America, the director of the pageant tried to get her to change her name so it would sound less Jewish. Myerson rejected the advice and kept her name.
“It turned out to be one of the most important decisions I ever made,” she said in Susan Dworkin’s 1987 book, Miss America, 1945: Bess Myerson’s Own Story.
In the book, Myerson says, “Already I was losing my sense of who I was; already I was in a masquerade, marching across stages in bathing suits. Whatever was left of myself in this game, I had to keep, I sensed that. I knew I had to keep my name.”
While touring the country after winning the crown, she encountered “No Jews” signs, and many of the opportunities usually associated with winning the crown dried up. Disappointed at how she had been treated after her pageant win, she accepted an offer from the Anti-Defamation League to speak on the lecture circuit. The title of her speech was: “You Can’t Be Beautiful and Hate.” From Miss America To Tabloid Fodder: Bess Myerson Dies At 90 – NPR
Proposed map of a new streetcar system in The Bronx which would benefit many underserved areas of our borough. Can the streetcar be the link which can help an already overburdened system in our borough and city? Some other routes to better connect the East and West Bronx can be along Fordham Road /Pelham Parkway and Gun Hill Road as well, creating a truly integrated transit experience in The Bronx
A couple of months ago we sat down with Bob Diamond, Chairman of the Brooklyn Historical Railway Association, along with several members of BHRA and Bronxite Richard Garey of the West Bronx. For some time now, Richard and I had been discussing the poor transit options in the West Bronx and the vacuum left behind when the Third Avenue El was ripped, leaving a hole in Morrisania straight up to Fordham forcing millions to make do with buses and transfers leading to longer commutes.
When the Third Avenue El was dismantled, the Bronx had lost over 300,000 people during the burning years but its loss is probably being felt the greatest today now that the population is growing and we are very near our historic high of 1.45 million residents in 1950. Development is rampant in these areas with thousands of affordable housing units being constructed each year yet our transportation network has not kept up with the pace.
Our buses are more crowded than ever and slower, our subway lines have residents packed like sardines and sure the new SB express buses have been introduced in The Bronx and other boroughs but they are just but band-aids on a serious problem.
So the big question is, can the streetcar make a come back in our borough and across the city and make our lives better? After sitting down with the group and pouring over the data it certainly seems like it can, with the right amount of backing from city, state, and federally elected politicians.
Extensive research has been done by Bob Diamond and BHRA showing how cost effective the entire plan is and now, more than ever, there are federal funds to actually achieve these projects.
On a typical rush hour morning in the Bronx, there are a few sounds that are so familiar that it is easy to drown them out. Whether it is the horn of the railroad trains, the rumbling of the elevated subways, or the revving of the buses, these stimuli seem like facts of daily life. However, as unremarkable as these images may seem there is something missing. Few people take the time to figure out what is missing or why. The missing link in our public transportation scene is the streetcar (also known as the trolley). At its apex it was the technological marvel of its time and omnipresent in the Bronx.
The tale of the streetcar begins in the 1830’s. As American cities began to expand, new forms of transportation were needed to transport citizens. Paved roads were a rarity and only heavily trafficked roads warranted the expense of pavement.[1] The main forms of transportation were walking and horse drawn omnibus. Rough road conditions of the era limited horse pulled omnibuses to a pitiful 4 mph.[2] They were also too expensive for most city dwellers.[3]
Fortunately there were some improvements. Innovative thinkers realized that it would be cheaper to lay iron rails on the road instead of paving it over.[4] In November of 1832, the New York and Harlem River Railroad built the world’s first horsecar railway from Prince Street to 14th Street along the Bowery.[5] The horsecar resembled a stagecoach on train tracks pulled by a horse.[6] It was more efficient because the metal wheels on metal rails reduced friction and the smooth rails allowed for 30% faster speeds.[7] Consequently, this allowed residents to commute 2-3 miles away from the city center.[8] New York mayor Walter Browne remarked that the horsecar was “the grandest achievement of man.”[9] This represented an important advancement in the concept of street railways.
Despite the success of the horsecar, it was still limited by its animal power source. Eventually their usefulness declined as cities developed to maximum extent of horsecar lines as Manhattan did in 1870.[10] The final blow to the horsecar came in 1872 with the Great Epizootic.[11] This was a strain of horse flu, which killed thousands of horses severely limiting the horsecar as a form of transportation.
