East Morrisania, Bronx

East Morrisania is a low income residential neighborhood geographically located in the southwest Bronx. The neighborhood is part of Bronx Community Board 3. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise are: the Cross-Bronx Expressway to the north, the Bronx River to the east, East 167th Street to the south, and Crotona–Prospect Avenue to the west. Southern Boulevard is the primary thoroughfare through East Morrisania. Zip codes include 10459 and 10460. The area is patrolled by the 42nd Precinct located at 830 Washington Ave in Morrisania. NYCHA property in the area is patrolled by P.S.A. 7 at 737 Melrose Avenue in the Melrose section of the Bronx.

Demographics

East Morrisania has a population over 30,000. For decades East Morrisania has been one of the poorest communities in America. Over half the population lives below the poverty line and receives public assistance. The majority of residents in the area are of Puerto Rican or African American descent. The vast majority of households are renter occupied. [ [http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/pdf/lucds/bx3profile.pdf Bronx Community District 3] ]

Land use and terrain

East Morrisania is dominated by tenement buildings, older multi-unit homes, vacant lots, public housing projects, and newly constructed subsidized attached multi-unit townhouses and apartment buildings. Most of the original housing stock was structurally damaged by arson and eventually razed by the city. The total land area is less than a square mile. The terrain is somewhat hilly.

Low income public housing projects

*There are eight NYCHA properties located in East Morrisania. [ [http://www.nyc.gov/html/nycha/html/home/home.shtml NYCHA] ]
# Bryant Avenue-East 174th Street; one, 6-story building.
# East 173rd Street-Vyse Avenue; seven buildings, 3-stories tall.
# Hoe Avenue-East 173rd Street; one, 6-story building.
# Murphy Houses; two, 20-story buildings.
# Prospect Avenue M.H.O.P. (Multi Family Homeownership Program); one, rehabilitated 5-story tenement building.
# West Farms Square Rehab; four rehabilitated tenement buildings, 6-stories tall.
# West Farms Square (Conventional); one, 5-story rehabilitated tenement building.
# West Farms Square M.H.O.P. (Multi Family Homeownership Program); two rehabilitated tenement buildings, 5 and 6-stories tall.

History

From 1670, the land of the neighborhood was the estate of the Morris family in Westchester County.

In the 1970s, East Morrisania and many other low income sections of the New York City were being ravaged by arson. By the 1980s, the South Bronx had become a national symbol of urban decay. Community groups such as Banana Kelly and SEBCO (Southeast Bronx Community Organization) were helping to maintain existing buildings which were structurally intact after fires. They played a pivotal role in the construction of subsidized multi-family homes and apartment buildings in most of East Morrisania.

ocial problems

Many social problems associated with poverty from crime to drug addiction have plagued the area for some time. Despite crime declines versus their peaks during the crack and heroin epidemics violent crime continues to be a serious problem in the community. [http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/downloads/pdf/crime_statistics/cs042pct.pdf 42nd Precinct CompStat Report] ] East Morrisania has significantly higher drop out rates and incidents of violence in its schools. [http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/fea/20060320/202/1792 NYC Dropout Rates] ] Students must pass through metal detectors and swipe ID cards to enter the buildings. Reminiscent a prison environment which many feel encourages bad behavior. Other problems in local schools include low test scores and high truancy rates. Drug addiction is also a serious problem in the community. Due to the lucrative drug trade in the area many addicted reside in the community. Peer pressure among children who come from broken homes contributes to the high rate of usage. Many households in the area are headed by a single mother which contributes to the high poverty rate. [ [http://www.lehman.cuny.edu/deannss/bronxdatactr/discover/bxtext.htm Bronx Census Data Analysis] ] Many of whom had their children at a very young age and unfortunately could not provide for their children. Many of the families living in East Morrisania have been in poverty for generations. The incarceration rate in the area is also very high. [ [http://www.wnyc.org/blog/lehrer/archives/archive/NYC%20Analysis-9%20copy2.gifNYC Prison Expenditure] ] Many if not most males in the community have been arrested at some point in their lives. This has a direct correlation to aggressive policing tactics including "sweeps" due to the area's high crime rate. East Morrisania is home to a significant number of inmates currently held in New York state prison and jail facilities.

Urban renewal

After a wave of arson ravaged the low income communities of New York City throughout the 1970s, most residential structures in East Morrisania were left seriously damaged or destroyed. The city began to rehabilitate many formally abandoned tenement style apartment buildings and designate them low income housing beginning in the late 1970s. Also many subsidized attached multi-unit townhouses and newly constructed apartment buildings have been or are being built on vacant lots across across the neighborhood.

chools

*PS 50: Clara Barton (East 172nd Street and Vyse Avenue)
*PS 61/MS 190: Francisco Oller (Charlotte Street and Crotona Park East)
*PS 66: Daniel Boone (Jennings Street and Boone Avenue)
*PS 134: George Frederic Bristow (Freeman and Bristow Streets)
*MS 98: Herman Ridder (East 173rd Street and Boston Road)

Transportation

*Bx11: to Simpson Street station or George Washington Bridge Bus Terminal (via 170th Street–Claremont Parkway)
*Bx17: to Fordham Plaza or Port Morris (via Prospect–Crotona Avenues)
*Bx19: to New York Botanical Gardens or Riverbank State Park (via 149th Street–Southern Boulevard)
*Bx21: to Westchester Square station or Third Avenue–138th Street station (via Boston Road–Morris Park Avenue)
*Bx35: to Simpson Street station or George Washington Bridge Bus Terminal (via 167th Street)
*Bx36: to Castle Hill or George Washington Bridge Bus Terminal (via 180th Street)
*Freeman Street station (NYCS White Plains local)
*174th Street station (NYCS White Plains local)

Facts

*East Morrisania is also known as Crotona Park East.
*East Morrisania is the site of the infamous Charlotte Street, which then-President Jimmy Carter visited, declaring the South Bronx to be the worst neighborhood in the United States.
*The 1981 film, "Fort Apache, The Bronx was filmed in the area.
*The subsidized homes built along Charlotte Street during the late 1980s in East Morrisania were the first and still are the only ranch style homes in the South Bronx today. This type of housing was selected due to its desirable traits. Today they are home to many African American and Puerto Rican families.
*East Morrisania is considered part of the socioeconomic South Bronx.

Notable natives

*Former New York City mayor Ed Koch was raised in East Morrisania.

References