Sold earlier this year for $19 million, the Bronx General Post Office is on its way to a new life as new owners Youngwoo & Associates have filed plans to begin redevelopment of the landmarked property. Retail, office spaces, restaurants and rooftop terraces appear to be on their way for the iconic building.
According to the plans filed, The Bronx General Post office will be developed (if approved by Department of Buildings) not too far off as Welcome2TheBronx envisioned the space would be.
According to the filing, around 7,500 square feet of space will be added to the existing 143,000 square feet of net commercial space.
Beyond that, the post office’s garage would be rehabbed to fit 54 parking spaces. Retail uses would occupy the first floor, cellar, and basement (with enough space to accommodate up to 1,700 people). The first floor would also have two restaurant spaces (rated for a maximum occupancy of 360 people), and a smaller area retained by the post office.
Above that would sit offices on the second through fourth floors (rated for occupancy by up to 777 people in total). And then there would be another “restaurant & lounge” on the penthouse level for up to 285 people, with another 265 on a rooftop terrace.
As you can see, the configuration is pretty much how we outlined it earlier this year in February utilizing the first and lower levels as retail and restaurants, the second through fourth floors as office space and the rooftop “penthouse” as a restaurant and rooftop terrace.
It’s rather exciting to see plans that will maximize the building to its fullest potential and bring more people than ever into a beloved structure. The post office will remain in the lobby ( the lobby is landmarked so it will have to be restored to its original grandeur). Back in September, Adam Zucker, Director of Business Development at YWA said:
“Not only will the exterior once again shine gloriously but the firms will also preserve and restore the landmarked lobby, including the 13 Ben Shahn murals. “We are firmly committed to honoring the building’s historic legacy and working with the USPS to ensure that the interior landmarked lobby, including “Resources of America”—the 13 murals created by the great American artists, Ben Shahn and Bernarnda Bryson—are honored, restored to their original glory and preserved for all to enjoy” said Mr. Zucker.”
Now we wait for the plans to be approved and see what exactly YWA has in store for the building.
This Thursday the Bronx Documentary Center presents:
‘Which Way Home’ Screening & Panel discussion
Thur. Dec.18, 7:30pm
Follow several unaccompanied child migrants as they journey through Mexico en route to the U.S. on a freight train they call “The Beast.”
Panel discussion will follow the screening with:
Diana Pérez-Ramírez, community organizer and member of the Puente Human Rights Movement, Michele Lampach, Esq. Executive Director of UnLocal, Inc.., and leads the Grassroots Immigrant Collaborative Project and Zoe Colon, Executive Director of the Hispanic Resource Center of Larchmont / Mamaroneck (HRC).
The Bronx Documentary Center is located at:
614 Courtlandt Avenue at 151st Street.
24 hour parking is available next door and it is also easily accessible by public transportation on the 2 and 5 express trains at 3rd Ave and 149th Street and the 2, 4, 15, 55 19, 44, SB44 buses.
I’m really no longer shocked that our borough president simply does not understand the word gentrification and what it means. It’s not the first time he’s tried to redefine the word.
According to the above article, CityLimits writes on how our BP doesn’t see gentrification for what it is:
Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. doesn’t see it that way.
For him, new development—even of subsidized housing open only to people with relatively high incomes—is about retaining an incumbent population of professionals in the Bronx who now live in apartments that are cheaper than they need because they lack other options in the borough.
And it’s also about slapping “anarchists” around. At least that’s how Diaz pitched it to a room of housing advocates and developers at the New York Housing Conference’s annual symposium on Wednesday.
Wait what? So professional Bronxites who are enjoying relatively low rents don’t belong in those apartments? Last I checked The Bronx is also replete with plenty of housing options for professionals in various neighborhoods like Riverdale, Morris Park, Parkchester, Fordham, The Grand Concourse and well pretty much anywhere in The Bronx.
Let’s get something clear. The Bronx has room for everyone but this kind of reckless dialogue by our BP opens our borough to development that will lead to displacement. He really just doesn’t seem to get it. In the above article Diaz talks about when folks are brought to the table they say nothing but that’s just the problem, the community is rarely if NEVER brought to the proverbial table.
I’m all for development in The Bronx and making sure that it remains a place for ALL INCOME LEVELS without displacement, however, our BP would rather insult the people who are fighting for their lives, fighting for the right to live without having to pay rents that make our borough the most overburdened in the city. People who are working on solutions and working together to try and change the very policies which have been destroying communities across our city and country.
Mr Borough President, have you not seen what was done to Harlem? What’s being done to El Barrio? What was done to Williamsburg? What happened in Chelsea?
No one wants to keep our beautiful Bronx in the 1990s. The Bronx is beautiful and we have done quite well in changing things around but change cannot happen at the expense of those that are here and have remained here for so long.
Why not require developers to build or fund centers where current residents can get the necessary skills and know-how to be able to get better paying jobs? Why are we not focusing on uplifting our residents but instead trying to be a copycat borough and trying to emulate Brooklyn? Brooklyn is a carcass of what it used to be. Once upon a time The Bronx and Brooklyn were very similar. Both had neighborhoods for all income levels. Now Brooklyn has become a husk of its former self and the poor keep being pushed out further and further away.
Affordable housing, unfortunately isn’t the sole and only answer. Heck, it’s not even the answer since the affordability protections of such housing expires. What about the fact that we’re the most rent-burdened borough? How will your definition of gentrification help that out?
Mr Borough President, I highly recommend you red the following, perhaps, just perhaps it will help you understand what you are pushing for.
Gentrification is a general term for the arrival of wealthier people in an existing urban district, a related increase in rents and property values, and changes in the district’s character and culture. The term is often used negatively, suggesting the displacement of poor communities by rich outsiders. But the effects of gentrification are complex and contradictory, and its real impact varies.
Many aspects of the gentrification process are desirable. Who wouldn’t want to see reduced crime, new investment in buildings and infrastructure, and increased economic activity in their neighborhoods? Unfortunately, the benefits of these changes are often enjoyed disproportionately by the new arrivals, while the established residents find themselves economically and socially marginalized.
Gentrification has been the cause of painful conflict in many American cities, often along racial and economic fault lines. Neighborhood change is often viewed as a miscarriage of social justice, in which wealthy, usually white, newcomers are congratulated for “improving” a neighborhood whose poor, minority residents are displaced by skyrocketing rents and economic change.
Although there is not a clear-cut technical definition of gentrification, it is characterized by several changes.
Demographics: An increase in median income, a decline in the proportion of racial minorities, and a reduction in household size, as low-income families are replaced by young singles and couples.
Real Estate Markets: Large increases in rents and home prices, increases in the number of evictions, conversion of rental units to ownership (condos) and new development of luxury housing.
Land Use: A decline in industrial uses, an increase in office or multimedia uses, the development of live-work “lofts” and high-end housing, retail, and restaurants.
Culture and Character: New ideas about what is desirable and attractive, including standards (either informal or legal) for architecture, landscaping, public behavior, noise, and nuisance.
How does it happen?
America’s renewed interest in city life has put a premium on urban neighborhoods, few of which have been built since World War II. If people are flocking to new jobs in a region where housing is scarce, pressure builds on areas once considered undesirable.
Gentrification tends to occur in districts with particular qualities that make them desirable and ripe for change. The convenience, diversity, and vitality of urban neighborhoods are major draws, as is the availability of cheap housing, especially if the buildings are distinctive and appealing. Old houses or industrial buildings often attract people looking for “fixer-uppers” as investment opportunities.
Gentrification works by accretion — gathering momentum like a snowball. Few people are willing to move into an unfamiliar neighborhood across class and racial lines¹. Once a few familiar faces are present, more people are willing to make the move. Word travels that an attractive neighborhood has been “discovered” and the pace of change accelerates rapidly.
Consequences of Gentrification
In certain respects, a neighborhood that is gentrified can become a “victim of its own success.” The upward spiral of desirability and increasing rents and property values often erodes the very qualities that began attracting new people in the first place. When success comes to a neighborhood, it does not always come to its established residents, and the displacement of that community is gentrification’s most troubling effect.
No one is more vulnerable to the effects of gentrification than renters. When prices go up, tenants are pushed out, whether through natural turnover, rent hikes, or evictions. When buildings are sold, buyers often evict the existing tenants to move in themselves, combine several units, or bring in new tenants at a higher rate. When residents own their homes, they are less vulnerable, and may opt to “cash them in” and move elsewhere. Their options may be limited if there is a regional housing shortage, however, and cash does not always compensate for less tangible losses.
