Bronx area - Fordham/Kingsbridge (Webster, Bedford: groceries, vs., stores)

[Freak]

From what I've read on here, Riverdale has good schools and possibly something to meet our housing needs. Woodlawn and Van Cortlandt Village also seem to be safe, but I'm not sure about schools. Are there any other pockets in the Bronx with decent schools that might work for us? Thanks.

The best choice would be Riverdale, it'll get you the best for your budget. It's an upper-middle class neighborhood and one of the most family oriented neighborhoods in the city.

Van Cortlandt Village is more of a regular middle class neighborhood among the ethnics, but the recent Yuppies who have moved to the neighborhood are making it an upper middle class neighborhood, but no where near the standard of Riverdale. Although there are some families in the neighborhood, it's really not a family oriented place (I was raised here and was bored to tears. When I learned to drive two years ago I was grateful), unless you can get an Amalgamated coop (those are hard to get). The local school, PS 95 is facing severe over-crowding but the Amalgamated program seems to be setting up a new school next to it.

Woodlawn is extremely working class, if anything, but it's the Irish enclave of the city. Since your generations off the boat you probably wouldn't fit in well.

[mead]

Riverdale is a good choice, but can her husband take the bus to Fordham from Riverdale? Maybe the 9? Even if he could take the bus is that really the best idea? There are some sketchy neighborhoods in between Riverdale and Fordham.

Fordhambound, are you coming from Chicago itself, or the suburbs of Chicago? Fordham is actually located next to MetroNorth's Fordham stop. You can take that line from Manhattan all the way up to White Plains. So you could look into Westchester, but all of the towns along the line are pretty suburban. With a budget of around $2,000 you're probably not going to find a 2 br in any nice areas of Manhattan.

I like Riverdale though, its a very nice area. It is also well within your budget. Check out some of the buildings around 235th/236th and Johnson Ave. North Riverdale is also pretty nice, but more suburban.

Just remember that the Bronx is a weird area. Most of the Bronx is pretty crazy, most people don't want anything to do with it, but there are little pockets skattered throughout the borough that are nice.

The only other thing in the city that I can think of are some of the neighborhoods in Western Queens where you can take the subway into Manhattan and then transfer to a Bronx-bound 4 going to Fordham. Places like Astoria/Sunnyside would fit that mold. I don't know what the schools are like there in those areas though. I'm guessing you'll probably have to use parochial schools if you end up in that area of Queens.

[FordhamBound]

Thanks Freak and Mead.

Mead, we're coming from an older suburb immediately adjacent to Chicago. I believe Westchester or other relatively more suburban living would be closer to what we're accustomed to. My initial impression is that Westchester is quite expensive in any areas where the schools are also very good, although Eastchester/Tuckahoe seem to receive some reports of being more affordable with good schools. Our older child is just getting ready for kindergarten and both of the kids seem really bright and so we don't want them in a bad school where there'll be too bored or not given the opportunity to rise to their abilities.

We have indeed been curious as to how to best get from Riverdale to Fordham on public transportation. Fordham U indicates that a good number of their grad students live in Riverdale so we thought there must be a decent way to get back and forth to the campus.

[Songbird42]

I believe that the Amalgamated Housing has a three year wait, but the maintenance has gone way up, plus parking also gone up. Plus they have a couple of serious problems in the one tower, known as wet walls, everytime it rains the water comes through the walls, we have lived with this the whole time we lived there, maintenance is constantly coming in to repair the walls and its too costly to really fix the situation and there's no discount for having to deal with this on a daily basis. All the apts on the one side of the building has this problem.:

[Freak]

I hope Mead didn't scare you away from the Bronx. He has a point, most of the Bronx is bad. However, neigborhoods like Woodlawn and Riverdale are always going to be excellent. Van Cortlandt Village has gone from good to great in recent years. Basically, the Northwest Bronx is probably the best section of the Bronx and it's been like that for decades. There are several good neighborhoods in the east Bronx currently on a decline, and most of the ghettos are staying ghettos in the Central, Southern, and Northeast Bronx. I'd avoid those.

