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About Yonkers
Yonkers is the fourth largest city in the U.S. State of New York (it falls
behind New York City, Buffalo, and Rochester), and the largest city in
Westchester County, with a population of 196,086 (according to the 2000 census).
More recent estimates put the population at 197,234 in 2002, 197,126 in 2004 and
196,425 in 2005. Yonkers borders the New York City borough of The Bronx and is 2
miles (3 km) north of Manhattan at cities' two respective closest points.
The city is home to several attractions, an example of which is Yonkers Raceway,
a harness racing track that has renovated its grounds and clubhouse and added
legalized video slot machine gambling in 2006. There is also a large shopping
area along Central Park Avenue (NY 100), informally called "Central Avenue" by
area residents, a name it takes officially a few miles north in White Plains,
New York.
The city's official seal is a profile of George Washington, although what
connection Washington has with the City of Yonkers has never been explained.
Geography
The city is spread out over hills rising from near sea level at the eastern bank
of the Hudson River to 416 feet (126 m) at Sacred Heart Church, whose spire can
be seen from Long Island, New York City, and New Jersey. The landscape of the
city has been compared to that of San Francisco and Sarajevo.
Yonkers is located at [show location on an interactive map] 40°56′29″N,
73°51′52″W (40.941478, -73.864365).GR1
The city occupies 52.6 kmē (20.3 sq mi), including 46.8 kmē (18.1 sq mi) of land
and 5.8 kmē (2.2 sq mi) (11.02%) of water, according to the United States Census
Bureau.
The Bronx River separates Yonkers from Mount Vernon and Eastchester to the East.
The town of Greenburgh is to the North, and the Western border is the Hudson
River.
On the South, Yonkers borders the Riverdale, Woodlawn, and Wakefield sections of
the Bronx. In addition, the southernmost point of Yonkers is only 2 miles (3 km)
north of the northernmost point of Manhattan when measured from Broadway & Caryl
Avenue in Yonkers to Broadway & West 228th Street in the Marble Hill section of
Manhattan.
Neighborhoods
Though Yonkers contains many small residential enclaves and communities, it can
conveniently be divided into four quarters, demarcated by the Saw Mill River.
There are roughly 28 or more distinct neighborhoods, but these names are out of
date only being used by Real Estate Agents, along with a few other natives.
Northeast Yonkers
This is a heavily Irish-American and Italian-American area. Though suburban, it
is noticeably less so than the Town of Greenburgh to the north. House sizes vary
widely, from small houses set close together, to some larger houses in areas
like Lawrence Park. Tuckahoe Road, which intersects Central Avenue, contains
many stores as well. Notable former residents include Steven Tyler of the rock
band Aerosmith (born Steven Tallarico), whose childhood home was just off
Central Avenue. Northeastern Yonkers contains the Crestwood section of Yonkers,
as well as several other enclaves. Landmarks include St Vladimir's Seminary, the
Tanglewood Shopping Center (one-time home of the Tanglewood Boys gang), as well
as Sarah Lawrence College. The Lawrence Park and Cedar Knolls sections are
unique in many ways from the rest of Northeast Yonkers. These two neighborhoods
include more upscale housing and residents are generally commuters to Manhattan.
This is mostly due to the promixity of various nearby Metro-North commuter
railroad stations. Both sections are heavily white but unlike most other Yonkers
neighborhoods are not dominated by any particular ethnicity. Because they share
the zip code of the neighboring upscale village of Bronxville, many residents
feel they are more a part of Bronxville than Yonkers even though they still pay
taxes to and get services from the latter.
Northwest Yonkers
Northwest Yonkers is a collection of widely varying neighborhoods, spanning from
the Hudson River to around the New York State Thruway/I-87 and from Ashburton
Avenue north to the Hastings-on-Hudson border. With the Hudson River bordering
it to the west, this area has many beautiful Victorian era homes with panoramic
views of the Palisades. An interest in historic preservation has taken hold in
this neighborhood in recent years, as demonstrated on streets like Shonnard
Terrace, Delavan Place and Hudson View Terrace. The population of northwestern
Yonkers is probably the most ethnically diverse in the city.
Landmarks include the Hudson River Museum, Untermeyer Park and the Lenoir Nature
Preserve. The significant amount of surviving Victorian architecture and 19th
century estates in northwest Yonkers has attracted many filmmakers here in
recent years.
This part of Yonkers is often referred to, by local residents as "The End" as it
was once the end of the #2 trolley line. One part of Yonkers that is sometimes
overlooked is Nepera Park. This is a small section at the northern part of
Nepperhan Av on the Hastings on Hudson border.
[edit] Southeast Yonkers
Southeast Yonkers is mostly Irish-American (a lot of the Irish being native
born) and a good amount of Italian-Americans. Much of the architecture and types
of stores in the area cause southeastern Yonkers to bear a greater resemblance
to certain parts of the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, or Staten Island than to points
north. This is not surprising as southeastern Yonkers is largely within walking
distance of the Riverdale, Woodlawn, and Wakefield sections of the Bronx. Many
residents regard eastern McLean Avenue, home to a vibrant Irish community shared
with the Woodlawn section of the Bronx, to be the true hub of Yonkers. It is
known for the notoroius cops who hate both the Irish and African-Americans in
this area, while McLean is arguably the nicest road in the whole US due to the
Irish. Similarly, a portion of Midland Avenue in the Dunwoodie section has been
called the "Little Italy" of Yonkers. Landmarks of southeastern Yonkers include
the Cross County Shopping Center, Yonkers Raceway, and St. Joseph's Seminary in
the Dunwoodie neighborhood, which was visited by Pope John Paul II in October of
1995.