The economic effects of gentrification vary widely, but the arrival of new investment, new spending power, and a new tax base usually result in significant increased economic activity. Rehabilitation, housing development, new shops and restaurants, and new, higher-wage jobs are often part of the picture. Previous residents may benefit from some of this development, particularly in the form of service sector and construction jobs, but much of it may be out of reach to all but the well-educated newcomers. Some local economic activity may also be forced out — either by rising rents or shifting sensibilities. Industrial activities that employ local workers may be viewed as a nuisance or environmental hazard by new arrivals. Local shops may lose their leases under pressure from posh boutiques and restaurants.
Physical changes also accompany gentrification. Older buildings are rehabilitated and new construction occurs. Public improvements — to streets, parks, and infrastructure — may accompany government revitalization efforts or occur as new residents organize to demand public services. New arrivals often push hard to improve the district aesthetically, and may codify new standards through design guidelines, historic preservation legislation, and the use of blight and nuisance laws.
The social, economic, and physical impacts of gentrification often result in serious political conflict, exacerbated by differences in race, class, and culture. Earlier residents may feel embattled, ignored, and excluded from their own communities. New arrivals are often mystified by accusations that their efforts to improve local conditions are perceived as hostile or even racist.
Change — in fortunes, in populations, in the physical fabric of communities — is an abiding feature of urban life. But change nearly always involves winners and losers, and low-income people are rarely the winners. The effects of gentrification vary widely with the particular local circumstances. Residents, community development corporations, and city governments across the country are struggling to manage these inevitable changes to create a win-win situation for everyone involved.
You say that people aren’t coming up with visions but you would know that if you actually listened to the people and go to the meetings where people are coming up with solutions, talking about the problems. Be the Bronx Borough President that ushers in a renaissance for its people not the BP that ushers in gentrification and destroys what The Bronx has been for so many people.
The following is an opinion piece syndicated from The New York Association of Grocery Stores (NYAGS):
This month , Empire State Development will decide whether or not to grant Fresh Direct a $10 Million-dollar loan to assist in its move from Queens to the Bronx. This move will devastate small businesses and bring an extremely negative environmental impact to New Yorkers living in the area.
The New York Association of Grocery Stores (NYAGS) is a coalition of local New York City grocers fighting to stay alive as special interest and big chains continue to encroach on the businesses our families have maintained for decades.
During this holiday season, we at NYAGS hope New Yorkers and especially the ESD will consider the importance of traditional small business in New York City. That’s why we’ve put together the following tale based on Frank Capra’s “Its A Wonderful Life” to illustrate the importance of New York City’s small business and what life could be like if the ESD follows though with their plan.
Every family-owned small business in New York City brings value, growth and endless possibilities for the hard working people that run them. They train young people how to work for a living, they feed families, they bring personal and human investment to our neighborhoods. From our businesses and families to yours – we at NYAGS wish you very happy holidays and a promising and successful new year.
A Not So Wonderful Life
Voice From Above: Hello Joseph. Trouble?
Joseph: Looks like we’ll have to send someone down. A lot of people asking for help now that Empire State Development is set to vote on FreshDirect’s government subsidized relocation from Queens to the South Bronx.
Voice From Above: ESD and FreshDirect? Ah yes the $10 million loan. We’ll have to send someone down immediately. We’ll send for Clarence.
Clarence: You sent for me, Sir?
Voice From Above: Yes Clarence. A group down on Earth needs our help.
Clarence: Are they sick?
Voice From Above: No just…misguided. Misinformed. Empire State Development is soon going to vote on giving a considerable sum of money to FreshDirect without conducting a recent environmental impact statement. You see Clarence, FreshDirect submitted one that was 22 years old and meant for an entirely different project.
Clarence: Dear. dear.
Voice From Above: You will get acquainted with Empire State Development and if you do a good job with ESD…well you know…
Clarence: I’ve come to save you so you don’t go through with it.
ESD: Go through with what?
Clarence: Why giving all those millions of dollars to FreshDirect. You think giving FreshDirect all that money would make people happy? Wait a minute. That’s an idea. That’ll do it alright. ESD, I am going to grant you your wish. Let’s see what happens after you vote and give FreshDirect that $10 million loan package.
ESD: What’s happening here? Why are there so many trucks on the streets. Why, I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many trucks on the streets of New York. And why are the sidewalks empty? Empty! This is the city that never sleeps. Is everybody sleeping? Except for the truck drivers apparently? Must be really early. Or really late. (Cough Cough). Only trucks. There are so many trucks. What’s with all the trucks?
Clarence: Well you see ESD, when you voted to give FreshDirect all that money to set up its 500,00 square foot facility in the Bronx, the company needed…more trucks. Even more trucks than it had when it was located in Queens. Now instead of tying up traffic in Queens and its surrounding areas, taking away from local businesses in and around the city, and contributing to the air pollution in just about every corner of New York, FreshDirect received even more financial incentive to do all that – and then some, except in a different borough. If that does’t get you feeling all warm, fuzzy…and weezy, then I don’t know what does.
ESD: (Cough cough) I can’t stop coughing. What’s going on here? And my eyes are watering a flood. What’s going on?
Clarence: Oh, ESD. FreshDirect is a business which relies on a “hybrid,” albeit, diesel-spewing fleet of high emissions vehicles, operating out of a low-income neighborhood in order to make thousands of deliveries to high-income neighborhoods. Of course, this is New York where idling traffic and congestion are a fact of life. Add to that all those additional FreshDirect trucks that make more than a thousand trips per day, and no matter how “green” FreshDirect claims its fleet is, the fact is that most of the other vehicles idling and emitting fumes are not.
The company, by the way, was still five years away from an all electric fleet when you gave them all that money. But it must be a relief to know that it had purchased its first ten electric trucks already.
Oh and another thing: the promise of an all electric fleet was, as you know, a non-binding memorandum for the project.
ESD: Just wait a minute, bub! FreshDirect is a corporation that goes against the corporation grain, using words like “community,” “green,” “environmentally-friendly” and “socially-conscious” on its website.
Clarence: Ah, yes. FreshDirect does talk about commitment to community – a wonderful idea. But I am afraid it fails to mention how local community businesses suffer severe financial loss and sometimes ruin by encouraging consumers to order from its facility miles and miles away instead of patronizing their local groceries and delis. If it really wanted to encourage all those wonderful ideas it touts on its website, perhaps FreshDirect ought to have encouraged people to walk – arguably the greenest activity on the planet – to their local grocery stores and delis to support their local neighborhood grocers’ businesses, and by extension, local economies.
In fact it would also do well for the city. get people out of their house and reacquainted with the world. their neighbors. Their friends. But all that’s disappearing now.
ESD: Is that why I am noticing all those shuttered delis and grocery stores? Have they been abandoned? Speaking of which, boy am I getting hungry.
Clarence: Well, I am afraid that’s too bad. Maybe if you get to a computer you can get something delivered to you in an hour or so. Seeing as how FreshDirect has forced more than a few local merchants out of business, you’d be hard pressed to find yourself a fine sandwich around here.
ESD: How come I don’t see anybody? Where is everyone? It feels so…lonely. Depressing. Scary. New York is supposed to be one of the busiest bustling places on Earth.
Clarence: Not anymore, I’m afraid. Nobody leaves their home anymore. They don’t need to. Everything they need comes right to their door. The city has become a run-down decrepit town. Nobody to talk to. Remember how it used to be? You just walked out your front door and it seemed the world was there to greet you?
ESD: Cough cough
ESD: What’s happening here?
ESD: Where are we now Clarence?
Clarence: Well, can’t you tell?
ESD: Well, I guess it’s a hospital and its filled with people. So many people. It seems all the people that I haven’t been seeing on the streets are here. What’s wrong that so many people are here? Is there some sort epidemic? I’ve never seen so many people milling about a hospital. Surely they can’t all be sick?
Clarence: Oh but they are I’m afraid – from Asthma-related illnesses. You see, when you voted to give FreshDirect all that money, it was so that it could set up its business in the adjacent low-income residential area of Motts Haven/Port Morris. It was assumed that the neighborhood would actually benefit from its proximity to this allegedly socially conscious company here in Harlem River Yards with all of its “green” trucks. You thought the company would fit in nicely next to a neighborhood that, coincidentally, is dubbed “Asthma Alley” – because it boasts an unusually high rate of asthma-related hospitalizations. But now, I’m afraid, the rate has climbed even higher. All those added high-emissions vehicles, you know.
