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Pictures of the Day – A walk through Melrose

News

Ed Garcia Conde

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September 20, 2009

Pictures of the Day – A walk through Melrose

Was I walked to and from my parents’ place today on Morris Avenue, I decided to snap a few pictures of the area, particularly of some of my favorite buildings.

Facing west on East 149th Street (corner of Morris Avenue)

House on East 151st Street

Apartment building on Courtlandt Avenue @ East 152nd Street

The crown jewel of East 151st Street (the stretch of East 151st Street between Morris and Courtlandt Avenues has some of the best kept homes and buildings and throughout the worse years in the area, sanity always seemed to have kept hold of this block.)

Side view of 614 Courtlandt Avenue (which is for sale at $800,000…and is the LAST landmark building for sale in Melrose)

Our Lady of Pity Roman Catholic Church – Closed as of 2007 when the Archdiocese of NY closed and merged parishes in an attempt to save money.

Facing West on East 151st Street between Morris and Courtlandt Avenues

Another building on East 151st Street…

…and another…

…and yet another!

Happy Constitution Day – Some Local History

Ed Garcia Conde

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September 17, 2009

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Happy Constitution Day – Some Local History

On September 17, 1787, the United States Constitution was adopted during the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia. This document which is considered as the “supreme law” of this Great Nation has guided our country throughout the last 222 years. Of notable, local interest one of our very own, Gouverneur Morris, signed this great document that has thus far passed the test of time. But his story does not end there.

Gouverneur Morris, who’s family estate was what is now known as the Morrisania section of The Bronx, is considered as “The Penman of the Constitution” as well as credited as the author of one of the most powerful words in United States History: “We the People of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union…” which as we all know is the preamble of the Constitution.

So on this day which celebrates the United States Constitution, let us not forget the great contribution of a great statesmen from what is now known as the South Bronx! Oh and did you know that his final resting place is in our very own St. Ann’s Episcopal Church in Mott Haven?

Habitat for Humanity Creates First "Green Roof" in the South Bronx

Longwood

Ed Garcia Conde

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September 17, 2009

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Habitat for Humanity Creates First "Green Roof" in the South Bronx

Habitat for Humanity, an organization dedicated to providing safe, decent and affordable shelter world wide has unveiled the first “green roof” in the South Bronx neighborhood of Longwood.

According to the Daily News article, the green roof is located in the new Fox-Legget Co-op Apartments (715 Fox Street) and is a, “…2,400-square-foot carpet of flowering sedum plants…”. The article goes on to say that it, “…will insulate the building from the summer sun and absorb an inch of rainfall.”

Habitat will construct 12 of the 50 cooperative units at Fox-Legget Co-op Apartments and will be constructed by the home owners themselves through “sweat-equity.”

All eyes are on this partnership between Habitat for Humanity and the project’s developer, Blue Sea Development Company, as it is the first project of its kind locally as well as nationally. Who knew the South Bronx would be so lucky as to receive this privilege! Blue Sea Development is no stranger here in Melrose as they developed 30 beautiful three family homes and again they thought outside the box in terms of architecture and what a lower to moderate income neighborhood home should look like.

So a big Melrose thank you to Habitat for Humanity as well as Blue Sea Development for thinking outside the box!

Melrose is Night Owl Friendly

News

Ed Garcia Conde

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September 17, 2009

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While many of the outer boroughs and their neighborhoods sleep at night, Melrose is abuzz with 24 hour activity. You may wonder, “What is open after midnight into the wee hours of the morning besides bodegas and fried chicken restaurants?” (not that there is anything wrong with the aforementioned establishments but sometimes one might want to eat something that won’t harden your arteries or ruin that figure you’ve worked so hard to achieve. The answer is quite a few.

There’s Lincoln Cafe, directly across from Lincoln Hospital on E 149th Street at the corner of Morris Avenue where you can get your sandwiches made to order and find a selection of healthy potato chip brands like Dirty Potato. On the next block right on E 149th Street between Morris and Courtlandt Avenues you have Dunkin Donuts and La Isla Restaurant specializing in Puerto Rican and Dominican dishes (ok so not necessarily healthy but they’re open if you need to get your fix at 3AM).

