Drugs still a problem in Fordham-Bedford (Morris, Columbus: rent, work, universities)

[Concept]

Originally Posted by rlrl

I was reading the article that talks about dealers on Bainbridge and 198th. That's right at the MSU campus. The blight is spreading upward it seems

spreading to 198th ? uhh, its been there for ages. the blvd is infested. like i said in another post, its finito. i go thru there on weekends and see packs of kids hangin on virtually every corner. they aint waitin for buses to head off for nightime classes, i can assure u that.

the drug problem is spreading up to mosholu if anything, there are blocks like hull av that look no different from the south bronx. moshulu's days r numbered, we'll be talkin about it in five yrs like we do bedford pk now.

[DAS]

no question, theres agents and flippers roaming on this site that try to mislead folks. kill the hype ok, theres enough straightshooters here to call u on ur bs.

Thankfully. I have seen places recommended on here that I know are dangerous. I have personally witnessed a shootout on a corner of an area that has been recommended over and over on this site. It is not true that you have to be involved in something to be a victim. I was standing across the street having a conversation with someone on my way some place. It was broad daylight, on a beautiful spring day. A young police officer was right on that corner when bullets rang out and next thing anyone would know 4 people were laying out on the street and the young police officer was ducking between some cars and calling in for backup. This incident never made the papers.

Most people living in these areas are forced to because of economic reasons. I would not go recommending this areas to anyone.

[yodel]

South of Bedford Park Blvd. has had a drug problem for a long time—it isn’t a new phenomenon. Also, it’s worth noting that violent crime has fallen dramatically in this neighborhood over the years. I tend to stay around or north of Bedford Park Blvd., but I don’t think it’s dangerous to walk around that area during the day. It’s worth noting that the reason the community is trying to publicize this problem is that the police do not take it seriously. One article said the neighborhood is like Amsterdam, because the police almost treat this behavior as if it were legal, and that they are not pursuing the issue because there is no “victim” to speak of and making drug arrests would bring up their numbers.

For the record, I do think the area has a lot going for it and would not write it off so easily, as other neighborhoods with similar issues have turned around. Also, having lived around BPB since 2004, I’ve seen definitely more improvement and investment since I’ve moved here, and have not seen the drug problems migrating north.

[DAS]

South of Bedford Park Blvd. has had a drug problem for a long time—it isn’t a new phenomenon.

You are correct about this fact. Even though some posters claim there were no crime problems in the area way back in the day, when the Fordham area was mostly Italian, this was definitely not the case. In late 50's and early 60's the singer Dionne DiMucci grew up in the area and had no problem buying heroin in the area, and even though they got into fist fights he still brought singer Frankie Lyman from Washington Heights up there to buy heroin also, because the quality of the drugs were better up in the Fordham area. So while it may not have been as out in the open back then the problem has continued and worsened through the generations.

[rlrl]

I remember Valentine Ave especially like around 198th, 197th, 196th especially was always bad. 20 years ago I would pass by there and it was always the same scene--radios blaring, people sitting on cars, graffiti, kids being held by their mothers hangouts, etc. By contrast I always thought Bainbridge was quieter around 196th and north and therefore better. But based on what posters respond to me, apparently not...

[Guywithacause]

Why is this a newsflash for anyone? Guess what..NYC....ALL OF NYC...has a serious drug problem...as does MOST of the country! It is jus more visible in places like Fordham...but it is everywhere.

Nobody claims the place is a paradise, or is a wonderful place to retire. It is an area that has an entrenched drug culture..and guess what...these are the people that are supplying drugs to those "wonderful" residents in the "great" neighborhoods like the Upper East Side, Upper West Side, etc. So the problem is everywhere...it is just blatant there.

When you live in this city....you live around the drugs, the crime, the poverty, the litter, and the oftentimes foul mouthed people. However, you also live around all the GREAT things about this city..like the great transportation, food, culture, diversity, broadway, parks, universities, the wealthy, and opportunities for everyone....so let's be fair and reasonable with our assessments.

Fordham is not perfect,....and neither is the city for that matter. You take the good with the bad...Fordham is a work in progress..and although alot of changes have occured, and are still occurring, some things take longer than others. But the fact remains that the area HAS improved..and it IS improving.

[apvbguy]

Originally Posted by Guywithacause

Why is this a newsflash for anyone? Guess what..NYC....ALL OF NYC...has a serious drug problem....

newsflash, in most places the drug trade is not so out in the open, in your face like it is there and in many bronx areas. You could go to for example sunnyside queens and you won't find groups of thugs everywhere in the streets openly dealing drugs like you'll find there.
You are so conditioned to accept things like this as being the norm that a truly normal place is an aberration to you

[rlrl]

Curious--what percentage of people walking or standing on the streets in Fordham Bedford have criminal intent, and what percentage of people who officially reside in the buildings(via lease agreement for example) on those same streets are involved in commiting street crimes in the same area?

I'm trying to get a sense about what is more dangerous, the streets or the buildings?

Are people told not to live there because the streets are too dangerous, or is it just as bad inside the buildings or worse to be a tenant there?

[DAS]

Curious--what percentage of people walking or standing on the streets in Fordham Bedford have criminal intent, and what percentage of people who officially reside in the buildings(via lease agreement for example) on those same streets are involved in commiting street crimes in the same area?

That is a good question. I don't have the answer someone else may have.

I'm trying to get a sense about what is more dangerous, the streets or the buildings?

When you are living in an area like that what goes on in the streets affects what goes on in the buildings. If the drug dealers didn't have any clients they wouldn't be there.

Are people told not to live there because the streets are too dangerous, or is it just as bad inside the buildings or worse to be a tenant there?

The rents for new tenants in these buildings are probably similiar to other better areas in the city. Why move there?

[yodel]

I’m sure the vast majority of people living in Fordham are going about their lives and their business not involved in the drug trade, and that some blocks are better than others and some buildings are better than others. It is very inexpensive relative to the city, and I’m sure there are worse areas as far as personal safety. Just like anyone deciding where to live, residents weigh the pros and cons, price, access etc. There is such a low vacancy rate in the city, not everyone can pick up and move to the three or four Bronx neighborhoods that are recommended on this forum.