ESD: So where are all the benefits that were supposed to be coming out of FreshDirect’s relocation?
Clarence: Well, I believe the term “job creation” was mentioned. But, you see ESD, there was no mandate to actually create jobs for the project. FreshDirect did say, however, that it would be offering local living wage. Several posted openings even advertised for $8.00 an hour. Why at those wages, employees are still eligible for food stamps and welfare benefits. Talk about perks.
As for the constitutional requirement that the land being used on the Harlem River Yards waterfront must provide a public benefit…well, that “requirement” had been conveniently scrapped. An action that seems to run contrary to fair business practices and seems to be awfully inconsistent with efforts protect the waterfront, especially after Hurricane Sandy. But you know all this already.
ESD: Help me Clarence! Get me back! I want to go back! I want to go back! I want to pick my own produce. I want to smell the fresh baked bread in the bakery section! I want to tap on the watermelons to test for ripeness! I want to bump into my grouchy neighbors while running to catch the A train! I want to check my strawberries for mold before I buy them!
ESD: What? Wha…I’m back. Woohoo! I’m back! Good day to you, Mr. Street Vendor. Your oranges are looking exquisite today…Will you look at that sandwich that guy’s eating? I’m gonna get me one of those. NOW! Right now! Hey, my coughing…my weezing…gone! Streets are a little less congested, but the sidewalks are just dripping with the great people of this city. Man I love this town. I never want it to change!
Kid: Hey mister! Mister, didja see that? All those people walking into that deli? They say every time a customer walks into a brick and mortar business, the economy grows a little bigger…
# # #
Want to help? You can by contacting Empire State Development:
The following is a guest piece by Bob Grand. ‘Grape Juice’ takes a young Bronx boy on a journey with his cousin Arthur, a cab driver, around Manhattan and the city. Hope you enjoy this glimpse into the past as much as we did!
Grape Juice
By Bob Grand
Cousin Arthur lived in 1356 Sheridan Avenue, the building next to mine. He was tall, with long, spindly legs and a paunchy stomach. His long nose widened out near the tip, and he had deep, lively brown eyes and a booming voice. He always had a cigar in his mouth or near at hand. Cousin Arthur loved a good joke. Whenever he heard one he’d laugh long and deep and loud.
Cousin Arthur
Cousin Arthur owned a taxicab. He used to say that his taxi was his office and that all his customers came to visit him. The first cab I remember was a bright yellow 1946 Chrysler with white-wall tires. Every Sunday morning he’d come down to the street with a bucket and sponge to wash and wax the cab. During the week he’d always wipe it clean. Even after snowfalls, when other cars had slush caked up in and around the wheel wells and street grime along the doors, Arthur’s taxi was always gleaming when he left for work in the morning.
1946 Chrysler Taxi
Almost every Saturday, from when I was six until I was about nine, Cousin Arthur took me to work with him. I sat next to him in the front seat, perched atop two pillows. He drove across the Triboro Bridge and down the East River Drive into midtown Manhattan. The river split the sun’s reflection into a million tiny bright stars. Cars looked like toys darting across the old Queensboro Bridge in the distance. Sunlight flashed off the silver bodies of huge airplanes on their way in and out of LaGuardia Airport across the river in Queens.
“Were you ever on an airplane,” I once asked him.
“No.”
“Do you think they’re safe?”
“Sure. They can get you places fast.”
“What places?”
“Far away places it would take forever to drive to.”
“Like California?”
“Yup, like California.”
Whenever we were near the Empire State Building and Cousin Arthur didn’t have a fare, I’d ask him to stop so I could get out and look up at it. It was so tall that I could never see the top from the taxicab’s window.
“I learned in school that it’s the highest building in the world.”
“Tallest building,” Cousin Arthur said. “Shelves are high. Buildings and people are tall. Would you like to see what used to be the tallest building?”
“Sure.”
He drove down to Twenty-third Street and Fifth Avenue and pointed at a triangular shaped building. It appeared to be about twenty-five stories tall.
“That’s it. It’s called the Flatiron building.”
“It’s so short,” I said.
“Compared to what’s in the city now, it is short. Years ago, when it was built, it was the tallest.”
“In the world?”
“I’m not sure. In America, though, for certain.”
We often drove up Fifth Avenue past St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Cousin Arthur driving slowly, weaving through the busy lunchtime traffic. Fifth Avenue was crowded with strollers window-shopping on the sidewalks, cars and the old double-decker buses crowding the avenue. Every store had chic window displays.
Fifth Avenue in the 1940’s
I loved going through Central Park. Families and lovers picnicked on the grass under sunny blue skies. It was like an oasis in the middle of the granite city. Bicycle riders were out in numbers on the park drive, and horse-drawn carriages conveyed tourists through the park and the streets around it.
Cousin Arthur always cautioned me not to ask questions when he had a fare. When he picked someone up they often asked him who the cute kid was. He’d tell them that I was his apprentice. He told me that he always got bigger tips on the Saturdays I was with him.
One rainy Saturday morning at about nine o’clock, Cousin Arthur got off the East River Drive at 71st Street. At First Avenue a woman flagged him down.
“First fare of the day a minute off the Drive. That’s a good sign,” he said.
The woman was young, twenty-five or so. Her blond hair was sticking out from under a kerchief. She wasn’t dressed for the heavy rain. She was wearing a lightweight brown suit. She didn’t have a coat on, nor did she have an umbrella. She was carrying a package about the size of a hatbox. It was wrapped in rain-soaked brown paper. When she opened the door to get in, I caught a glimpse of her face. She was crying. Her left eye was half-closed and black and blue, and blood was trickling from the corner of her mouth.
When she sat down, I was still turned halfway toward the back seat. I watched her put the package on the floor and reach into her pocketbook. She took out a handkerchief and began to wipe her face. She was trying to wipe away the tears, but some of the blood from her mouth rubbed off onto her face. Cousin Arthur nudged me with his elbow, and I turned back around to face the front of the cab.
She sat in the back seat crying and sniffling, and didn’t say a word until Cousin Arthur asked her where she wanted to go.
“Anywhere. Just away from here.”
He flipped the flag down to start the meter and began driving west on 72nd Street.
“I can see you’re upset, Miss, but unless you get somewhere and take care of yourself you’re gonna get sick.”
“What are you, my father or something,” she barked. “I’ve got plenty of money, so just keep driving.”
“Sorry. You’re the boss.” He made a sour face and looked over at me and shrugged his shoulders a little. We drove around for more than half an hour, down Fifth Avenue to Washington Square, then back uptown into the fifties. Cousin Arthur was starting to drive back downtown again. The only sounds in the cab were those coming from the windshield wipers sweeping across the front window and the lady sniffling in the backseat.
“I’m sorry I snapped at you before,” she said. “I just had a really tough time. I’d tell you about it if the kid wasn’t here, ‘cause I could sure use someone to talk to, but the only person I know in New York is my boy friend, and he just beat me up. I walked out on him.”
“No apology necessary. I’m sorry for your troubles, but you can’t just keep driving around all day. There must be someplace you can go.”
“Not really. I don’t know anyone here except that louse. I’m from Toronto.”
“How about a church,” Cousin Arthur suggested. “There’s a neighborhood church in the Twenties. Nice parish for tourists. They’re used to dealing with problems.”
“I’m not religious.”
“You don’t have to be religious. It’ll give you someone to talk to.”
“I can’t talk to a priest after the mess I’ve made out of my life. I’m not a nice person, really. My boyfriend is a married man. I caught him cheating on me.”
“Please, Miss, the kid…” Cousin Arthur said.
“Sorry, I forgot. I told you I’m not a nice person. Okay, take me to the church. I don’t want to see a priest, but maybe I can sit there and sort things out. I don’t know what I’m going to do now. My whole life is a mess.” She started crying again. Cousin Arthur drove to the church on 29th Street right off 5th Avenue and parked outside. “We’re here, Miss.”
She looked out the window and read aloud from the sign that hung outside the church: “The Little Church Around The Corner.”
The Little Church Around the Corner 1 E. 29th Street / Image Credit Unknown
“Oh, God,” she said, “ I really don’t want to go in there. Just drop me at the Astor Hotel.”
“Are you sure? You gonna be all right?”
“I’m not sure of anything right now, and I don’t know if I’ll ever be all right. Take me up to the Astor, please.”