As you walk further down 149th Street and you pass a castle of a certain color that is open 24 hours (delicious but as unhealthy as it gets) you get to the Times Square-esque intersection (sans the bright lights, ads and billions of people) of 3rd Avenue/East 149th Street where Melrose Avenue begins as well as Willis Avenue. If you head North on Melrose past PeaceLove Cafe (sorry guys, not open in the wee hours) between E 152nd and E 153rd Street you will find Xochimilco Family Restaurant which is one of the best Mexican eateries in Melrose.

Although not open 24 hours, they do get an honorable mention since the kitchen is open until 12AM Sundays – Thursdays and on Fridays and Saturdays they are open until 4AM.

Walk 4 more blocks up North and you come upon King Gourmet Deli on Melrose and E 157th Street. King Gourmet Deli has a 24 hour deli counter where you can pretty much order anything you want including wraps.

These are just a small sample of what is available to our local night owls whether they live in Melrose or work here. More to come in the near future on 24 hour establishments.

Spotlight: PeaceLove Cafe in Melrose

News

Ed Garcia Conde

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September 16, 2009

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As some of you know by now, one of my favorite places to spend some free time, socialize with the locals and listen to live jazz is the new PeaceLove cafe located at 617 Melrose Avenue between E 151st and E 152nd Streets. After living in such neighborhoods as the East Village and Kips Bay in Manhattan and finally resettling back in the neighborhood that I was raised in, it is truly a great feeling that the first and only cafe of its kind in Melrose has opened.

PeaceLove is the brainchild of one of the South Bronx’s very own daughters, Darada David (owner and founder of PeaceLove), who was born and raised just a few blocks in nearby Betances Projects on East 143rd Street and St. Ann’s. Ms. David has spent all her life involved in the arts and music whether performing in bands, at church or as choir director. She also attended the famous LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts in Manhattan which further enriched her experience as an artist and musician.

So what exactly is PeaceLove Cafe? According to Darada, it is not only a dream but was a new years resolution this year to start her own business. She pursued her goal even after being rejected by the bank she has done business with for so many years as well as several well known lenders who told her about her business plan, “That’s nice but would “those” people want that in that neighborhood?” That and the fact that she knew The Bronx and the South Bronx needed a place like this only pushed her harder to proceed with her plans. “PeaceLove is a health food cafe…a place you can come in and relax, enjoy a cup of organic coffees and organic fair trade teas, home made salads, sandwiches, wraps while either surfing the Internet on one of the public laptops or listening to live jazz on certain evenings,” says Darada. She also goes on to say that she wants to change the environment where one socializes…in other words, provide options since most local places, “you either get too drunk (read: bars) or get sick after eating not-so-healthy food.”

So what are you waiting for? Come on over and enjoy the relaxing atmosphere that PeaceLove can provide you with. Oh and did I mention that they have homemade sweet potato pie made with all natural ingredients? Just the pie alone is worth the trip!

PeaceLove offers Live Jazz Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00PM and occasional Sunday Brunch performances at 3:00PM and coming soon: Poetry and Theatre nights! For more information contact PeaceLove at 347-577-6397 or simply email them at: PeaceLoveCafe@gmail.com

A big Melrose THANK YOU to PeaceLove for offering Melrose and the South Bronx what many other neighborhoods in Manhattan take for granted and a bigger THANKS to Darada David who took a leap of faith after her bank and several other lenders said “would “those” people want that in that neighborhood?”

Apartments for Rent in Melrose

Ed Garcia Conde

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September 16, 2009

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2 Apartments have opened up in a beautifully maintained Art Deco building on East 153rd Street at the corner of Melrose Avenue. Less than a 5 minute walk to the 2/5 express trains to midtown (and yes it DOES only take 15 minutes to get there EAST or WEST), a plethora of stores to shop in a block away on 3rd Avenue, tons of great local restaurants and a great cafe just a block away makes this studio apartment and 1 bedroom apartment a steal. The studio is currently listed for $895 and the 1 bedroom apartment is listed at just $975. For more information contact Tryax Management at 718-590-4311. At these prices, the units will not be on the market for long.

Studio Unit:

Boricua Village and the Rebirth of a Once Blighted Block

Apartments

Ed Garcia Conde

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September 14, 2009

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Boricua Village and the Rebirth of a Once Blighted Block

What was once one of the most iconic symbols of urban decay in Melrose is now slowly being resuscitated back to life with the creation of Boricua Village. Although the building is not part of the development proper, the old Bronx Courthouse will no longer sit amongst ruins and empty lots as it has been for decades now.