Frank J. Sprague discovered the answer to the propulsion dilemma: electricity. Sprague is a relatively unknown visionary who worked under the famed Thomas Edison.[12] In 1884, Sprague attempted to bring electric technology to New York City. He set up an electric test track in an alley on E 24th street and asked to meet with Jay Gould who controlled the elevated lines.[13] At the time, the els were run using steam locomotives. Gould arrived for the test run but Sprague, perhaps excited, applied power too early creating an electrical malfunction.[14] There was a loud boom and a blinding flash, which severely frightened Gould.[15] Consequently, the scared millionaire refused to use the technology forcing Sprague to find a new venue for his idea. Sprague got his opportunity in 1887 when he won a contract to build a streetcar network in Richmond, Virginia.[16] A successful electric streetcar network had never been implemented anywhere else in the worldIn 1888 he successfully presented his masterpiece to the worldushering in the age of the electric streetcar.[17] By 1902, street railways were almost all electrified, had over 22,500 miles of track, and carried 5.8 billion passengers.[18]
In the Bronx, all streetcar lines were eventually consolidated under the Third Avenue Railway. It started as the Third Avenue Railroad Company in 1853 and originally operated a horsecar line between City Hall and 61st Street.[19] In 1898 it acquired the Union Railway, which had controlled almost all of the streetcar lines in the Bronx and Lower Westchester.[20] The Third Avenue Railroad went into receivership and for a time became part of the Metropolitan Street Railway.[21] The Metropolitan Street Railway was the result of several large mergers instituted by Thomas Fortune Ryan.[22] The company had 3000 streetcars and 300 miles of track.[23] It was so busy it required 10 streetcars per mile! In 1908, it was reorganized and became the Third Avenue Railway. The new company now controlled all the streetcar lines in the Bronx and put 800 new streetcars into service.[24] With this expansive network riders could potentially take the streetcar from Manhattan to Westchester. However, passengers typically used the streetcars for local trips. On long lines passenger loads would turn over several times.[25] This indicated that the streetcar network supplemented faster rail transit such as subways, els, and railroads. The streetcar was one link in a transportation network that included all the major transportation modes of its time. In 1926 the street railway industry had peaked and ridership reached a high of 17.2 billion passengers.[26] By the 1930’s these streetcars had been through both a World War and a depression and were in need of replacement.[27] However, Mayor Fiorello La Guardia viewed the streetcars with disdain and believed buses were more “modern.”[28] The mayor refused to renew Third Ave Railway’s operating franchise without the caveat that they convert their fleet of electric streetcars to diesel buses.[29]Unfortunately, in August 1948 all streetcar lines were converted to buses.[30]
The PCC was the premier model of streetcar and was developed in New York City.[31] An association of 25 electric street railways from around the country formed an organization, Electric Railway Presidents Conference Committee, dedicated to developing the next generation of streetcar.[32] They established a workshop in the 9th Ave trolley depot in Brooklyn with funding supplied by all 25 companies.[33] In a mere 5 year period during the Great Depression, the organization was able to design a modern streamlined streetcar with an improved propulsion and braking system and other ride quality improvements.[34] The first production streetcar PCC 1001 was tested on the streets of Brooklyn in 1936.[35] Ironically, later that year Mayor LaGuardia cut the ceremonial ribbon inaugurating the PCC’s first day of service in Manhattan.[36] Although the mayor disliked the streetcars, the general public loved them. The New York Times even called the PCC “ the greatest improvement in the streetcar since the elimination of the horse.”[37] The PCC’s were so important at their time that government allowed them to be manufactured during World War II.[38]
However, beginning in this period a consortium of fossil fuel interests created National City Lines, an organization whose goal was to replace streetcar lines with busses. The parties to this corporate scheme were not limited to Standard Oil, General Motors, and Firestone Tires.[39] Their aim was to convert streetcar systems to motorized busses and reap the benefits of increased profits.[40] The head of the Electric Railroaders Association, Edwin Quinby, began to sound the alarm as streetcars began to disappear from cities across the country. Following this expose the federal government brought antitrust proceedings against General Motors and others in the U.S v. National City Lines, which resulted in a guilty verdict and small fine of $5000.[41] Bus troubles continued into the 1970’s when New York City led a class action lawsuit against General Motors for monopolizing the bus industry.[42]
However, the growing demand for better public transit provided the foundation for the return of streetcars. A recent flurry of streetcar projects has been prompted by the availability of federal funds following the stimulus package and President Obama’s support.[43] Opportunities are finally arriving in New York. The MTA’s own reinvention commission report recently recommended utilizing light rail to supplement traditional rail lines.[44]
The streetcar can also function as a tourist attraction. It has been immortalized in American pop culture thanks to the entertainment industry in films such as A Streetcar Named Desire and Who Framed Roger Rabbit. This has helped to make the streetcar an entertaining form of transportation, especially in cities that run vintage streetcars. In this way the streetcar is analogous to the famed monorail in Disney World. This can help draw visitors into parts of the city that the usually would not go to. San Francisco utilized this approach to revitalize its waterfront. After an earthquake in 1989, the city tore down the Embarcadero freeway and built a new boulevard complete with vintage streetcars.[47] The line doubled as a tourist attraction and a new commuter resource.
Streetcars also present another advantage over buses, they energy efficient and non-polluting. The contact of the metal wheels on metal rails allows the streetcar to move more efficiently than any bus possibly could. [48] This reduces their operating costs in comparison with busses. Since they run on electricity, they are non-polluting. Historically, residents of New York City have struggled with the effects of harmful diesel emissions, which have caused spikes in asthma rates and other harmful health issues. The replacement of busses with streetcars will remove these emitters from our streets. Streetcars will increase the quality of life for all residents of the Bronx and will continue to make local neighborhoods a better place to live.
Streetcars represent a physical investment in a neighborhood. They have the effect of attract choice riders, those who have cars and don’t need to ride public transportation.[49] Attracting choice riders will help take cars off the road reducing automotive pollution and taking cars off the road. Streetcars give commuters a more pleasant ride than the bus. They have a certain romantic allure that buses do not have.
A more robust public transit will allow our citizens to save money that otherwise would have been spent on automobile maintenance. According to the American Public Transportation Association New Yorkers can save $14,835 annually by switching to public transportation.[50] The streetcar is a vital link in the transportation network.