“Okay.”
It was a little after ten by now. The rain had let up. Cousin Arthur drove up to the Hotel Astor on Broadway between 44th and 45th streets and pulled over to the curb.
ARMISTICE DAY (CEREMONY) Boy Scout bugler Shelby Cohen and color guard atop the marquee of the Hotel Astor during Armistice Day observance. 11.11.1945 / Imaged Credit unknown: from: http://planetbarberella.blogspot.com/2010/12/interesting-otr-for-you-todaygene.html
“You’re not gonna do anything foolish now, are ya miss?”
“No, don’t worry. Thanks for your help. How much do I owe you?”
“Six-twenty.”
She reached into her pocketbook. “I only have four dollars and forty cents in cash. But I can write you a check.”
“Listen, Miss, go home. Use the money to get another cab to take you to LaGuardia, and use your check to get the first plane to Toronto. You must have some family or friends there, right?”
“Right. Thanks.” She got out of the cab and disappeared into the crowd.
Cousin Arthur turned to me and smiled. “I had a feeling something like this was going to happen. Maybe she was in trouble, or maybe she played me for a sucker, Bobby. What do you think?”
“I don’t know, Cousin Arthur. Aren’t you mad?”
“Nah. If she was in trouble, I did a good deed. If she played me for a sucker, I lost an hour and a couple of bucks. It won’t make us poor. Besides, the day can only get better, right?”
He answered his own question. “Right,” he said.
On the Saturdays we were together, Cousin Arthur always took me to lunch at the Belmore Cafeteria on Park Avenue South around 28th Street. He told me it was the “unofficial official” New York cab drivers’ restaurant. There were a lot of taxicabs parked and double-parked on the street.
The air inside the cafeteria was heavy with tobacco smoke. There was an ongoing din of conversation and the constant clattering of dishes and clinking of glasses and silverware in the background. It seemed as though someone was coming in or leaving through the revolving doors at the entrance every second.
Arthur’s cab driver friends were there. Among them were his best friend, Duke, and Mousy and Chink. They called him “Archie.” We always sat with them. They chattered loudly and amiably about their experiences with fares during the week. They talked about their longest and shortest trips, where they had gone, their tips, and some of the oddball characters they’d had as fares. Every Saturday they had fresh stories to tell about their newest experiences.
Duke told about the guy he drove all the way out to Coney Island one cold February morning.
“I picked him up on 42nd and 3rd, right outside the Automat. The guy is wearing this real heavy overcoat, and it’s really bulky, like he’s probably got two sweaters under it. He’s got a wool scarf wrapped around his face, and one of them wool ski hats pulled down to his nose. With all that stuff on, he’s still shivering.
“’Take me to Brooklyn,’ he says.
“’Brooklyn’s a big place,’ I says.
“’Coney.’
“’Where in Coney,’ I asks him.
“’Just go over to the beach. I’ll show you when we get there.’
“So I start driving. I look at the guy in the rear view mirror. The guy’s teeth are chattering. I’ve got the heat up full blast, and it’s so hot in the cab that I’m sitting there in shirtsleeves. But this guy’s shivering, and his arms are wrapped around his chest. I though he was gonna croak on me.
“Anyways, we finally get to Coney, near the beach, and the guy asks me to pull over a few blocks past Nathan’s Famous. He gets out of the cab and starts to walk towards the beach.
“’Hey,’ I yell at him, ‘where the heck are you going?’
“He looks back over his shoulder at me and yells out, ‘Just wait for me. I’ll be back in ten minutes. Keep the meter running.’
“I mean, it was freezing out there. Must have been twelve or thirteen degrees, probably worse down by the water. The guy looks like an okay Joe, so I figured he’d be back. But I keep my eyes on him, just in case. I mean, he seems okay, but he sure as hell seems nuts, too. And the guy really turns out to be a nut case. Remember how I told you he was still freezing in the cab with the heat way up? Well, he walks up to the water’s edge, where there’s about twenty guys standing around in bathing suits freezing their nuts off. Christ, I could hear their teeth chattering all the way from my cab.
“Anyway,” Duke continued, “my guy gets out on the beach with them and starts to take off his clothes. Everything- the ski hat, the overcoat, the sweaters, the scarf. Damned if he doesn’t strip down to a bathing suit like the rest of them. Right after he strips off his clothes, the whole bunch of weirdoes goes running into the ocean. They stay in the water for about three minutes, and then they come out screaming at the top of their lungs, but screaming like a football team that just won, you know what I mean? They towel off, get dressed, and everyone goes off in different directions. My guy comes back to the cab. His hair is like frozen rope, he’s bug-eyed, and he’s shaking all over.
“’How much is on the meter,’ he asks me.
“’Get in,’ I says. ‘I got the heater on. Come on and warm up before ya freeze to death.’
“So what do ya think the guy says to me? ‘Nah,’ he says, ‘it’s a nice day out, so I think I’m gonna walk for a while.’”
Duke mimicked the guy. “’I think I’m gonna walk for a while,’ the guy tells me. Can you imagine that? So he pays me the three-fifty fare, plus lays a fiver on me for a tip, and takes off walking down the beach. So, what do you guys make of that? Some fare, huh?”
Chink cracks up. “That’s them Polar Bear Club guys,” Chink says. “They do this every winter. They’re a real bunch of loonies. That’s a doozie, Duke. What a story,” and Chink started to laugh again. He laughed so hard he couldn’t stop for about a minute.
Cousin Arthur looked over at Duke. “Yeah, the guy was a nut case. But you’re even loonier, Duke.”
“I’m loonier?” Duke says. “Whaddya mean, Archie?”
“Duke,” Cousin Arthur said, with a perfectly straight face, “you should of collected the tab before the guy got into the water. He could have had a heart attack, or froze to death, and you woulda been out three-fifty. So whaddya make of that, Duke, huh?”
Everyone at the table howled.
One Saturday, after we’d dropped a fare off on Wall Street, Cousin Arthur said, “Let’s spend this tip on a treat.” He took me to a little hole-in-the-wall deli that had a window counter facing the street.
“Two Welch’s grape juices,” he told the guy behind the counter. The guy brought out two small bottles with pictures of purple bunches of grapes on the labels and a dark purple liquid inside.
Welch’s Grape Juice
“Robbie, this stuff is strong and sour. It’ll make your lips pucker up. But it’s good for you.”
I followed his lead, twisting off the little white cap and raising the bottle to my lips to drink from it. He was right. It made my lips pucker. But I liked it, and told him so.
“Good for you, Robbie. Now you’re a man.”
In the years that followed, my Saturdays were more and more spent hanging out with my crowd. Cousin Arthur and I never got to spend any more of them going downtown together.
About Bob Grand:
Bob Grand was born in the Bronx in 1938. He lived at 1348 Sheridan Avenue until 1959. For the outlandish rental of $ 65 per month they had a three bedroom one bath apartment in which, for the first ten years of his life, Bob lived with six other people – his Mom’s two sisters, his mom and dad, his older brother, and his widowed grandfather.
He went to P.S. 88, P.S. 90, JHS 22, Taft H.S., and then Hunter College in the Bronx (now Lehman). He mostly attended Hunter at night, graduating in 1966. When he started at Hunter, it cost $25 per semester.
In 1959 he and his family moved to 2325 Morris Avenue. It was an elevator building, something they had longed to live in for many years. It would have been a “step up” if not for the fact that, after all those years of waiting and longing, the apartment was on the ground floor of the elevator building.
He left the Bronx in 1967 to move to Manhattan, feeling very much at home in a 6th floor walkup (remember, he was younger then) studio apartment in the east 60’s for which he paid the huge sum of $ 135/month.
Bob now lives in Monticello, NY, but the Bronx will always be his home. He visits the Bronx often, and is thrilled to see a new generation of Bronxites enjoying living and raising their children there (he has five children and five grandchildren of his own). He wishes they were able to share the joy of neighborhood movie houses and candy stores and what they meant to the culture of his youth and his experience of growing up Bronx.
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Just like the people of The Bronx are wide and diverse, so are its real estate. Many people not familiar with our borough are often shocked to find out that some of the most expensive real estate outside of Manhattan is not in Brooklyn but actually in the Northwest corner of the Bronx.
Riverdale, along with its neighborhoods of Spuyten Duyvil and Fieldston features some of the most toniest areas in New York City.
Many homes in the Fieldston area and the Estate Section of Riverdale can range from a modest 2,000 square feet to well over 10,000 square feet mammoths. Not only that but we dare say these homes also sit on some of the largest lots in all of New York City.