At 4.5 acres it is one of the largest construction projects in not only just Melrose but The Bronx as well. Boricua Village will feature a 14 story vertical campus which will be occupied by Boricua College and will be surrounded by open plazas, trees, an amphitheatre as well as 700 new units for low income and middle income families and approximately 50,000 square feet of retail.

According to Atlantic Development Group, the college will be home to 100 full-time faculty, 100 part-time faculty, 140 administrators and staff and estimated that it will generate approximately $15,000,000 in additional revenue for the Melrose area. That’s pretty impressive to have such a large economic engine to be housed in what was once one of the most blighter neighborhoods in The Bronx.

A big Melrose thank you to Boricua College, Atlantic Development Group and all who have the faith in Melrose and our great borough up North who have made this project possible. Oh and be sure to catch the neat marketing video of what Boricua Village should look like upon completion.

Now if only someone could purchase the Old Courthouse and turn it into yet another functioning building we can all be proud of. Hint, Hint!

New Building Now Accepting Applications

Apartments

Ed Garcia Conde

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September 13, 2009

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El Jardin de Seline at 779 Melrose Avenue (corner of East 158th Street) is now accepting applications for its 66 units. The building is a low to moderate income residence and according to the New York Real Estate Journal, El Jardin de Seline “will achieve a LEED Silver rating as well as being NYSERDA Energy Star certified and Enterprise Green Communities Compliant.” These ratings and certifications will be achieved through such amenities as green roofs at setbacks, solar panels on the roof of the building and bamboo flooring to name a few.

Watching this building rise above Melrose was a treat since I could see it wasn’t just a plain old building. A lot of care went into the design of the exterior including Art Deco motifs which as many of you know was a common style in

The Bronx during the glory years which gave our borough one of the largest collection of Art Deco architecture in the United States and the world. That being said, it is great to see such designs on mixed-income projects like Jardin de Seline and not just for upper-class residential buildings.

A special thanks to my fellow BoogieDowners

Ed Garcia Conde

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September 12, 2009

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A special thanks to my fellow BoogieDowners

A little over a year ago I decided that I wanted to let the world know that The Bronx was no longer that nightmare of a place that so many people had believed it to be. Everyone seemed to have given up hope on neighborhoods such as Melrose, Mott Haven, Port Morris and Morrisania but we never gave up on ourselves. Through organizations such as Nos Quedamos/We Stay and local community activists we were able to take control of our destiny as a neighborhood.

Why am I giving special thanks to my fellow BoogieDowners? Well because one fine day as I was searching for other blogs about The Bronx (there are quite a few) I stumbled upon their blog and I was so impressed and HAPPY that someone finally decided to put the word out about what a truly great borough we live in. Thanks to BoogieDowner, we now have a reliable place on the web to go to for what’s going on in the northernmost borough of good ol‘ NYC. It is updated daily sometimes even 2-3 times a day! What’s more is that I was IMPRESSED that they ARE NOT BRONX NATIVES!!! “What did you just say?” you ask yourself…so in short, yes, The Bronx is for EVERYONE. It is a borough that has a place for you regardless of your socio-economic background. We are truly an equal opportunity borough!

So a big THANKS to ErLu and crew for inspiring me to pursue a blog of my own!!!

In the beginning…

Melrose

Ed Garcia Conde

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September 11, 2009

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Well I’m finally doing what I’ve had sitting on the back burner for a few years and what my friends have been encouraging me to do for some time. Welcome to the Village of Melrose! It has been long overdue but now all you ever wanted to know about Melrose but were too afraid to ask will be featured here…well maybe not everything but I’ll pass what I know on to you.

This blog is dedicated to the people of Melrose, both living and deceased; to those who stayed through the toughest years of rubble strewn lots, abandoned buildings, drug wars, unbelieveable murder rates and those who fled; to the businesses who stayed in the neighborhood despite the odds and to those who fled; to the politicians who stayed by our side during our darkest hour and those who gave up hope on us.

Here’s to you Melrose! Like the great phoenix (yes I know it sounds cheesy but it’s true) Melrose stood proudly in its beginnings, literally burned to the ground throughout so many of its blocks and now we are rising tall and proud yet again.

So please join me…join US as we show you what Melrose has to offer.