Despite the benefits of streetcars, New York City has not jumped onto the streetcar bandwagon. Plans for streetcars have been floating around for decades. So far there have been attempts in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Staten Island but none have proved successful so far. In Manhattan, the group Vision 42 has pushed to transform 42nd Street into a car free boulevard to speed up crosstown transit. The 42nd Street crosstown initially had some momentum and was approved by the city council in 1994 but lack of funds derailed the project. [51] In Staten Island, the Staten Island Economic Development Corporation has been promoting light rail as the key to facilitate growth in the borough for over a decade.[52] However, the MTA’s recent capital budget did not include any funding for this project.[53] Finally in Brooklyn, the Brooklyn Historic Railway Association developed a plan to link the transit-starved community of Red Hook with Downtown Brooklyn. However, a DOT study conducted in 2011 stalled the project citing high costs and potentially low ridership. [54]
The common thread in all of these projects is the prohibitive costs. Even this should not stand in the way of streetcar development. Over the years enterprising streetcar groups have developed ways to lower costs and attract more private investment reducing the financial burden on municipal governments and making streetcars cost competitive with their rival Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). Detroit, which has made headlines recently for its financial troubles, is currently building a streetcar line of its own. The streetcar in Detroit is a product of a non-profit organization, M1 Rail, and is the first effort of its kind. The Detroit streetcar will be built and operated by this non-profit.[55] M1 has been successful in leveraging federal funding and private investment to pay for their project.[56] This funding scheme debunks the notion that streetcar lines are too expensive for cities to construct. In addition, the Brooklyn Historic Railway Association has developed a new construction paradigm that has promised to dramatically reduce construction costs. Using this paradigm, a mile of double track streetcar line will only cost $13 million, a fraction of the cost other cities have been paying for the same length. With reduction in costs and the multiple benefits streetcars present an obvious solution to many of the cities transportation woes.
The Brooklyn Historic Railway Association has developed a preliminary streetcar system for the Bronx that will alleviate crowding on public transit and connect the boroughs various landmarks. We have laid out a North – South Route that will connect places like Yankee Stadium to the planned Ice Center at the Kingsbridge armory. It will also serve the West Bronx and Third Avenue Corridor, which currently are only served by a few lonely Metro-North stops. This line will reinvigorate the heart of the Bronx, bringing life back to the neighborhoods surrounding the old courthouse. It will fill a gap left by the Third Ave el. Our East-West route will run along Tremont Ave and link the East Bronx to existing subway lines and provide a link to an underserved community. We believe that we can develop a modern and innovative streetcar at a price that will make it hard to ignore. We believe that the streetcar should be returned to the Bronx
Images:
OmnibusStreetcar New York and Harlem R.R Horsecar (http://www.iridetheharlemline.com/2013/06/21/the-streetcars-of-the-new-york-and-harlem-railroad/) NOTE: Because friction was greatly reduced by running the vehicle on rails, two horses pulling a streetcar, could do the work of 16 horses dragging an Omnibus. The same asymmetrical energy use holds true for today’s urban transportation vehicles…Physics of Efficiency “Fractional Hysteretic Energy Loss” inherent in all pneumatic tire vehicles
Electric Streetcars on the Bronx- Then And Now Scenes
Fordham Rd & Webster Ave
E 180th St
Bruckner Blvd & Tremont Ave
138th St & 3rd Ave
Burnside Ave & University Ave
Tremont Ave & Walton Ave167th St & Grand Concourse with Trolley Underpass
167th Street Trolley Station Today Could easily be re-opened for modern streetcar useNew Orleans Replica Vintage Streetcar http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streetcars_in_New_Orleans#mediaviewer/File:New_Orleans_Streetcars_2009_05.jpg
San Francisco PCC, F Market & Wharves Lines http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F_Market_%26_Wharves#mediaviewer/File:Car_1015_(Illinois_Terminal)_on_Market_Street.jpgPhiladelphia SEPTA Streetcar https://www.flickr.com/photos/studio34/2416404061/
[19]Kramer, Frederick A. Across New York by Trolley: A Pictorial Review of the Third Avenue Railway System in Manhattan, the Bronx and Westchester. New York: Quadrant, 1975. Print. p.5
[42] Ranzal, Edward. “COURT BACKS CITY ON ITS G.M. SUIT; Judge Allows a Class Action by 200 Localities Over Alleged Bus Monopoly.” New York Times 10 Aug. 1973: n. pag. Print.
[43]“The Appeal of Modern Streetcars Continues to Mount, But There Are Obstacles to It Bringing Mobility Gains.” The Transport Politic RSS. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://www.thetransportpolitic.com/2011/10/10/the-appeal-of-modern-streetcars-continues-to-mount-but-there-are-obstacles-to-it-bringing-mobility-gains/>.
[46]“KC Streetcar Sparks Half a Billion In Investment, But Is That Its Main Purpose?” – Next City. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://nextcity.org/daily/entry/kc-streetcar-sparks-half-a-billion-in-investment-is-that-its-main-purpose>.
[47]“San Francisco’s Embarcadero.”Congress for the New Urbanism. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://www.cnu.org/highways/sfembarcadero>.
[48]“Terra Nova: Roads to Rails, and the Streetcar of the Future.”Places Journal. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://placesjournal.org/article/roads-to-rails/>.
[49]“Race, Class, and the Stigma of Riding the Bus in America.”CityLab. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://www.citylab.com/cityfixer/2012/07/race-class-and-stigma-riding-bus-america/2510/>.
[52]“Frustrations, and Desperate Demands for More Public Transportation $$ on Staten Island as MTA Shapes Capital Plan.”SILive.com. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2014/08/a_call_for_more_public_transpo.html>.
[53]“North Shore Bus Rapid Transit and West Shore Light Rail Projects Excluded from MTA’s $32B Capital Plan.” SILive.com. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2014/09/mtas_32b_capital_plan_excludes.html>.
[54]“New Streetcar Plan Reignites Old Red Hook Controversy.” Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/2014/4/29/new-streetcar-plan-reignites-old-red-hook-controversy>.
Proposed map of a new streetcar system in The Bronx which would benefit many underserved areas of our borough. Can the streetcar be the link which can help an already overburdened system in our borough and city? Some other routes to better connect the East and West Bronx can be along Fordham Road /Pelham Parkway and Gun Hill Road as well, creating a truly integrated transit experience in The Bronx
A couple of months ago we sat down with Bob Diamond, Chairman of the Brooklyn Historical Railway Association, along with several members of BHRA and Bronxite Richard Garey of the West Bronx. For some time now, Richard and I had been discussing the poor transit options in the West Bronx and the vacuum left behind when the Third Avenue El was ripped, leaving a hole in Morrisania straight up to Fordham forcing millions to make do with buses and transfers leading to longer commutes.