Most homes in NYC sit on a typical 2,500 – 5,000 square foot plots of land which only gets you a measly .057th of an acre to .11th of an acre.
In Fieldston and other parts of Riverdale, homes often sit on half an acre to well over an acre of land. That’s a lot of valuable real estate!
The Bronx really does have something for everyone.
Below is an excerpt from Curbed and images of the mansion that’s for sale and make sure to follow the link for more images and floor plans:
It’s no castle, but this 113-year-old Fieldston mansion is very impressive in its own right. For starters, it’s huge, measuring a whopping 10,450 square feet, thanks to an expansion by the current owners, who bought the house 30 years ago. Plus, it has all the trappings a mansion-seeker could want: an indoor lap pool with a jacuzzi, a heated driveway to melt the snow, Jerusalem stone and Venetian plaster walls, “multiple dining rooms,” a tent-equipped terrace that can seat 100, and a professional-grade kitchen (to feed those 100 guests) with “multiple refrigerators.” There’s also an “au pair suite” with its own entrance, two offices, and eight bathrooms. The asking price is $7.95 million.
The holidays are upon us and it’s that time of year where people are scratching their heads on what to buy their loved ones. Welcome2TheBronx would like to suggest the following list to consider as gifts for someone you love.
What better way to give someone something than an item from The Bronx or a Bronx based artist?! Please do know that this isn’t a complete list and should you want to be considered for inclusion in this list, feel free to reach out at info@welcome2thebronx.com
Art
Pet Portraits by Lovie Pignata of Morris Perk!
For $125 you can order a custom painted pet portrait of a favorite pet. Acrylic on a 10×10 canvas. Send photos to morrisperk@gmail.com to order. Price includes US shipping.
What happens when a tree falls at Wave Hill? Well it’s turned into beautiful art of course! A local artist takes the fallen trees and turns them into beautiful, sculptured bowls that are truly breathtaking and a wonderful tribute which speaks of the cycle of life. Check out the many gifts they have available by heading over there or just clicking on their website above!
Nelson”Chief69″ Seda, A Nuyorican,Brooklyn born,Bronx based Bboy/Emcee/Artist inspired by RAMELLZEE,FUTURA 2000,MR.WIGGLES,KEITH HARING,KRS-ONE,IMMORTAL TECHNIQUE,THE BLACK PANTHER PARTY,BRUCE LEE,BOB ROSS,STAN LEE to name a few.He has been involved in HIP HOP since 2008.His artwork is currently across the world on display.He has been featured in The NY Times and many International publications. for all inquires email Chief69@mail.com
A Bronx native, SinXero (SX) is a Fine Grafstract Expressionist. SinXero’s paintings incorporate various, Graffiti, Street Art & Abstract techniques, which produce his signature style of Fine Grafstract Expressionism. SinXero’s artistic style utilizes raw imagery and a palette of colors upon layers of mixed media in retrospect to the early 80s, when NYC’s billboards and posters were being put up, torn down and a graffiti writer’s canvas. With his artistic weapons of choice (SX) pays an “Ode To The Streets,” by capturing an authentic period golden to the Hip Hop era as he produces urban landscapes & textures reminiscent to the front of old school bodegas, handball courts and NYC streets, as well as, bombed MTA trains. A true visionary, SinXero informs, enlightens & educates the public about personal and social issues that are taking place in the world and in our community today.
Contact Sinxero for pricing on his art as prices may differ from what you see on the website link!
Bronx born and bred artist, who is currently living in Florida, is definitely one not to be missed. In her own words, “The work I make isn’t exactly for everyone. Or maybe it is. Maybe it’s just the idea that the “everyone” that I’m talking about is not the “everyone” that is counted as important. Maybe its because I’ve made work about the folks we don’t see… the chambermaids in hotels or the inner city mother of three that is thrown in a tizzy because she can’t seem to get a cab for her and her kids. I have built my artistic career by creating works that investigate notions of otherness as a Latina in the US. Starting from personal experiences, I set out to dissect aspects of my heritage from varying points of entry- from within my own family, home, neighborhood, intersecting Latino cultures. These investigations in turn, became larger studies on otherness as a whole in American culture”
Although not born or raised in The Bronx, Padilla spent his High School years at All Hallow’s off the Grand Concourse and has documented gentrification’s impact in The Bronx. Check out some of his photography which is for sale and very affordable too!
The Bronx 200 site is a dynamic, online platform that showcases a curated selection of artwork by two hundred artists identified with The Bronx. Artists were invited to participate by curators and art professionals working in the borough. The curators were asked to recommend artists whose work represents the rich and diverse range of creative production here. The primary goal of The BX200 website is to connect the borough’s artists and art organizations to curators, collectors, art enthusiasts, businesses and other artists worldwide.
The book is “an unprecedented collection of over fifty Bronx memoir fragments, as penned by our very own residents, spanning various generations, continents, languages, cultures and themes.”
Bronx born and raised author, Stephanie Hoina published her first book, Kissing Atticus Primble earlier this year for young adults. “Like any other girl her age, Kathleen was ready for the excitement of a first love. What she wasn’t ready for was Atticus. He had been her best friend for as long as she could remember, and the subtle change in their relationship as they started high school caught her off guard.”
Author Martin Kleinman, born and raised in The Bronx, left our borough and returned after over 25 years abroad (I mean in Brooklyn) put together this collection of short stories, some based in The Bronx, others not. Either way it’s a great read and an excellent gift idea to support one of our own at the same time! Home Front, the New York-centric assemblage of fictional tales is an account influenced by our own great metropolis and its denizens. From the Bronx, to Brooklyn, to Manhattan, and bungalow communities of the Catskills, each short story is bright and alive with that real New York flavor that, well, a true New Yorker would instantly recognize and relate to.
Ok so this particular author isn’t FROM The Bronx but he gets points for setting a fun and exciting book in our borough featuring local Mott Haven and Port Morris landmarks as well as heroes which could very well come straight from the neighborhoods! “Even before the apocalypse, nine-year-old Letitia Johnson’s life had never been simple. Shuttled from foster home to foster home in the impoverished neighborhood of Mott Haven, it was all she could do to keep track of her little sister. When the apocalypse came, she tried to keep her sister’s kindergarten safe by locking them all in a tiny school bathroom, hiding while they waited for a rescue that never came. For five days, they hid. They hid while their teachers were being eaten, while their classmates were being killed. They hid while the Bronx was being evacuated. Now, there’s no one left to help them. There’s no place left to hide. It’s just her, one ax, twelve kindergarteners, twelve garden stakes, and a will to live. While the cast of this novel is primarily children, the book is intended for adults and contains material unsuitable for younger readers.”
Writer Jimmy Newell was born and bred in the Bronx during a time of tremendous change and social upheaval but, because of a loving family, life-long friends, and a great community, growing up in the Bronx was grand. His book, ‘A Bronx Boy’s Tale’ ” is the story of a boy growing up in a special place at a very special time. Providing a neighborhood context to historical events, A Bronx Boy’s Tale helps you see America through the eyes of one boy who grew up in a time of tremendous change and strife, but who still had time to live a grand life in the greatest place on Earth. If you grew up in the Bronx, or only wish you had, you should read this book.”
A collection of poetry by Bronxite LIz Dolan and Nominated for The Robert McGovern Prize and a Pushcart Prize Cave Moon Press has just published Liz Dolan’s,[ Dougherty] second poetry collection, A Secret of Long Life. According to Julianna Baggott, author of eighteen books Dolan’s poems are “Haunted and haunting. They thrum and trill with memory, keen with sorrow, and are always brimming with life.” And Fleda Brown, former Delaware poet laureate, says “Dolan is a skilled and deeply thoughtful poet. She knows how to let a family’s history-of Ireland and The Bronx and the Delaware beaches-tell its profound and nuanced truths. Dolan was contacted by publisher Doug Johnson from Cave Moon Press who after he published her work in a Cave Moon Anthology, a literary magazine, asked if she would be able to provide the press with an entire collection of poetry for publication.
Profits from sales will go to The Buddy Walk for Down Syndrome.
Yes, eyewear! We are more than happy to recommend the gift of healthy eyes and great eyewear fashion by our own homegrown Metro Optics! From gift coupons to gift baskets, this is the place to go and celebrate a succesfully home grown business who’s now celebrating their 4th Bronx store! A true Bronx success story!
