Why is the construction of expressways in The Bronx so frequently blamed for low neighborhood quality? (Ridge: middle-class, best neighborhoods)
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If you look at a map of The Bronx, there is no correlation between proximity to an expressway and how good the neighborhood is.
Some of the worst neighborhoods in The Bronx are actually furthest from the expressways, like Melrose and Morissania. The nicest part of Mott Haven is close to the Brucker Blvd, while the further out parts were mostly destroyed by arson in the 70s.
Expressways go through Kingsbridge and Throggs Neck, which are among the best neighborhoods in The Bronx. The other East Bronx neighborhoods the expressways go through aren't bad either.
Of course, the expressway does bring quality of life issues like noise and pollution. But I don't buy that it's responsible for the social ills of The Bronx, either in the 70s or now.
I can't speak specifically for the Bronx as I've never heard of these arguments.
Generally speaking the argument that highway construction demolished entire neighborhoods unraveled the social fabric that held cities together. Look to the destruction of Italian and other ethnic neighborhoods in places like Newark NJ where the displaced households simply left the area. As they left the dominos kept falling and more residents left leaving neighborhoods to refill empty apartments with whomever they could find. The interstate highway system has been labelled as one big factor in the white flight exodus from northeast cities.
I can't speak specifically for the Bronx as I've never heard of these arguments.
Generally speaking the argument that highway construction demolished entire neighborhoods unraveled the social fabric that held cities together. Look to the destruction of Italian and other ethnic neighborhoods in places like Newark NJ where the displaced households simply left the area. As they left the dominos kept falling and more residents left leaving neighborhoods to refill empty apartments with whomever they could find. The interstate highway system has been labelled as one big factor in the white flight exodus from northeast cities.
East Harlem white flighted too. and there's no highway there besides the FDR/Harlem River Drive which doesn't split up the neighborhood. Ditto Bushwick, Bed Stuy, Flatbush, etc. and a lot of other neighborhoods not split up by expressways.
"As a result of this mass relocation the economy of the Bronx suffered immensely. The South Bronx area lost over 600,000 manufacturing jobs. Youth unemployment rose to 40 percent and in some areas as high as 80 percent. The most devastating affect of the Cross Bronx Expressway took place when the newly built apartment buildings passed into the hands of slumlords. These people used many different tactics such as demanding more money when they shut off heat and water supply to the tenants. Another tactic that the slumlords used proved to be the most effective and profitable for them. They would find junkies and rent-a-thugs to set fire to abandoned apartments and then they would collect the insurance polices from the city. "
And some of the nicest neighborhoods (Riverdale, Pelham Bay...) are also separated by a highway, so I really can’t see the correlation. Kingsbridge has the major Deagan and is really nice.
What I noticed as a recurrent pattern though, is that humans will always find a culprit and usually it always has to be blamed on a «*higher power*». So why not blame the construction of such an evil mean of transportation?
Some of the richest Queens neighborhoods are also split in half by a highway and nothing bad happened.
Like come on, how the hell was the Cross-Bronx responsible for degrading living conditions in Mott Haven and how did it NOT impact North of the Cross Bronx in Parkchester?
I understand all these explanations but it just sounds weird.
And some of the nicest neighborhoods (Riverdale, Pelham Bay...) are also separated by a highway, so I really can’t see the correlation. Kingsbridge has the major Deagan and is really nice.
What I noticed as a recurrent pattern though, is that humans will always find a culprit and usually it always has to be blamed on a «*higher power*». So why not blame the construction of such an evil mean of transportation?
Some of the richest Queens neighborhoods are also split in half by a highway and nothing bad happened.
Like come on, how the hell was the Cross-Bronx responsible for degrading living conditions in Mott Haven and how did it NOT impact North of the Cross Bronx in Parkchester?
I understand all these explanations but it just sounds weird.
Exactly. And the Bronx River + New England Thruway also go through nice neighborhoods.
Melrose is nowhere near the expressway and Mott Haven is only near the Bruckner in its Southern part (which is the nicest part of Mott Haven).
When I saw your question the first thing that popped into mind is the air quality. We can see how the pollution from expressways/factories impact the health of the residents in the area=higher asthma rates.