When the Third Avenue El was dismantled, the Bronx had lost over 300,000 people during the burning years but its loss is probably being felt the greatest today now that the population is growing and we are very near our historic high of 1.45 million residents in 1950. Development is rampant in these areas with thousands of affordable housing units being constructed each year yet our transportation network has not kept up with the pace.
Our buses are more crowded than ever and slower, our subway lines have residents packed like sardines and sure the new SB express buses have been introduced in The Bronx and other boroughs but they are just but band-aids on a serious problem.
So the big question is, can the streetcar make a come back in our borough and across the city and make our lives better? After sitting down with the group and pouring over the data it certainly seems like it can, with the right amount of backing from city, state, and federally elected politicians.
Extensive research has been done by Bob Diamond and BHRA showing how cost effective the entire plan is and now, more than ever, there are federal funds to actually achieve these projects.
On a typical rush hour morning in the Bronx, there are a few sounds that are so familiar that it is easy to drown them out. Whether it is the horn of the railroad trains, the rumbling of the elevated subways, or the revving of the buses, these stimuli seem like facts of daily life. However, as unremarkable as these images may seem there is something missing. Few people take the time to figure out what is missing or why. The missing link in our public transportation scene is the streetcar (also known as the trolley). At its apex it was the technological marvel of its time and omnipresent in the Bronx.
The tale of the streetcar begins in the 1830’s. As American cities began to expand, new forms of transportation were needed to transport citizens. Paved roads were a rarity and only heavily trafficked roads warranted the expense of pavement.[1] The main forms of transportation were walking and horse drawn omnibus. Rough road conditions of the era limited horse pulled omnibuses to a pitiful 4 mph.[2] They were also too expensive for most city dwellers.[3]
Fortunately there were some improvements. Innovative thinkers realized that it would be cheaper to lay iron rails on the road instead of paving it over.[4] In November of 1832, the New York and Harlem River Railroad built the world’s first horsecar railway from Prince Street to 14th Street along the Bowery.[5] The horsecar resembled a stagecoach on train tracks pulled by a horse.[6] It was more efficient because the metal wheels on metal rails reduced friction and the smooth rails allowed for 30% faster speeds.[7] Consequently, this allowed residents to commute 2-3 miles away from the city center.[8] New York mayor Walter Browne remarked that the horsecar was “the grandest achievement of man.”[9] This represented an important advancement in the concept of street railways.
Despite the success of the horsecar, it was still limited by its animal power source. Eventually their usefulness declined as cities developed to maximum extent of horsecar lines as Manhattan did in 1870.[10] The final blow to the horsecar came in 1872 with the Great Epizootic.[11] This was a strain of horse flu, which killed thousands of horses severely limiting the horsecar as a form of transportation.
Frank J. Sprague discovered the answer to the propulsion dilemma: electricity. Sprague is a relatively unknown visionary who worked under the famed Thomas Edison.[12] In 1884, Sprague attempted to bring electric technology to New York City. He set up an electric test track in an alley on E 24th street and asked to meet with Jay Gould who controlled the elevated lines.[13] At the time, the els were run using steam locomotives. Gould arrived for the test run but Sprague, perhaps excited, applied power too early creating an electrical malfunction.[14] There was a loud boom and a blinding flash, which severely frightened Gould.[15] Consequently, the scared millionaire refused to use the technology forcing Sprague to find a new venue for his idea. Sprague got his opportunity in 1887 when he won a contract to build a streetcar network in Richmond, Virginia.[16] A successful electric streetcar network had never been implemented anywhere else in the worldIn 1888 he successfully presented his masterpiece to the worldushering in the age of the electric streetcar.[17] By 1902, street railways were almost all electrified, had over 22,500 miles of track, and carried 5.8 billion passengers.[18]
In the Bronx, all streetcar lines were eventually consolidated under the Third Avenue Railway. It started as the Third Avenue Railroad Company in 1853 and originally operated a horsecar line between City Hall and 61st Street.[19] In 1898 it acquired the Union Railway, which had controlled almost all of the streetcar lines in the Bronx and Lower Westchester.[20] The Third Avenue Railroad went into receivership and for a time became part of the Metropolitan Street Railway.[21] The Metropolitan Street Railway was the result of several large mergers instituted by Thomas Fortune Ryan.[22] The company had 3000 streetcars and 300 miles of track.[23] It was so busy it required 10 streetcars per mile! In 1908, it was reorganized and became the Third Avenue Railway. The new company now controlled all the streetcar lines in the Bronx and put 800 new streetcars into service.[24] With this expansive network riders could potentially take the streetcar from Manhattan to Westchester. However, passengers typically used the streetcars for local trips. On long lines passenger loads would turn over several times.[25] This indicated that the streetcar network supplemented faster rail transit such as subways, els, and railroads. The streetcar was one link in a transportation network that included all the major transportation modes of its time. In 1926 the street railway industry had peaked and ridership reached a high of 17.2 billion passengers.[26] By the 1930’s these streetcars had been through both a World War and a depression and were in need of replacement.[27] However, Mayor Fiorello La Guardia viewed the streetcars with disdain and believed buses were more “modern.”[28] The mayor refused to renew Third Ave Railway’s operating franchise without the caveat that they convert their fleet of electric streetcars to diesel buses.[29]Unfortunately, in August 1948 all streetcar lines were converted to buses.[30]