We really do up our Gift Baskets… not only will the lucky recipient of this one get a hot pair of Carrera sunglasses, but also an ornament and sweets to boot! Come in to any of our locations and we’ll build you a custom basket sure to please anyone on your list! (P.S. we do contacts and gift certificates too!)
Food & Coffee!!!
Morris Perk Coffee Service!
Need coffee? Morris Perk is offering coffee service for meetings, celebrations, community events, fundraisers or family gatherings in The Bronx Email us @ MorrisPerk@gmail.com or call 646 621-7631 to check availability! $39 includes freshly brewed Morris Perk blend regular coffee in two thermal carafes, 8oz cups, sugar, sweetener, stirrers, napkins, half&half PLUS FREE DELIVERY! (& pickup of carafes) within 5mi of Ben and Dotty Abram’s Way. Need MORE coffee? We can percolate on site or deliver up to 4.5 gallons of coffee! Oh and they also sell coffee by the pound too!!!
Who doesn’t like homemade fresh pasta for the holidays or in general? Borgatti’s has been a Bronx staple since 1935 offering some of the best and freshest pasta in the region. Don’t believe me? Go there an any given day and you will see people traveling from all over the region just to get some of this good stuff. Borgatti’s even makes gift baskets!
Memberships
Who wouldn’t love a membership to one of our great institutions?
From premium family memberships valued at $189 (which gives 2 adults, their children up to the ages of 18 and a guest) unlimited access to all Bronx Zoo attractions and FREE parking for your visits to the Bronx Zoo and the New York Aquarium. Not to mention you get free access to all 5 WCS parks! This is an excellent value for the family that loves nature and a gift that not only puts a smile on the receiver’s face but also helps save wildlife across the world! Other membership levels are available so make sure to check them out!
One of the most important botanical gardens in the world is located right within our borough and membership is just a click away and offers you unlimited visits during a year. Various levels of memberships are available for purchase so make sure to check out the list.
And we’re back to Wave Hill (we just can’t get enough of this place). You too can give the gift of a Wave Hill membership so that special someone (or you) can enjoy the splendor that is Wave Hill.
Get great membership perks for just $45 at this fine institution which now boasts two locations: One in The South Bronx and one off-broadway! “Following years of enterprising activity on stage and in the community, Pregones Theater and Puerto Rican Traveling Theater recently merged into a single Latino arts organization with performance venues in The Bronx and Manhattan. The transformation builds upon congruence of mission, values, and programs, and sustained engagement of a growing network of diverse artists and audiences throughout and beyond New York City. Moving forward, Pregones/PRTT champions a cultural legacy of broad impact through (1) creation and performance of original musical theater and plays rooted in Puerto Rican/Latino cultures, and (2) presentation of other artists who share our twin commitment to the arts and civic enrichment.”
Who would have ever thought that a Spa and wellness center would open up in the Melrose neighborhood of the South Bronx? Not only is the business is by Bronxites but it is now a 5 year success story! Located on 3rd Avenue and 156th Street, the center offers many services such as facials, massages, health coaching, skin care, and even acupuncture! Check out their websiteand see all that they offer.
That’s it for now…keep this list book marked as we will continue to add to it and keep it up to date!
The following was originally published at We The Italians who graciously allowed us to syndicate this and share it with our readers — mille grazie for allowing us to do so! For all our Italian readers (and of course anyone really!) please subscribe to their newsletter (for free of course)!
The Bronx has been home of many Italians during the 20th century. It is impossible, for those who are interested in knowing the history of the Italian American community, to ignore this New York borough; as it is impossible not to feel Italy in Arthur Avenue, that somebody calls “the real Little Italy”.
It is here that we’ve met John Calvelli, now Executive Vice President for the Public Affairs Division of the Wildlife Conservation Society and for sure the best person to ask something about the relationship between Italy and The Bronx. We thank him for his time, and the excellent lunch we had in one of the best restaurant in Arthur Avenue!
John, we have been lucky enough to interview many Italian Americans, but you’re the first in our column that went back and forth to and from Italy. This makes your story quite unique. Please tell us something about it
My parents were both immigrants from Calabria, from a little town called Vico Aprigliano in the Cosenza province. My father was here in the US during the war, my mother was in Italy: she didn’t come to America until 1947, after the war. My mother knew my father here, they came back to Italy in 1955 and then back to the US in 1958. My older brother was born in Italy, while I was born in the US in 1963: and I remember my dad always having the idea to come back to Italy. So we went back in 1967 because my dad was promised a job in Calabria, but it didn’t get through: and when he was offered a job in Milan, he said “you know what? If I have to move from Calabria to Milan, then I prefer to get back to New York”. So in 1969 we permanently came back here, by boat, on the Michelangelo. It was an incredible experience because I was 6 and I can clearly remember the moment when we passed the Statue of Liberty.
I went to a school here in the United States, to catholic school and then later to Fordham University: but I wanted to come back to Italy. So in junior college I went to study in an exchange program in Florence, and after a few months I felt in love so much with the city and its history that I ended up being there a guide for English speaking tourists groups!
I came back from that experience with the sense that I wanted to do more, and so I helped creating the group called FIERI, an organization for young Italian professionals. By the time I left we had maybe 15 chapters around the country, and this is before internet, the old fashioned fax and phone call days: it really helped to create a new generation of leaders within our community. And this is just the beginning of my life as an Italian American!
We are doing this interview in Arthur Avenue, The Bronx, which some call “the real Little Italy”. Please tell our readers something more about this fascinating, magical place, and its wonderful markets.
I think this is probably one of the last fully functioning Little Italy left in the United States. Why is that? Because we moved as a community, like with the other Little Italies when Italians started to have success and to be able to buy new, bigger houses: but we moved relatively close, so therefore you have “il ritorno”. I live 6 miles away, so I regularly come here to shop. Little Italy here in Arthur Avenue maintained the essence of authenticity in the products. So people come here because they know there’s going to be a genuine value: they don’t have to deal with the traffic or the problems of parking that you have elsewhere, and most of all here they find the real deal. Look at Borgatti, Madonia, or Teitel Bros … in the next five years here in Arthur Avenue there will probably be 3 to 5 stores that will celebrate 100 years of activity. That’s an amazing statement in a country this young as ours: to have stores that have been here for 100 years, providing quality service.
The joke on our family is Vincent’s Meat Market. My grandfather used to bring me to Vincent’s. His son now is the guy that serves me meat, so he’s called Pete the meat. So, to me Vincent’s is family: they served us for four generations: my grandfather, my father, us and now I bring there my son. Four generations going to the same place to buy meat. So the point is the essence of quality and genuineness.
Another important factor is that the whole neighborhood that involves Fordham University, the Botanical Garden and the Bronx Zoo was built with the work of Italian immigrants that came here. So here you have the microcosm of how Little Italy could survive everywhere: a major cultural attraction, a major education institution, relatively wealthy population at driving distance, and restaurants and stores that offer high quality product. You then add to that the Italian “saper fare”: we are marketing geniuses in some aspects, we probably invented marketing without even knowing it, and in Arthur Avenue you have some example of this. There are only 2 or 3 other markets left in New York City: but the Arthur Avenue market was a project from Fiorello La Guardia ty take the push carts off of the streets. To do that he created a cooperative of various small stores that’s been going on for 74 years now, and it surely adds its own vitality to this community.
We did a study here three years ago: the economic activity of this community is 250 million dollars a year, with 1400 employees. Customers coming from the whole New York State but also from New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania, because they want the genuine experience: so frequently what they do is they come to the zoo for half day, and then come here for dinner.
Usually in the Little Italies there are particularly significant places for the Italians who gathered – or still gather – there: a church, a park, a monument. Are there symbolic places like these in the Bronx, too?
Well, as I told before, this whole neighborhood has been important for the Italians. At the zoo we have so many memories of that: the largest collection of Beaux-Arts buildings in New York City is at the Bronx zoo. In our campus we actually have the only Italian fountain on public display, from Como, Italy.
The most important Italian church here in The Bronx, the one where I was baptized, is Our Lady of Mount Carmel. Before 1946 the Catholic Church in New York had basically a policy of segregating the Italians. We brought a different kind of ritual, and so many Italian parishes were created. So the churches, and in The Bronx particularly Mount Carmel, played a key role in maintaining the essence of the identity for the Italian community.
Another important place for the Bronx Italian community is the Columbus statue by the Piccirilli Brothers; and talking about them, another important place is the Piccirilli Studios in the South Bronx, even if there isn’t an Italian community there anymore.