East Harlem white flighted too. and there's no highway there besides the FDR/Harlem River Drive which doesn't split up the neighborhood. Ditto Bushwick, Bed Stuy, Flatbush, etc. and a lot of other neighborhoods not split up by expressways.
Missing my point.
Highway construction literally destroyed neighborhoods and the displaced didn't stick around. A long term impact was highways made travel into the city easier from distant suburbs. Bronx was perhaps the hardest hit borough by the 'white flight' exodus and highways were a factor. Middle class Bronx residents saw the opportunity to live the American dream in the suburbs and take the new interstate highway system into downtown jobs. Partly why so many residential neighborhoods in the immediate vicinity of NYC fell to ****.
As for now ... eh ... there are growing legions of anti-car people. They just don't like highways or personal vehicles.
The Cross-Bronx cut through a part of the Bronx with older housing stock, including many already less desirable walk-up apartment buildings. Moses treated the neighborhood people like dirt. He set up a 'relocation' office with just one phone line to discourage callers. That neighborhood was in decline already. Maybe the Cross-Bronx accelerated that decline but there were tons of other factors.
The new expressways didn't damage neighborhoods like Throggs Neck, Riverdale or Bay Ridge because they had a better housing stock to begin with. Modern elevator apartment buildings filled with middle-class renters and well-kept 1,2 and 3-family homes.
If you look at a map of The Bronx, there is no correlation between proximity to an expressway and how good the neighborhood is.
Some of the worst neighborhoods in The Bronx are actually furthest from the expressways, like Melrose and Morissania. The nicest part of Mott Haven is close to the Brucker Blvd, while the further out parts were mostly destroyed by arson in the 70s.
Expressways go through Kingsbridge and Throggs Neck, which are among the best neighborhoods in The Bronx. The other East Bronx neighborhoods the expressways go through aren't bad either.
Of course, the expressway does bring quality of life issues like noise and pollution. But I don't buy that it's responsible for the social ills of The Bronx, either in the 70s or now.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Robert.Dinero
And some of the nicest neighborhoods (Riverdale, Pelham Bay...) are also separated by a highway, so I really can’t see the correlation. Kingsbridge has the major Deagan and is really nice.
What I noticed as a recurrent pattern though, is that humans will always find a culprit and usually it always has to be blamed on a «*higher power*». So why not blame the construction of such an evil mean of transportation?
Some of the richest Queens neighborhoods are also split in half by a highway and nothing bad happened.
Like come on, how the hell was the Cross-Bronx responsible for degrading living conditions in Mott Haven and how did it NOT impact North of the Cross Bronx in Parkchester?
I understand all these explanations but it just sounds weird.
You have to understand the history of the Bronx to get it. When the Bronx was developed, it was supposed to be an "escape" from dirty, overcrowded Manhattan for a more "suburban" environment for the middle class, and in the early 1900s, that was the case. People that wanted to escape Manhattan, or "made it", or were moving into the middle class moved to the Bronx. It was safe, new housing built specifically for the middle class with better amenities, more space and all of that. It was like Westchester is today, but just in the City (remember that the Bronx was part of Westchester back in the day).
Robert Moses rammed in bridges and expressways in some cases purposely to destroy and segregate neighborhoods, and this happened in the Bronx as well. It destroyed neighborhoods. You can't see it because you don't have an expressway being built by you, but imagine the noise and how many buildings had to be demolished to build these expressways, so yes, it did destroy numerous neighborhoods.
Riverdale was different because most of it consisted of large estates back then. With the arrival of the Henry Hudson Parkway, large doorman buildings started to replace large estates, though many of the estates still exist today, so it really came down to how developed some areas were at the time.
The expressways in some areas just accelerated the decline of some areas of the Bronx because by this time, some areas were being integrated, which meant some whites started to leave and you had buildings that were now older that needed repair. Landlords, seeing what was going on realized they wouldn't be able to get the rents and money they needed and threw in the towel.
I would also argue that part of this was due to the push to get people to move to the suburbs. As the housing stock in some parts of Bronx aged, people started to move out to Westchester, which was essentially the "new Bronx", with better housing stock and even more space.
Last edited by pierrepont7731; 02-02-2021 at 07:53 AM..
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