Friendly community in Bedford Park: Rich in history, greenery and good schools

If you’re in the market for a 24-hour, bustling neighborhood with restaurants that line streets, sibilant sounds of outdoor diners and a hotbed of nightlife activity, Bedford Park won’t do.

But for those seeking a relatively quiet neighborhood known for its schools, greenery and history, it is perfect.

The enclave, nestled among the Kingsbridge, Fordham and Norwood neighborhoods, is home to some of the Bronx’s oldest buildings.

The Bedford Park Congregational Church, the oldest church in the neighborhood, dating back to 1882, sits at the corner of Bainbridge Avenue and East 201st Street. It was given landmark status by the Landmarks Preservation Commission in 2000.

The neighborhood is also highly regarded for its educational institutions — including Herbert H. Lehman College of the City University of New York on Goulden Avenue and Academy of Mount St. Ursula High School, an all-girls prep school that is the oldest Catholic high school for girls in New York State.

Bedford Park also is home to two specialized high schools: the Bronx High School of Science and the High School of American Studies at Lehman College.

According to Bronx Community Board 7, Winston Churchill’s grandfather Leonard Jerome owned much of Bedford Park in the mid-19th century.

Jerome built a racecourse there in 1866 that was later converted into the Jerome Park Reservoir.

Once heavily populated by Irish and Jewish residents who worked on the construction of the reservoir, Bedford Park’s demographics have changed radically in recent years. Now, blacks and Hispanics, including Mexicans and Dominicans, live alongside Koreans, Chinese, Vietnamese and a Caribbean community.

“The neighborhood is always changing,” said Michael Prendergast Jr., the owner of the Jolly Tinker bar. “But that’s the interesting part of the pulse of the Bronx: The vibe is always changing.”

Bronx borough historian Lloyd Ultan says Bedford Park has an unusual combination of advantages, ranging from accessibility to cultural institutions and history.
“You have the D train, The New York Botanical Garden and Lehman College’s Center for Performing Arts as well as their art gallery,” he said, while also noting the area’s historical houses of worship and well-known schools.

“It’s relatively quiet. You don’t have the raucous sounds of midtown, but you do have all the advantages of midtown, and you can get there if you wanted to in 15 minutes,” he said.

Bedford Park boasts a mix of architecture, most of it harking back to the old days. Five- and six-story Art Deco-style buildings line two of its main corridors, the Grand Concourse and Mosholu Parkway.

And though mostly full of low- and mid-rise buildings, it’s also home to a prominent development: the 41-story Tracey Towers on Mosholu Parkway, which looms high, dwarfing surrounding buildings.

Nestled on side streets, many Victorian homes stand out, some of them painted in bright colors. On corridors such as Bedford Park Boulevard and 198th Street, the old-style houses are juxtaposed with walk-ups and modern architectural styles.

This part of the Bronx also boasts some greenery, as it is bordered on the east by The New York Botanical Garden. The Mosholu Parkway Greenway, a green space that divides Mosholu Parkway South and Mosholu Parkway North, is a recreational area for families to gather and enjoy an afternoon. Local playgrounds are also available for kids.

Outside of its boundaries, the Bronx Zoo is just minutes away, as is the Mosholu Golf Course and massive Van Cortland Park.

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The rezoning aimed to allow mid-density housing, promote retail and residential projects on Webster Avenue and preserve the low-density character of the adjacent residential areas in Bedford Park and neighboring Norwood.

The city aims to make Webster Avenue more inviting and walkable with the new residential and commercial developments.

In most of the new residential buildings, commercial development is required for the ground floor.

On a concerning note, PS 51 The Bronx New School in Bedford Park was shuttered in 2011 due to contamination by the toxic chemical trichloroethylene, or TCE.
According to a report issued in July by the state Department of Health, an investigation in 2011 found that TCE levels were 10 times the state’s legal limit.

The report also stated that students and teachers in the building at 3220 Jerome Ave. were placed at an increased but “low” risk of developing cancer and other ailments.

Students and teachers were relocated to another building, but according to the local Norwood News newspaper, parents are still concerned about the long-term effects of the chemical on their children’s health.

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Michael Prendergast Jr. owns the Jolly Tinker, a well-known Bedford Park bar that his father, Michael Prendergast Sr., first opened in 1968.

Michael Jr. worked at the bar during his college years and was always primed to take over. The bar’s building had been a speakeasy before Prendergast Sr. opened the Jolly Tinker.