The PCC was the premier model of streetcar and was developed in New York City.[31] An association of 25 electric street railways from around the country formed an organization, Electric Railway Presidents Conference Committee, dedicated to developing the next generation of streetcar.[32] They established a workshop in the 9th Ave trolley depot in Brooklyn with funding supplied by all 25 companies.[33] In a mere 5 year period during the Great Depression, the organization was able to design a modern streamlined streetcar with an improved propulsion and braking system and other ride quality improvements.[34] The first production streetcar PCC 1001 was tested on the streets of Brooklyn in 1936.[35] Ironically, later that year Mayor LaGuardia cut the ceremonial ribbon inaugurating the PCC’s first day of service in Manhattan.[36] Although the mayor disliked the streetcars, the general public loved them. The New York Times even called the PCC “ the greatest improvement in the streetcar since the elimination of the horse.”[37] The PCC’s were so important at their time that government allowed them to be manufactured during World War II.[38]
However, beginning in this period a consortium of fossil fuel interests created National City Lines, an organization whose goal was to replace streetcar lines with busses. The parties to this corporate scheme were not limited to Standard Oil, General Motors, and Firestone Tires.[39] Their aim was to convert streetcar systems to motorized busses and reap the benefits of increased profits.[40] The head of the Electric Railroaders Association, Edwin Quinby, began to sound the alarm as streetcars began to disappear from cities across the country. Following this expose the federal government brought antitrust proceedings against General Motors and others in the U.S v. National City Lines, which resulted in a guilty verdict and small fine of $5000.[41] Bus troubles continued into the 1970’s when New York City led a class action lawsuit against General Motors for monopolizing the bus industry.[42]
However, the growing demand for better public transit provided the foundation for the return of streetcars. A recent flurry of streetcar projects has been prompted by the availability of federal funds following the stimulus package and President Obama’s support.[43] Opportunities are finally arriving in New York. The MTA’s own reinvention commission report recently recommended utilizing light rail to supplement traditional rail lines.[44]
The streetcar can also function as a tourist attraction. It has been immortalized in American pop culture thanks to the entertainment industry in films such as A Streetcar Named Desire and Who Framed Roger Rabbit. This has helped to make the streetcar an entertaining form of transportation, especially in cities that run vintage streetcars. In this way the streetcar is analogous to the famed monorail in Disney World. This can help draw visitors into parts of the city that the usually would not go to. San Francisco utilized this approach to revitalize its waterfront. After an earthquake in 1989, the city tore down the Embarcadero freeway and built a new boulevard complete with vintage streetcars.[47] The line doubled as a tourist attraction and a new commuter resource.
Streetcars also present another advantage over buses, they energy efficient and non-polluting. The contact of the metal wheels on metal rails allows the streetcar to move more efficiently than any bus possibly could. [48] This reduces their operating costs in comparison with busses. Since they run on electricity, they are non-polluting. Historically, residents of New York City have struggled with the effects of harmful diesel emissions, which have caused spikes in asthma rates and other harmful health issues. The replacement of busses with streetcars will remove these emitters from our streets. Streetcars will increase the quality of life for all residents of the Bronx and will continue to make local neighborhoods a better place to live.
Streetcars represent a physical investment in a neighborhood. They have the effect of attract choice riders, those who have cars and don’t need to ride public transportation.[49] Attracting choice riders will help take cars off the road reducing automotive pollution and taking cars off the road. Streetcars give commuters a more pleasant ride than the bus. They have a certain romantic allure that buses do not have.
A more robust public transit will allow our citizens to save money that otherwise would have been spent on automobile maintenance. According to the American Public Transportation Association New Yorkers can save $14,835 annually by switching to public transportation.[50] The streetcar is a vital link in the transportation network.
Despite the benefits of streetcars, New York City has not jumped onto the streetcar bandwagon. Plans for streetcars have been floating around for decades. So far there have been attempts in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Staten Island but none have proved successful so far. In Manhattan, the group Vision 42 has pushed to transform 42nd Street into a car free boulevard to speed up crosstown transit. The 42nd Street crosstown initially had some momentum and was approved by the city council in 1994 but lack of funds derailed the project. [51] In Staten Island, the Staten Island Economic Development Corporation has been promoting light rail as the key to facilitate growth in the borough for over a decade.[52] However, the MTA’s recent capital budget did not include any funding for this project.[53] Finally in Brooklyn, the Brooklyn Historic Railway Association developed a plan to link the transit-starved community of Red Hook with Downtown Brooklyn. However, a DOT study conducted in 2011 stalled the project citing high costs and potentially low ridership. [54]
The common thread in all of these projects is the prohibitive costs. Even this should not stand in the way of streetcar development. Over the years enterprising streetcar groups have developed ways to lower costs and attract more private investment reducing the financial burden on municipal governments and making streetcars cost competitive with their rival Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). Detroit, which has made headlines recently for its financial troubles, is currently building a streetcar line of its own. The streetcar in Detroit is a product of a non-profit organization, M1 Rail, and is the first effort of its kind. The Detroit streetcar will be built and operated by this non-profit.[55] M1 has been successful in leveraging federal funding and private investment to pay for their project.[56] This funding scheme debunks the notion that streetcar lines are too expensive for cities to construct. In addition, the Brooklyn Historic Railway Association has developed a new construction paradigm that has promised to dramatically reduce construction costs. Using this paradigm, a mile of double track streetcar line will only cost $13 million, a fraction of the cost other cities have been paying for the same length. With reduction in costs and the multiple benefits streetcars present an obvious solution to many of the cities transportation woes.
