Pelham Bay (neighborhood), Bronx: Difference between revisions

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Location of Pelham Bay in New York City

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Pelham Bay neighborhood highlighted in red

Pelham Bay is an affluent, upper middle class, and somewhat wealthy residential neighborhood in the borough of the Bronx, in New York City. It is named for Pelham Bay Park, New York City's largest park, which lies on the neighborhood's northeastern border; and for Pelham Bay, a body of water in that park.

History

Zulette Avenue in Pelham Bay

Most of the neighborhood is land that was purchased by Thomas Pell in 1654, part of an original grant to the Dutch West India Company.

Despite the name, the area that is now the Pelham Bay neighborhood was not part of the historical Town of Pelham, which consisted of the modern-day town of Pelham in Westchester County as well as Pelham Bay Park and City Island in the Bronx. The latter two areas were annexed by the City of New York in 1895.

Geography

Griswold & Research avenues in the Country Club section

A civic promotional sign for the neighborhood, located on Westchester Avenue

Pelham Bay's boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise, are as follows:

• Pelham Parkway to the north
• Bruckner Expressway to the east and south
• Hutchinson River Parkway to the west

Pelham Bay includes the residential enclave of Country Club, which occupies the portion of the neighborhood east of Interstate 95 (I-95). The core of Pelham Bay is the portion west of I-95 and north of Middletown Road.

Community profile

Pelham Bay is part of Bronx Community Board 10, which also covers Throgs Neck and Co-op City. Pelham Bay is home to a large Italian and Hispanic population. Alongside Riverdale and Country Club, Pelham Bay is one of the top and safest neighborhoods in the Bronx. It was ranked as the best neighborhood for kids in the Bronx and top 10 neighborhood in the whole New York City.

A variety of stores and eateries line the streets of this neighborhood, including Westchester Avenue, Buhre Avenue, Middletown Road, and Crosby Avenue (these two cross to form one of the main intersections of the neighborhood). Pelham Bay Park is the last stop on the IRT Pelham Line (6 and <6>​ trains) of the New York City Subway system. The line has two other stops as well in the neighborhood, the Buhre Avenue and Middletown Road stops on the Pelham Line. The IRT Pelham Line was immortalized in the movie The Taking of Pelham One Two Three, starring Walter Matthau, which involved the hijacking of a subway train leaving Pelham Bay Park Station at the scheduled time of 1:23.

The neighborhood is home to the elementary schools Public School 71 (named the Rose E. Scala School to honor a former principal) and Public School 14 (named the John D. Calandra School to honor a former State Senator), as well as to Herbert H. Lehman High School (right on the neighborhood's border). Several private and parochial schools also serve the neighborhood, including the Roman Catholic elementary schools associated with the churches of Our Lady of the Assumption and St. Theresa. The neighborhood is home to a number of active civic and community associations, including the Pelham Bay Little League.

Arnow Place, a small street between Westchester Avenue and the New England Thruway (I-95) in Pelham Bay, was the site of the December 2005 shooting death of off-duty police officer, Daniel Enchautegui. Actor Lillo Brancato and an accomplice were charged with murder in the case. In 2006, the street was renamed Daniel Enchautegui Way, in honor of the fallen police officer.

Demographics

The neighborhood is home to longstanding Italian, Irish, Greek and German populations with a recent influx of Hispanics changing the neighborhoods demographics considerably.

Pelham Bay has a population of around 14,594 people. It is a white majority neighborhood with around 60-65% of the population of Pelham Bay being non-Hispanic white, while around 30% are of Hispanic ancestry and a small Asian and black population.

Transportation

Daniel Enchautegui Way (formerly Arnow Place) in Pelham Bay, recently renamed in honor of a fallen police officer

Buses and subway lines serving the community are:

• Bx5: to Simpson Street station (2 and ​5 trains) (via Crosby Avenue / Bruckner Boulevard / Story Avenue)
• Bx8: to Williamsbridge or Locust Point (via Westchester Avenue / Williamsbridge Road)
• Bx12: to University Heights
• Bx12 Select Bus Service: to Bay Plaza Shopping Center or Inwood – 207th Street station (A train) (via Fordham Road – Pelham Parkway)
• Bx23: to Co-op City
• Bx24: to Country Club
• Bx29: to City Island or Bay Plaza Shopping Center (via City Island Avenue)
• Q50: to Co-op City or Flushing – Main Street station (7 and <7>​ trains) (via Bronx–Whitestone Bridge)
• Bee-Line 45: to Eastchester
• Middletown Road station (6 and <6>​ trains)
• Buhre Avenue station (6 and <6>​ trains)
• Pelham Bay Park station (6 and <6>​ trains)

External links

• Pelham Bay Park (New York City Department of Parks and Recreation)