You can commute from Riverdale to Fordham several ways. Take the 9, the 1, or the 10 and transfer to the 1/2.

Public Schools throughout the city are far from great, but Riverdale public schools are among the few good ones. If you can afford to send your kids to private school.

[Pete Piper]

FordhamBound: Woodlawn and Riverdale public elementary schools are very good. I don't think those in Van Cortlandt Village are as highly rated. PS 280 in Norwood is another highly regarded school. I believe it is or will shortly be K-8. If you are interested, you can look at insideschools.org for a zone map. It's a pretty nice neighborhood, but I believe not white enough for most people on this forum to recommend. From this location your wife could walk to Fordham in 15-20 minutes. 4 and D train (to east and west side of Manhattan) are close by. Although Riverdale schools are very good, commuting to Fordham by bus would be hellish in my opinion. I am getting very experienced with buses as my piece of s*** car has recently gone to the great beyond, and we don't plan to get another at the moment. Personally, I'd avoid the bus for your daily commute if possible. Most are too crowded and unreliable. The commute from Woodlawn would be quick on the Metro North, but at non rush hour times trains only arrive once every hour. I don't know if you plan to have a car, but a commute from Riverdale would be much better that way, and very easy from Woodlawn as well. I'd definately recommend having a car in Woodlawn, and probably Riverdale too. For the suburbs, a car is an absolute necessity.

[mead]

Honestly if you're from the burbs I don't know if moving to the Bronx, especially with kids is the best idea. Eastchester is really nice, so is Tuckahoe.

If you're looking for a cheap place in Eastchester check out some of the co-ops on Garth Road. Garth Road is right next to downtown Scarsdale, but is zoned for Eastchester's Schools. It is a big Co-op development built way back when in the 1920s/1930s. Parking is pretty rough around there, but beyond that it is a really nice area.

Tuckahoe is also very nice, but to be honest I'm not as familiar with Tuckahoe as I am with Eastchester. Either Tuckahoe or Eastchester are fine. Both have good public schools and good access to the MetroNorth line. From there your husband can get off at the Fordham station and take a short walk onto Fordham University's campus.

Originally Posted by FordhamBound

Thanks Freak and Mead.

Mead, we're coming from an older suburb immediately adjacent to Chicago. I believe Westchester or other relatively more suburban living would be closer to what we're accustomed to. My initial impression is that Westchester is quite expensive in any areas where the schools are also very good, although Eastchester/Tuckahoe seem to receive some reports of being more affordable with good schools. Our older child is just getting ready for kindergarten and both of the kids seem really bright and so we don't want them in a bad school where there'll be too bored or not given the opportunity to rise to their abilities.

We have indeed been curious as to how to best get from Riverdale to Fordham on public transportation. Fordham U indicates that a good number of their grad students live in Riverdale so we thought there must be a decent way to get back and forth to the campus.

[NooYowkur81]

Well I think Riverdale would be perfect, if its within their budget.

Fordham U is in Fordham the neighborhood, so there is no way to really avoid seeing the darker sides of the Bronx. Although the Fordham Metro station is literally across the street from the Fordham campus.

I checked it out, there is a metro north Riverdale stop, but you have to go to 125th and then transfer to the one that goes to Fordham. Don't know how long or how nice a commute that would be. Probably be better off taking the subway or driving.

[Freak]

Fordham U is in the section of Fordham that's heavily watched by police and cameras and it's always crowded, so don't worry. Surrounding areas can be a hell but if you take the bus/train you'll be fine.

[yodel]

I don't want to start this whole discussion again, but Fordham is way better than when I was a student there many moons ago. It has it's advantages such as being a transportation hub, the borough branch library, close to the zoo and Botanical Gardens.

Fordham Road is very ugly though, although side streets have some great architecture. No projects, but there's a lot of poverty. Crime is still a problem there, but not like it was when I was a student. Similiar to Washington Heights in look and feel.

Actually I think the Fordham-Kingsbridge area has a lot going for it. I hope to see it improve in the future.