Southwest Yonkers
Some argue that this area in Yonkers has suffered from past economic, political,
and social challenges that hindered many positive social changes. At present,
the area reveals a recent decrease in crime rate and a juxtaposition of poverty
and revitalization that many would argue mirrors newly gentrified neighborhoods
of New York City's Harlem and Brooklyn. Off of South Broadway (a major
thoroughfare) one can find residential neighborhoods, such as Nodine Hill, Park
Hill, and Hudson Park (off the Hudson River) with residential streets of
turn-of-the-century mansions, and upscale luxury rentals and condominiums. Other
upscale neighborhoods are Ludlow Park, Hudson Park & Van Cortlandt Crest, off
Riverdale Ave, right over the Riverdale border - the former alongside the Hudson
River. The area is also home to the historic Phillips Manor, the Hudson River
Museum[1] with its Andrus Planetarium and a state of the art Yonkers Public
Library[2] with panoramic Hudson River views.
Many southwesterners are of African, Caribbean, Italian, or Hispanic decent
while an influx those from other cultural backgrounds has continued to shape a
culturally diverse community. Some neighborhoods right on the Riverdale border
are increasingly becoming home to Orthodox Jews. The revitalization of the
downtown Yonkers/Getty Square area has helped to nurture growth for Southwest
Yonkers. In the early 2000s several new luxury apartment buildings were built
along the Hudson, as well as a new monument park, renovation of a Victorian-era
pier, a new public library housed in the remodeled Otis elevator factory. Many
new projects are intended to revitalize downtown Yonkers.
Transportation
Yonkers has four Hudson-Line Metro-North Railroad stations providing commuter
service to New York City: Ludlow, Yonkers, Glenwood and Greystone. The Yonkers
station is also served by Amtrak. Several Harlem-Line stations are on or very
near the city's eastern border. These include Wakefield, Mt. Vernon West,
Fleetwood, Bronxville, Tuckahoe and Crestwood.
The former New York and Putnam Railroad running through the middle of Yonkers
has been converted into bicycling and walking paths going north along the Saw
Mill River to Elmsford and south to Van Cortlandt Park.
Major limited-access roads in Yonkers include Interstate 87 (the New York State
Thruway), the Saw Mill, Bronx River, Sprain Brook and Cross County parkways. US
9, NY 9A and 100 are important surface streets.
Bus service is provided by the Westchester County Bee-Line Bus System, and a MTA
Bus Company express route to Manhattan.
Image
Yonkers fares well in most measures of crime. According to a 2003 report by the
city it ranked well ahead of other suburbs around New York City, such as Newark,
New Jersey, and Paterson, New Jersey, as well as similarly-sized New York cities
like Buffalo and Rochester.
In the 1980s and 1990s, Yonkers developed a national reputation for racial
tension, based on a long-term battle between the City of Yonkers and the NAACP
over the building of subsidized low-rent housing. The City wanted to use federal
funds to create or expand high-rise housing projects in southwest Yonkers; other
groups, led by the NAACP, felt that concentrating subsidized housing in
traditionally poor neighborhoods perpetuated poverty. The climax of the battle
came when Federal District Court Judge Leonard Sand imposed a fine on Yonkers
which started at $1 and doubled every day until the City capitulated to the
federally mandated plan. A history of this battle can be found in Lisa Belkin's
1999 book Show Me a Hero.
Revitalization
Amidst a growing need for increased economic viability in Yonkers, a vast
revitalization project proposal, promising to add luxury housing, waterfront
development, commercial and retail space, has been designed for the city. With
hopes of increasing the city's tourism and economic importance in the state and
county, the project is one of the largest revitalization projects ever proposed
for any locality within the New York Metropolitan Area, totaling more than $3
billion[5].
The project is headed by Westchester County's Louis R. Cappelli, Struever Bros.
of Baltimore, and New Jersey's Fidelco Realty. The project is expected to
include a controversial Minor League Baseball stadium, and an expansive retail
and residential project, adding approximately 800 residential units throughout
the downtown area and the waterfront. The community's strong opposition to plans
for high rise buildings along their waterfront is so far being ignored by both
developers and city government.
The project has as its catalyst the "daylighting" of the now buried Saw Mill
River, an idea championed by community-based organizations like Groundwork
Yonkers and its Saw Mill River Coalition. The Pataki Administration at Scenic
Hudson's urging contributed $34 million in funds for daylighting. The concept of
a river accompanied by a natural greenway path and commercial development has
been successful in the revitalization of downtowns in San Antonio, TX and
Providence, RI.
Although many city officials and residents find much need for city
revitalization and urban redevelopment efforts, controversy has surfaced over
the major project. A number of residents feel the project is an insidious
attempt by the city government and project officials to enforce a policy of
outright gentrification. Due to the use of eminent domain and other methods,
some residents are fearful that they will ultimately be the victims in the
redevelopment battle.
Others, however, are staunch proponents of the multi-billion dollar
redevelopment effort, foreseeing the transition of Yonkers from a suburban city
in the shadows of New York City, to a tourist attraction of economic importance.
Although no official time table has been proposed for the redevelopment project,
it will likely take several years before the completion of the project.