The Brooklyn Historic Railway Association has developed a preliminary streetcar system for the Bronx that will alleviate crowding on public transit and connect the boroughs various landmarks. We have laid out a North – South Route that will connect places like Yankee Stadium to the planned Ice Center at the Kingsbridge armory. It will also serve the West Bronx and Third Avenue Corridor, which currently are only served by a few lonely Metro-North stops. This line will reinvigorate the heart of the Bronx, bringing life back to the neighborhoods surrounding the old courthouse. It will fill a gap left by the Third Ave el. Our East-West route will run along Tremont Ave and link the East Bronx to existing subway lines and provide a link to an underserved community. We believe that we can develop a modern and innovative streetcar at a price that will make it hard to ignore. We believe that the streetcar should be returned to the Bronx
Images:
OmnibusStreetcar New York and Harlem R.R Horsecar (http://www.iridetheharlemline.com/2013/06/21/the-streetcars-of-the-new-york-and-harlem-railroad/) NOTE: Because friction was greatly reduced by running the vehicle on rails, two horses pulling a streetcar, could do the work of 16 horses dragging an Omnibus. The same asymmetrical energy use holds true for today’s urban transportation vehicles…Physics of Efficiency “Fractional Hysteretic Energy Loss” inherent in all pneumatic tire vehicles
Electric Streetcars on the Bronx- Then And Now Scenes
Fordham Rd & Webster Ave
E 180th St
Bruckner Blvd & Tremont Ave
138th St & 3rd Ave
Burnside Ave & University Ave
Tremont Ave & Walton Ave167th St & Grand Concourse with Trolley Underpass
167th Street Trolley Station Today Could easily be re-opened for modern streetcar useNew Orleans Replica Vintage Streetcar http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streetcars_in_New_Orleans#mediaviewer/File:New_Orleans_Streetcars_2009_05.jpg
San Francisco PCC, F Market & Wharves Lines http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F_Market_%26_Wharves#mediaviewer/File:Car_1015_(Illinois_Terminal)_on_Market_Street.jpgPhiladelphia SEPTA Streetcar https://www.flickr.com/photos/studio34/2416404061/
[19]Kramer, Frederick A. Across New York by Trolley: A Pictorial Review of the Third Avenue Railway System in Manhattan, the Bronx and Westchester. New York: Quadrant, 1975. Print. p.5
[42] Ranzal, Edward. “COURT BACKS CITY ON ITS G.M. SUIT; Judge Allows a Class Action by 200 Localities Over Alleged Bus Monopoly.” New York Times 10 Aug. 1973: n. pag. Print.
[43]“The Appeal of Modern Streetcars Continues to Mount, But There Are Obstacles to It Bringing Mobility Gains.” The Transport Politic RSS. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://www.thetransportpolitic.com/2011/10/10/the-appeal-of-modern-streetcars-continues-to-mount-but-there-are-obstacles-to-it-bringing-mobility-gains/>.
[46]“KC Streetcar Sparks Half a Billion In Investment, But Is That Its Main Purpose?” – Next City. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://nextcity.org/daily/entry/kc-streetcar-sparks-half-a-billion-in-investment-is-that-its-main-purpose>.
[47]“San Francisco’s Embarcadero.”Congress for the New Urbanism. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://www.cnu.org/highways/sfembarcadero>.
[48]“Terra Nova: Roads to Rails, and the Streetcar of the Future.”Places Journal. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://placesjournal.org/article/roads-to-rails/>.
[49]“Race, Class, and the Stigma of Riding the Bus in America.”CityLab. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://www.citylab.com/cityfixer/2012/07/race-class-and-stigma-riding-bus-america/2510/>.
[52]“Frustrations, and Desperate Demands for More Public Transportation $$ on Staten Island as MTA Shapes Capital Plan.”SILive.com. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2014/08/a_call_for_more_public_transpo.html>.
[53]“North Shore Bus Rapid Transit and West Shore Light Rail Projects Excluded from MTA’s $32B Capital Plan.” SILive.com. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2014/09/mtas_32b_capital_plan_excludes.html>.
[54]“New Streetcar Plan Reignites Old Red Hook Controversy.” Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Web. 10 Dec. 2014. <http://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/2014/4/29/new-streetcar-plan-reignites-old-red-hook-controversy>.
After much voting (and folks arguing online on who the best neighborhood would be) City Island is Curbed’s Neighborhood of the Year!
Congratulations to The Bronx and all the Clamdiggers and Musselsuckers for coming out and voting. It’s not much but it gives our community and borough some bragging rights since Curbed, after all, is the premier real estate blog in NYC.
After much voting (and folks arguing online on who the best neighborhood would be) City Island is Curbed’s Neighborhood of the Year!
Congratulations to The Bronx and all the Clamdiggers and Musselsuckers for coming out and voting. It’s not much but it gives our community and borough some bragging rights since Curbed, after all, is the premier real estate blog in NYC.
Jessica Alba turns 34 on Tuesday, and we’re celebrating with a look back at her best bikini pictures. Jessica’s been no stranger to the two-piece and looks equally as fantastic in a swimsuit on screen as she does while lounging on the beach.
Wear it dry, and you’ve got your standard dusting of color—classic and predictable (in a good way). But wet! Wearing it wet opens a whole new world of opportunity. “What you’re doing is bringing out the pigmented nature of the shadow,” makeup artist Vincent Oquendo says. “Whenever I wet an eye shadow, it’s when I really want it to pop—but it really has to be a special kind of product to be able to blend after it sets. Because a lot of the times when it sets, you get streaking.” Nobody wants that. In order to avoid any wet shadow mishaps, follow these guidelines:
Product
Source: FameFlynet
First, go with the obvious: any eye shadow labeled wet-to-dry. The Nars Dual-Intensity line is the standout—the singles come in 12 different shimmery shades, and there’s a corresponding brush (then there’s the newly released Dual Intensity Blush line, which was all over Fashion Week—but that’s a product for another post). Burberry also makes a few very versatile shades specifically for this in their Wet & Dry Silk Shadows. And the technique-specific eye shadow category isn’t just a ploy to get you to buy more product. “You can’t just use any eye shadow for this,” Vincent says. “Certain ones will harden up on top and become unusable because they’re not made for this.”