The Bronx has been, in the previous decades, home to a huge number of Italian emigrants. Who were they, where did they come from, and how did they end up here?
The interest thing about the Italian community here in The Bronx, which is fascinating, is that we have representation from all over Italy, even if clearly the majority was from southern Italy: Calabria, Naples and Sicily. This real pride of being Italian brought a strong feeling of being a community here. The first immigrants were those who built the neighborhood, and then kept coming in waves, following the construction of the subway to get out of the city in search for space, a fresh start and clean air. In 1880 The Bronx had a population of about 200,000 people; in 1920 there were 1.2 million people living here.
The Bronx is made for 20% by parkland: Pelham Bay is the largest park in New York City, and when I was a child, my friends and I used to go to Orchard Beach, which is inside the park; or to see the opera at the Botanical Garden; or to the zoo, which was like our backyard, on a regular basis. The Bronx Zoo is the largest urban zoo in the world, over 265 acres. So the Italians came here for all of these things.
And when did the restaurant business start?
First they were masons, they came here as workers to build the area, in construction. There was a community from Bari, and they were specifically very active in selling coal, and ice, and then oil. So, as next waves came, there were people with different skills: and Arthur Avenue was usually a first stop. This was the place where you could still find immigrants from Italy here on the 60s/70s. So when the restaurant business and generally the food industry became important here, that was a blast. And food became huge here because we have Hunts Point, which is the place where all food comes to New York City by train, and is also where the New Fulton Fish Market is now. If you go there you can see plenty of Italian companies very successful in food distribution.
Do you know how many Italians live here?
I’d have to guess, I would probably say something around 150,000, because there’s still large communities of Italian Americans in Morris Park, Pelham Parkway, Bedford Park, Throggs Neck, the East Bronx, City Island. So it’s still a relatively robust community, although is also an aging community: even if we’re starting to see “un ritorno”, people who come back living here. The Bronx is many things: you have parkland, but it is also the borough of Universities, because you have Fordham University, Manhattan College, Monroe College, Bronx Community College, Lehman College, Hostos Community College, Boricua College. And then healthcare: one of the largest medical institution in the country, the Montefiore Hospital, founded by an Italian Jew.
New York is also attracting the new, recent Italian immigration. Do these young Italians who just recently moved to NYC live in The Bronx, too?
Because of its history, The Bronx has been overlooked by the new Italians of today, who probably prefer to go to Brooklyn. But I also think that this is the moment when things are going to change, simply because it has become too expensive to live anywhere else while here we still have space, and in 20/30 minutes you can be in Manhattan. So I’m guessing that in the next 10 years new Italians are coming to The Bronx, too.
The above post was written and published originally by We The Italians on December 8th, 2014.
Israel Garcia worked as an MTA train operator for more than 30 years / Anthony Delmundo NY DAILY NEWS
Recently, I nominated my father for a Daily News Hometown Hero Award and the paper decided to write a story on him and he is now a candidate for the award.
Here’s an excerpt of the story and make sure to click the link at the end to watch the video. A big thanks to the Daily News for thinking my dad’s story was worthy of a nomination.
MTA train operator Israel Garcia was a hero driver for more than three decades to one who knows him well — his own son.
“He led millions of New Yorkers to work and back home safely each day,” Garcia Conde wrote in an online tribute.
The son nominated his dad for a New York Daily News Hometown Heroes in Transit award. Now in its third year, Hometown Heroes honors exceptional MTA bus and subway workers whose actions have benefited riders, colleagues and communities.
Sargeant Delgado of the 40th Precinct telling me to put my camera down.
Dear NYPD and other police forces across our country:
I sit writing this and am filled with nothing but dread and anxiety. Why? Because I have suffered bouts of PTSD due to mistreatment by the NYPD on several occasions. I find it extremely difficult to put these words down but given the recent verdicts from Ferguson on Michael Brown’s murder as well as our own Eric Garner’s murder at the hands of the NYPD I cannot remain silent. This is for them and all who have been murdered or brutalized by the hands that are served to protect us. This is for everyone including those who are charged with serving and protecting us.
Let me get one thing very straight and clear because there is this HUGE misconception about my views on the NYPD and the police in this country.
I have gotten ignorant remarks like “oh we’ll see who you’re gonna call when there’s a crime being committed” or “crime has gone down” narrative (we need to ask ourselves at what cost?)
I know very clearly that there are bad elements out there and know very clearly that cops put their lives in danger everyday. For someone to either not see that or point it out to others as if it isn’t obvious is a tad obtuse.
I also know that there are many good cops. Tons of them. But guess what? They too are the problem when they look the other way when injustices are being committed by their brethren and therein you find a HUGE part of the problem and it’s within the culture if the NYPD and other police forces across the country.
It was in a black bag. Tied to be thrown out. The sergeant became angry because I was recording how he was treating the other gentleman who DID walk put with am open container without realizing it.
Not only did the sergeant have me thrown violently against the building but he didn’t have the guts to do the dirty work he began.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9s0JjVZCN4
When we got to the police station, the cop he assigned to be the arresting officer (who did not want to do it because he saw I was innocent from the beginning) took me to the bathroom and locked the door.
“This is where I’m supposed to have you strip down and search you for weapons, drugs etc but I’m not doing it and that’s why I locked the door but we have to make it quick. I’m not in agreement with what happened. When your court date comes up, I will not show up. ”
He went on to pat me in the back shake my hand and apologize on behalf of his sergeant for making him do this and expedited my exit so I was released as quickly as possible. Before leaving he took me aside and reiterated his agreement that this was wrong and then handed me my summons.
The next day I looked at the summons and noticed all sorts of technical errors which I immediately knew I was just gonna waste a day in court to have my case dismissed on those technicalities.
I also had the benefit of the office of Congressman José E Serrano call the captain on what had happened afterwards but not everyone has that luck that they can get such high ranking testimony of their characters.
So here I had yet again another good cop who couldn’t do anything to prevent abuse and had to go along with it and he did the best he could.
So yes there are many good cops but until they end this brotherhood of protecting each other when injustices are being committed, they are just as guilty as the bad seeds who commit the crimes which they rarely get punished for.
Open your eyes to what is going on here.
If you feel inconvenienced by protesters shutting down the city and parts of the city, think about how the millions who’ve been wrongfully stopped and frisked (90% turned out to be innocent), think of the hundreds of innocent lives lost at the hands of police officers when said officers of the law become trigger happy. Think of how protesters in the past have ushered CHANGE that allows many who were previously oppressed to enjoy certain liberties not granted to them at some point in their history.
It is inexcusable to say that the victim had it coming anyway (ESPECIALLY when they were only Petty crimes)
It’s very easy for many to say well why did they resist arrest. Guess what? I wasn’t resisting arrest and was repeatedly told I was resisting arrest and they were gonna charge me with it. They keep pushing you and pushing you to the breaking point so they CAN charge you with something.
My crime? Asking, “officer why am I being arrested, what law did I break, why are you violating my constitutional rights?”
The property also benefits from 518 feet of direct frontage to the Harlem River says the article in the Real Deal.
With the market-rate lofts on Alexander Avenueunder construction and the pending sale of 2417 Third Avenue the area is only going to get more interesting. What will be constructed at this site only time will tell but if anyone thinks gentrification isn’t creeping into the South Bronx, they have another thing coming for them. The area is too close to Manhattan with such easy access via public transportation.
101 Lincoln Avenue sits right next to the Third Avenue Bridge and the pedestrian walkway used by thousands of folks a day who cross the bridge into Harlem.
What do you think about these big sales happening all at once in the South Bronx?
The continuing changing character from industrial to residential further shows that FreshDirect does NOT belong at the site adjacent to 101 Lincoln Avenue. Who would want to live next to thousands of trucks running by day and night?
As you can see, 101 Lincoln sits within the Special Harlem River Waterfront District Assemblage site released last week by SoBro
More New Yorkers will soon be able to check out a Wi-Fi device from their library as easily as they can check out a book.
Google made a $1 million donation to New York Public Library to help pay for a program that allows patrons to borrow Wi-Fi devices to use at home for a certain length of time, the city announced Tuesday. The lending program went through a pilot test at the Bronx and Staten Island branches this past summer. Aided by a $500,000 grant from various nonprofit organizations, Google’s donation will help the program expand this month to Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens libraries as well.
