Bedford Park, Bronx

The area now known as Bedford Park was mostly farmland outside the town of Kingsbridge, then an unincorporated suburb of New York City. The area began to be developed with the construction of the Jerome Park Racetrack, for thoroughbred horse racing, by Leonard Jerome and August Belmont, Sr. in 1866. Jerome Park Racecourse became the first home of the famous Belmont Stakes horse race, until 1890. To attract the wealthy to the racecourse, Leonard Jerome built what is today Jerome Avenue. The town of Kingsbridge was officially incorporated into New York City in 1874. Development continued with the completion of the Grand Concourse, a multilane thoroughfare, in 1914; and the extension of subway to the area with the IRT Jerome Avenue Line (present-day ) in 1917. The Grand Concourse saw a boom in housing construction in the post-World War I era. ==Demographics==

Based on data from the 2010 United States census, the population of Bedford Park was 54,415, a change of -914 (-1.7%) from the 55,329 counted in 2000. Covering an area of , the neighborhood had a population density of . The racial makeup of the neighborhood was 6.7% (3,637) White, 18% (9,805) African American, 0.3% (145) Native American, 5% (2,727) Asian, 0.1% (29) Pacific Islander, 0.9% (490) from other races, and 1.1% (623) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 67.9% (36,959) of the population. The entirety of Community District 7, which includes Bedford Park, Jerome Park, Fordham, Kingsbridge Heights and Norwood, had 148,163 inhabitants as of NYC Health's 2018 Community Health Profile, with an average life expectancy of 79.4 years. This is lower than the median life expectancy of 81.2 for all New York City neighborhoods. Most inhabitants are youth and middle-aged adults: 26% are between the ages of 0 and 17, 31% between 25 and 44, and 23% between 45 and 64. The proportions of college-aged and elderly residents were lower, at 11% and 9% respectively. In 2018, an estimated 26% of Bedford Park and Norwood residents lived in poverty, compared to 25% in all of the Bronx and 20% in all of New York City. One in seven residents (14%) were unemployed, compared to 13% in the Bronx and 9% in New York City. Rent burden, or the percentage of residents who have difficulty paying their rent, is 61% in Bedford Park and Norwood, compared to the boroughwide and citywide rates of 58% and 51% respectively. Based on this calculation, , Bedford Park and Norwood are considered low-income relative to the rest of the city and not gentrifying. Culture Bedford Park is home to people of many ethnicities including Korean, Indians, and Bangladeshis. Reflecting a population greatly composed of foreign-born immigrants, there are distinct ethnic enclaves in Bedford Park. Bedford Park's ethnic diversity manifests itself in an assortment of ways besides the formation of enclaves. Among the national symbols one may see strolling the neighborhood include the double-headed eagle (the emblem of Albania), the icon of Our Lady of Guadalupe (sacred to Catholic Mexicans), the shamrock of Ireland, the Arabic calligraphy of the shahadah (the Muslim profession of faith), or the coquí of Puerto Rico. A vast assortment of newspapers are sold in local convenience stores, including The Irish Echo, Albanian-language Bota Sot of Kosovo, and the Spanish-language local newspapers El Diario/La Prensa, and El Hoy. ==Land use and terrain==

Bedford Park is dominated by 5- or 6-story apartment buildings and three-story Victorian houses. The apartments on the Grand Concourse are often taller. Tracey Towers are two 41-story subsidized apartment buildings built close to the Jerome Park Reservoir. Designed by noted architect Paul Rudolph, they were completed in 1972 as a part of New York City's Mitchell Lama housing development initiative. The total land area is a little less than half a square mile. ==Politics==

In the 2016 Presidential election, most precincts in Bedford Park voted for the Democratic Party candidate, Hillary Clinton, over her Republican Party opponent Donald Trump. Bedford Park is in New York's 13th congressional district. Before redistricting in 2012, it used to be in New York's 16th district, which included the West Bronx and South Bronx; after redistricting, it includes parts of the northern Bronx and southern Westchester County. The district is represented by Adriano Espaillat . ==Police and crime==

Bedford Park is patrolled by the 52nd Precinct of the NYPD, located at 3016 Webster Avenue. The 52nd Precinct ranked 49th safest out of 69 patrol areas for per-capita crime in 2010. , with a non-fatal assault rate of 97 per 100,000 people, Bedford Park's rate of violent crimes per capita is greater than that of the city as a whole. The incarceration rate of 583 per 100,000 people is higher than that of the city as a whole. ==Fire safety==

Bedford Park contains a New York City Fire Department (FDNY) fire station, Engine Co. 79/Ladder Co. 37/Battalion 27, at 2928 Briggs Avenue. ==Health==

, preterm births are less common in Bedford Park and Norwood than in other places citywide, though births to teenage mothers are more common. In Bedford Park and Norwood, there were 85 preterm births per 1,000 live births (compared to 87 per 1,000 citywide), and 30.3 births to teenage mothers per 1,000 live births (compared to 19.3 per 1,000 citywide). ==Post offices and ZIP Codes==

Bedford Park is divided into two ZIP Codes. The area west of Grand Concourse is located within 10468, while the area east of Grand Concourse is in 10458. The United States Postal Service operates two post offices near Bedford Park: the Botanical Station at 2963 Webster Avenue and the Van Cott Station at 3102 Decatur Avenue. == Education ==