Baked shadows are also fair game—we’re fans of Laura Mercier’s Baked Eye Colour Wet/Dry and Lorac’s Starry-Eyed Baked Eye Shadow Trio in particular.
For more advanced players, Vincent suggests moving on to straight pigment (MAC or even OCC’s Pure Cosmetic Pigments). With the added moisture, they’ll become easier to layer with other products. For a look with more depth, try using a cream shadow as a based before swiping with a wet powder shadow. “It’s like insurance,” Vincent says. “You’re doubling your wearability.”
Brush
This all depends on exactly what you want to do. “Mind the resistance,” Vincent says, particularly if you’re looking for uniform color across the lid. “I tend to recommend a blender brush, which is the brush that looks like a feather duster. If you do it with a stiff brush, you’re defeating yourself before you even start. The joy of a wet-to-dry is you have to get it right amount of product loaded up, and then it blends itself. If the brush is too stiff, it will leave the shadow streaky and then much harder to control.”
However, if tightlining or waterlining is in the cards, a much thinner brush is required accordingly.
Liquid
Do not, repeat, do not put eye drops, water, or any other sort of liquid directly on your eye shadow. This’ll screw up your product for later use. “Lately, I’ve been wetting the brush with the Glossier Soothing Face Mist, but Evian Mineral Water Spray is good for sensitive eyes,” Vincent says. If the top of your powder does get a little hardened by wet application, there’s a trick to remove it: Get a clean mascara spoolie and “exfoliate” your compact, Vincent recommends. This won’t crack the compact and will make it ready to go once more.
Jessica Alba turns 34 on Tuesday, and we’re celebrating with a look back at her best bikini pictures. Jessica’s been no stranger to the two-piece and looks equally as fantastic in a swimsuit on screen as she does while lounging on the beach.
Wear it dry, and you’ve got your standard dusting of color—classic and predictable (in a good way). But wet! Wearing it wet opens a whole new world of opportunity. “What you’re doing is bringing out the pigmented nature of the shadow,” makeup artist Vincent Oquendo says. “Whenever I wet an eye shadow, it’s when I really want it to pop—but it really has to be a special kind of product to be able to blend after it sets. Because a lot of the times when it sets, you get streaking.” Nobody wants that. In order to avoid any wet shadow mishaps, follow these guidelines:
Product
Source: FameFlynet
First, go with the obvious: any eye shadow labeled wet-to-dry. The Nars Dual-Intensity line is the standout—the singles come in 12 different shimmery shades, and there’s a corresponding brush (then there’s the newly released Dual Intensity Blush line, which was all over Fashion Week—but that’s a product for another post). Burberry also makes a few very versatile shades specifically for this in their Wet & Dry Silk Shadows. And the technique-specific eye shadow category isn’t just a ploy to get you to buy more product. “You can’t just use any eye shadow for this,” Vincent says. “Certain ones will harden up on top and become unusable because they’re not made for this.”
Baked shadows are also fair game—we’re fans of Laura Mercier’s Baked Eye Colour Wet/Dry and Lorac’s Starry-Eyed Baked Eye Shadow Trio in particular.
For more advanced players, Vincent suggests moving on to straight pigment (MAC or even OCC’s Pure Cosmetic Pigments). With the added moisture, they’ll become easier to layer with other products. For a look with more depth, try using a cream shadow as a based before swiping with a wet powder shadow. “It’s like insurance,” Vincent says. “You’re doubling your wearability.”
Brush
This all depends on exactly what you want to do. “Mind the resistance,” Vincent says, particularly if you’re looking for uniform color across the lid. “I tend to recommend a blender brush, which is the brush that looks like a feather duster. If you do it with a stiff brush, you’re defeating yourself before you even start. The joy of a wet-to-dry is you have to get it right amount of product loaded up, and then it blends itself. If the brush is too stiff, it will leave the shadow streaky and then much harder to control.”
However, if tightlining or waterlining is in the cards, a much thinner brush is required accordingly.
Liquid
Do not, repeat, do not put eye drops, water, or any other sort of liquid directly on your eye shadow. This’ll screw up your product for later use. “Lately, I’ve been wetting the brush with the Glossier Soothing Face Mist, but Evian Mineral Water Spray is good for sensitive eyes,” Vincent says. If the top of your powder does get a little hardened by wet application, there’s a trick to remove it: Get a clean mascara spoolie and “exfoliate” your compact, Vincent recommends. This won’t crack the compact and will make it ready to go once more.
City Island easily beat out Crown Heights in Brooklyn for Curbed Cup 2014 Neighborhood of The Year and now we’ve made it to the final rounds and are up against Long Island City.
Time for Bronxites to VOTE VOTE VOTE and make sure City Island wins as neighborhood of the year!
The New York Botanical Garden, along with Columbia University and local botánicas — long associated with Santeria and other similar religions from the Caribbean, teamed up together to explore how a botánica can function as a health care option in The Bronx.
Feet in 2 Worlds recently featured an article on the subject and briefly spoke about the subject:
A spiritual celebration at a South Bronx botanica. Photo: Camila Osorio
“It’s late on a July evening. About a hundred people are crowded into a botánica in the South Bronx. Shelves along the walls are filled with potions and dry herbs to cure problems ranging from kidney disease to “how to get your marriage to work.” A group of drummers leads the crowd in songs that celebrate Anaisa, the Dominican name for Santa Ana, Mary’s mother in the story of Jesus.