The aim is to provide 10,000 Sprint Wi-Fi hotspots to patrons at all three of New York’s library systems. Google will also offer 500 Chromebooks specifically for children and teenagers to use in after-school library programs.
Broadband access can be taken for granted as something that’s readily and easily available. But many people across the US either don’t have or can’t afford such access.
A survey conducted by The New York Public Library found that 55 percent of patrons who come to the library to use the Internet lack broadband access at home. For those with household incomes under $25,000, around 65 percent said they have no such access at home. About 2.5 million New York City residents don’t have the Internet at home, typically because of the cost, New York Public Library President Tony Marx told The Wall Street Journal.
Mayor Bill de Blasio, City Library Chiefs Announce Expansion of Library Hotspot Program Through Google Donation
December 2, 2014
Google gives New York City libraries $1 million for 10,000 Wi-Fi devices for program lending Wi-Fi devices to New Yorkers
NEW YORK—Mayor de Blasio, New York City’s three library systems, and Google today announced a $1 million donation from Google for an innovative library program lending Wi-Fi devices to New Yorkers to use at home.
The Library Hotspot program gives families, many lacking broadband access, the opportunity to borrow free Wi-Fi devices from their local libraries. The program was successfully piloted by The New York Public Library over the summer, when families at four branches in the Bronx and Staten Island were able to borrow devices for months at a time.
Google’s $1 million donation, along with a $500,000 grant from the Knight News Challenge, an initiative of the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Open Society Foundations, and Robin Hood Foundation, will allow the program to expand this fall to all three library systems, including Brooklyn Public Library and Queens Library. The goal is to offer about 10,000 families Wi-Fi devices powered by Sprint, helping to close the digital divide in New York City.
“Whether you’re a parent looking for a job, a child working on a school project, or a family looking for information on services, broadband access is no longer a luxury – it’s a necessity.” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “I commend both New York City Libraries and Google for their commitment to increasing accessibility to technology through the innovative Library Hotspot program, and I am thrilled to see thousands of New York City families get access to the internet.”
“It is simply unfathomable that in the digital world in which we live, one-third of New Yorkers do not have access to broadband internet at home, putting them at a serious disadvantage at school, in applying for jobs, and so much more,” said New York Public Library President Tony Marx. “The Library is proud to partner with Google, as well as with the Robin Hood, Open Society, and Knight Foundations, to help close the digital divide, and set an example for the country.”
“Far too many New Yorkers do not have regular access to the Internet, and as a result find themselves excluded from a wealth of education, employment, and community resources,” said Ben Fried, Google’s Chief Information Officer. “This innovative program to loan hotspots to low-income households is a simple, effective way to help those who need broadband and technology the most. With this donation of $1 million and wifi-enabled Chromebooks, Google hopes to give some of the most underserved in our city a way to bridge the tech divide.”
“Too many Brooklyn residents are on the wrong side of the digital divide. Free Wi-Fi at local BPL branches is a vital resource, but it can’t make up for the lack of internet access in the home — access that helps children succeed in school, and provides parents with critical information on health, employment, education, and more. As we prepare to rollout this program in our branches with the greatest need, we are grateful to Google, the Knight Foundation, the Robin Hood Foundation, and our partners at NYPL and Queens Library for helping us take our mission beyond the walls of our branches and directly to our patrons,” said Linda E. Johnson, President & CEO of Brooklyn Public Library.
“Lending mobile hot spots, coupled with our Google tablet lending program, will put powerful technology into the hands and homes of Queens residents. It will boost computer literacy across all income and educational levels, promoting true digital equity. We are very grateful to Google; the Knight News Challenge, and the Robin Hood Foundation for making this possible,” said Bridget Quinn-Carey, Interim President & CEO of Queens Public Library.
“Providing internet access to all New Yorkers should be a priority in this increasingly high-tech world,” said Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito. “Thanks to support from Google, The Knight Foundation and The Robin Hood Foundation, our public libraries across the city will take a big step toward that goal. I’m proud of this achievement and look forward to finding even more ways to make access as universally available as possible for New York City’s residents.”
The New York Public Library launched its pilot program after a survey of patrons revealed that 55 percent of those utilizing free internet and computers in its branches did not have broadband access at home. When household income dropped to under $25,000, about 65 percent reported having no access.
The expanded program will launch in December, with the city’s three library systems each rolling it out slightly differently:
In the Brooklyn Public Library, patrons are eligible to borrow devices for one year if they don’t have broadband at home and are enrolled in one of BPL’s adult education or inclusion programs, including ESOL, Adult Basic Education, or Citizenship Preparation classes. BPL will also make devices available at their NYC Connected Communities branches, which serve communities most impacted by the digital divide. At those branches, adult library cardholders without broadband at home can register for and attend a program orientation session.
In the New York Public Library system, which covers the Bronx, Manhattan and Staten Island, people are eligible to borrow devices for six months if they don’t have broadband at home and are currently enrolled in one of several library programs, including after-school programs or adult learning programs, such as ESOL or literacy classes.
At Queens Library, the mobile hotspots will be lent to students in its Adult Learning Program, and to anyone with a library card from five libraries also lending Google tablets.
In addition to funding for Wi-Fi devices in New York City, Google’s donation will also provide the city’s library systems with 500 Google Chromebooks, which will be distributed based on need to children and teens enrolled in Library after-school programs. Additionally, small portion of the Wi-Fi devices will be distributed to support similar pilot programs in libraries in Maine and Kansas.
“This $1.75 million investment into our City’s three library systems will work to address the “digital divide” that has gripped New Yorkers in need of access to broadband internet,” said New York City Council Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer, Chair of the Cultural Affairs and Libraries Committee. “Through this innovative partnership we will expand internet access for families throughout the five boroughs. I commend Mayor de Blasio, Google, The Knight Foundation and The Robin Hood Foundation for working with our City’s three library systems. Their commitment toward tackling the digital divide brings us closer to a day when no New Yorker will fear a lack of access to one of our most precious resources. ”
“At a time when the Internet has emerged as an important vehicle to achieving a better life and securing a better future, New York City continues to pursue initiatives to bring Internet access to communities who need them the most,” said Chair of Council Technology Committee James Vacca. “Families with sufficient access to broadband internet are able to better compete for jobs and access the wealth of information that could improve their quality of life. New York City is becoming the next technology and innovation hub of the world. We must not leave anyone behind.”
“Access to broadband internet should not depend on financial constraints. This innovative new program will help close the digital divide for city residents no matter where they live or work. New York is an ambitious and innovative city and this program helps make that innovation more inclusive and reachable by all. I commend Mayor de Blasio and the city libraries for their leadership and I thank Google for their generous donation to make this program possible,” said Council Member Costa Constantinides, Chair of the City Council Libraries Sub-Committee.
“With this innovative program, the City of New York is demonstrating that bridging the digital gap requires more than just providing Internet access in public schools and libraries,” said Andrew Rasiej, Chairman of NY Tech Meetup. “It means giving students and underserved communities 24 hour access to all the world’s information resources necessary to succeed in today’s hyper connected global economy.”
About The New York Public Library
The New York Public Library is a free provider of education and information for the people of New York and beyond. With 92 locations—including research and branch libraries—throughout the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island, the Library offers free materials, computer access, classes, exhibitions, programming and more to everyone from toddlers to scholars, and has seen record numbers of attendance and circulation in recent years. The New York Public Library serves more than 18 million patrons who come through its doors annually and millions more around the globe who use its resources at www.nypl.org. To offer this wide array of free programming, The New York Public Library relies on both public and private funding. Learn more about how to support the Library at nypl.org/support.
About Queens Public Library
Queens Library is an independent, not-for-profit corporation and is not affiliated with any other library. Queens Library serves a population of 2.3 million in one of the most ethnically diverse counties in the U.S. and has among the highest circulations of any public library system in the world. For more information about programs, services, locations, events and news, visit the Queens Library web site at www.queenslibrary.orgor phone 718-990-0700. Queens Library. Enrich your life About Brooklyn Public Library
Brooklyn Public Library (BPL) is an independent library system for the 2.5 million residents of Brooklyn. It is the fifth largest library system in the United States with 60 neighborhood libraries located throughout the borough. BPL offers free programs and services for all ages and stages of life, including a large selection of books in more than 30 languages, author talks, literacy programs and public computers. BPL’s eResources, such as eBooks and eVideos, catalog information and free homework help, are available to customers of all ages 24 hours a day at our website: www.bklynlibrary.org.