Bedford Park and Norwood generally have a lower rate of college-educated residents than the rest of the city . While 23% of residents age 25 and older have a college education or higher, 32% have less than a high school education and 45% are high school graduates or have some college education. By contrast, 26% of Bronx residents and 43% of city residents have a college education or higher. Bedford Park and Norwood's rate of elementary school student absenteeism is more than the rest of New York City. In Bedford Park and Norwood, 28% of elementary school students missed twenty or more days per school year, higher than the citywide average of 20%. The Convent of Mount St. Ursula is located on Bedford Park Boulevard and Bainbridge Avenue. It was established by a group of Roman Catholic nuns from the Ursuline order in 1892. The Academy of Mount St. Ursula High School, an all-girls prep-school, is located there today; the order is also associated with the St Philip Neri Elementary School. It recently celebrated its 150th anniversary with the class of 2005. The academy is now the oldest, all female Catholic school in New York state. One of the most notable places in the neighborhood is Lehman College, which was originally Hunter College's uptown campus. The Works Progress Administration built the original four buildings of the campus in grey stone in the Collegiate Gothic style, with finials, turrets, and other decorative features. Additional buildings, including the Lehman Library and Center for the Performing Arts, were added in the style of modern architecture. The newest building, the APEX, has facilities for athletics and dance. The scenic campus, which spans into Kingsbridge, has been used as a shooting location for episodes of the television series Law & Order and its spin-offs. Library The New York Public Library (NYPL) operates the Mosholu branch at 285 East 205th Street, next to Whalen Park. The branch opened in 1955 and contains two floors: a ground floor and a basement. The library hosts several programs, such as ESL for Non-English Speaking Adults and kids programs. The library contains a well stocked children area and brightly lit adult reading area. ==Religion==

Among Bedford Park's oldest buildings are its churches and other religious institutions. The oldest church in the area, Bedford Park Congregational Church at the corner of Bainbridge Avenue and East 201st Street, dates to 1882. Its American Queen Anne-style design hints at Bedford Park's origin as a small rural community. It was designated a City Landmark in 2000. (New York City Landmarks Commission 2005) On the Grand Concourse lies the Roman Catholic Church of St. Philip Neri (Bronx, New York). The church was dedicated to the Italian saint due to its origin as a church for immigrant Italian laborers, who also worked on the construction of the Jerome Park Reservoir. The cornerstone of the church (dated 1899) was in fact quarried from what became Jerome Park Reservoir, and brought there by a horse-drawn carriage. (Greene 2002) When built and for many years thereafter, this parish served an Italian and Irish congregation. On June 13, 1997, the church suffered a massive fire, and was given major renovation into the mid-2000s. ==Transportation==

Rail The following New York City Subway stations serve Bedford Park: • Bedford Park Boulevard–Lehman College () • Mosholu Parkway station () • Bedford Park Boulevard station () The Metro-North Railroad's Harlem Line also serves Bedford Park via the Botanical Garden station. Roads The most notable roads in the area include Jerome Avenue, Grand Concourse, Bedford Park Boulevard, Sedgwick Avenue, and Mosholu Parkway. • is a part limited access, part surface highway that is the main east–west arterial through the neighborhood, and acts as the northern border of Bedford Park. The limited access section ends at an intersection with Gun Hill Road and Goulden Avenue on the border between Bedford Park and Van Cortlandt Park. • Jerome Avenue is one of two main north–south arterials through Bedford Park. The Jerome Avenue elevated () runs above Jerome Avenue. • Grand Concourse is the other main north–south arterial through Bedford Park, and is the widest street in the neighborhood. The Concourse subway () runs below Grand Concourse. • Sedgwick Avenue is an east–west divided avenue that connects the Mosholu Parkway with the Major Deegan Expressway (I-87). • Bedford Park Boulevard, the road most commonly associated with the neighborhood thanks to its name, is the main business district in Bedford Park. While not a major road, it is still an east–west arterial that serves as a slower alternate to the Mosholu Parkway. It is also served by two of the three subway stations in the neighborhood. Other smaller but still noteworthy streets in Bedford Park include Goulden Avenue, which runs north–south along the Jerome Reservoir; Gun Hill Road, a major street that clips the corner of the neighborhood; Webster Avenue, which is just over the border in Bronx Park; and 198th Street, which is just across the border in Kingsbridge. Buses The following MTA Regional Bus Operations bus routes serve Bedford Park: • Bx1: to Riverdale and Third Avenue–138th Street station () (via Grand Concourse) • Bx2: to Kingsbridge Heights and Third Avenue–138th Street station () (via Grand Concourse) • Bx10: to Riverdale and Norwood–205th Street station () (via Riverdale Avenue) • Bx22: to Castle Hill (via Castle Hill Avenue). Bus terminates in Bedford Park. • Bx25, Bx26: to Co-op City (via Allerton Avenue). Bus terminates in Bedford Park. • Bx28, Bx38: to Co-op City and Fordham (via Gun Hill Road) • Bx34: to Woodlawn and Fordham (via Bainbridge Avenue) • Bx41, Bx41 SBS: to Gun Hill Road station () and Third Avenue–149th Street station () (via Webster Avenue) Bedford Park is also served by the following Bee-Line Bus System routes to Westchester County, New York: • BL20 and BL21: to White Plains (via Jerome Avenue and Central Avenue) • BL4: to Yonkers (via McLean Avenue) == See also ==