People in the store dance, drink beer, and eat empanadas.
In one corner there’s a small altar with a statue of Anaisa holding a snake around her neck. It’s surrounded by burning candles and offerings of tobacco. There’s also a statue of Buddha that greets customers at the store’s entrance. A large Star of David decorates the ceiling.
“What’s interesting about botánicas is that they pick up all the elements of the religious practices by the community,” says Juan Carlos Bisonó, owner of the Botánica San Elías.
Many Latinos, the uninsured as well as those with insurance, use botanicas as an alternative means to address emotional and physical health problems.
“Here,” he says, “we follow the 21 Division.” It’s a religion from the Dominican Republic that includes saints not acknowledged by the Catholic Church. “When slaves were brought to America, they couldn’t follow their own religions, and they had to use the figurines of Catholic saints. But behind those deities, they adored others. For example, in the 21 Division we call [Mary’s mother] Anaisa,” says Bisonó.”
Changó, on the left, is an important saint in Santería, a religious practice common in the Dominican Republic, Cuba, and parts of Haiti. San Lázaro, on the right, another important saint in the Dominican Republic, receives offerings of money in exchange for favors at this botanica. Photo: Camila Osorio
The article also goes on to quote Ina Vandebroek, PhD, an ethnomedical researcher at NYBG in saying:
“The botanicas don’t only serve health, but people’s well being,” explains Ina Vandebroek, an ethnobotanist at the New York Botanical Garden who has studied botánicas for years. “They correspond well with the definition offered by the World Health Organization that defines health not only as the state where there is absence of disease, but as the state where there is complete physical, emotional and social wellbeing. And that’s what botánicas do,” she says.
Vandebroek has found that botanicas in New York City carry plants recommended for thousands of conditions, most of them emotional — people who feel lonely and want to find a partner, or people who feel they have bad luck at work.
In her research, Vandebroek also discovered that many women go to botanicas to cure infertility problems, even though there is very little scientific evidence to support the effectiveness of the remedies.
Since botanicas are considered vendors of religious articles, very few doctors or scientists take them seriously. Vandebroek has created a training workshop for doctors who are concerned about the medical treatment some of their patients find in botanicas.
“I talk to them about the plants, talk to them about toxicity, use of plants, effects and cultural uses of plants. And I get positive reactions from doctors. I tell them, ‘It doesn’t matter what you and I believe. What matters is what the patient believes’,” she said.”
During the research, they concluded:
“Cultural ties, strong beliefs and faith appear to be the primary reason why people access the botánica. Many of the clients have been raised around and are familiar with traditional medicine. The botánica is a place where they can find religious products and inaccessible plants, while receiving help and advice from community members.
It is important that conventional health care providers understand this approach to health, especially due to disparities in the health care people receive according to ethnicity and income level. An enhanced understanding of traditional medicine can lead to better patient-provider communication, as well as a more culturally sensitive and appropriate approach to health care.”
Arbor House, one of the many “affordable” housing developments constructed throughout The Bronx.
Last week, we received notice that our borough was the least affordable rental market in the country. Many jumped the bandwagon with sensationalist headlines declaring The Bronx as the least affordable rental market in the nation without actually delving into how this came to be.
It’s definitely not because our “rent is too damn high,” but due to the fact that many of our residents barely earn enough to survive.
We already heard earlier this year that we were the most rent burdened borough in NYC but now CNN Money reports, based on data collected from Realty Trac, that Bronxites on average pay 67.57% of their incomes towards rent. That leaves just over 30% to cover for utilities, food, clothing, and other basic necessities.
To illustrate just how bad the situation is in our borough, Baltimore is the second most expensive rental market as per median income in the country with 49.64% of their incomes going towards rent. That places the Bronx almost 20% more burdened. In fact from the top ten list, The Bronx is the undisputed leader since the rest of the list ranges from Los Angeles at 41.95% to Philadelphia at 47.40%.
Many financial guidelines indicate that your rent should never be more than 30% of your income but how are we to achieve that in The Bronx with low paying jobs?
We have a Borough President touting development and a “New” Bronx (a monocker which is considered an insult by many and seen as an attempt to whitewash and re-brand our borough) and is supposedly about job creation but the majority of the jobs he’s been able to produce are low wage jobs in retail and promoting companies like FreshDirect which do not pay fair, living wages.
Instead of working harder at educating our current workforce and provide them with the necessary tools to get better paying jobs, our politicians are focusing too heavily on the retail sector for jobs. Jobs which are not living wage jobs and cannot help the average Bronx family survive.
All the new malls built in the borough creating “jobs” isn’t going to cut it. In 2011, a study reported that the average retail salary in The Bronx was $8 an hour. These jobs were mostly also reported to be part-time and only 3 out of 10 received health insurance (although the later may have changed with the Affordable Healthcare Act).
Such jobs are good for our youth but not good enough for a head of household struggling to make ends meet.
We have thousands of apartments which have been constructed over the last decade and thousands more to come that are listed as “affordable” but they are generally unaffordable to those who live here thus, in most part, will not help alleviate the situation for the average Bronxite but for others across the city instead.
This cycle will continue to push our hardworking residents further and further away from the city’s center and eventually outside of NYC.
He have a housing crisis in the Bronx that cannot simply be fixed or patched up by affordable housing if we are not also uplifting the economic status of our residents.
The Bronx has always been a borough of the working class poor and middle class but that demographic will erode of nothing is done about it.
As Geoffery Mullings, Editor-in-Chief of The Blinker wrote:
“Breaking the ring of despair in the Bronx means ending our tolerance of social stagnation, with tenants surviving each month by a thread. Having a track to socioeconomic success is what Bronxites deserve, especially in the face of such socially engineered stagnation and reasons to despair.”
