Soundview, Bronx facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Soundview
Neighborhood of the Bronx
Apartment buildings in Soundview with the Midtown Manhattan skyline in the background
Country	United States
State	New York
City	New York City
Borough	The Bronx
Community District	Bronx 9
Area
• Total	2.89 km2 (1.116 sq mi)
Population  (2011)
• Total	31,825
• Density	11,010/km2 (28,517/sq mi)
Economics
• Median income	$41,120
ZIP Codes	10472, 10473
Area code	718, 347, 929, and 917

Soundview is a neighborhood on the Clason Point peninsula, on the southern section of the borough of the Bronx in New York City. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise, are the Cross-Bronx Expressway to the north, White Plains Road to the east, Lacombe Avenue to the south, and the Bronx River to the west. The Bruckner Expressway bisects the neighborhood horizontally along the center and the Bronx River Parkway runs north to south. Soundview Avenue is the primary thoroughfare through Soundview.

Demographics

Tenements

Based on data from the 2010 United States Census, the combined population of the Soundview/Clason Point/Castle Hill/Harding Park tabulation area, which includes the southern half of the neighborhood, was 53,686 in 2010, a change of 2,933 (5.5%) from the 88,823 counted in 2000. Covering an area of 1,198.36 acres (484.96 ha), these neighborhoods had a population density of 44.8 inhabitants per acre (28,700/sq mi; 11,100/km²). The combined population of the Soundview/Bruckner tabulation area, which includes the northern half of the neighborhood, was 35,634 in 2010, a change of 497 (1.4%) from the 35,137 counted in 2000. Covering an area of 371.44 acres (150.32 ha), these neighborhoods had a population density of 95.9 inhabitants per acre (61,400/sq mi; 23,700/km²). The racial makeup of these neighborhoods was 2% (1,067) White, 37% (19,876) African American, 0.3% (161) Native American, 1.3% (709) Asian, 0% (22) Pacific Islander, 0.4% (239) from other races, and 1.1% (586) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 57.8% (31,026) of the population.

Soundview's total land area is roughly 1.3 square miles. The neighborhood predominantly consists of Latin Americans (mainly Puerto Ricans) and African Americans.

The entirety of Community District 9, which comprises Soundview and Parkchester, had 184,105 inhabitants as of NYC Health's 2018 Community Health Profile, with an average life expectancy of 79.7 years. This is about the same as the median life expectancy of 81.2 for all New York City neighborhoods. Most inhabitants are youth and middle-aged adults: 25% are between the ages of between 0–17, 29% between 25–44, and 24% between 45–64. The ratio of college-aged and elderly residents was lower, at 10% and 12% respectively.

As of 2017, the median household income in Community District 9 was $40,005. In 2018, an estimated 26% of Soundview and Parkchester residents lived in poverty, compared to 25% in all of the Bronx and 20% in all of New York City. One in eight residents (13%) were unemployed, compared to 13% in the Bronx and 9% in New York City. Rent burden, or the percentage of residents who have difficulty paying their rent, is 55% in Soundview and Parkchester, compared to the boroughwide and citywide rates of 58% and 51% respectively. Based on this calculation, as of 2018^[update], Soundview and Parkchester are considered low-income relative to the rest of the city and not gentrifying.

Land use and terrain

Semi-detached multi-unit rowhouses

Most of the population in Soundview reside inside large, residential housing complexes of various types. These include public housing, high-rise co-ops and rentals. The neighborhood contains one of the highest concentrations of NYCHA projects in the Bronx. There are also 5 and 6 story, pre-war, apartment buildings primarily concentrated along the IRT Pelham Line El on Westchester Avenue and multi-unit row-houses located throughout the neighborhood. Starting in the 1990s, the construction of modern 2 and 3 unit row-houses and apartment buildings have increased the percentage of owners versus renters.

The neighborhood's northern and eastern borders have a heavy concentration of commercial establishments. Westchester Avenue evolved into a mixed use, primarily commercial, district serving the greater area after the completion of the elevated IRT Pelham Line.

The total land area is roughly 1.3 square miles. The terrain is low laying and flat.

Bruckner Plaza

Bruckner Plaza, which greatly expanded throughout the 1990s, divides Soundview from neighboring Castle Hill and contains big box stores like Toys R Us, Kmart, and Old Navy. Other primary thoroughfares contain limited but necessary amenities like supermarkets, pharmacies, barbershops, hair salons, fast food, bodegas, and cheap shops.

The western edge of the built neighborhood along the Bronx River is largely industrial in usage.

Parks

Soundview Park occupies a significant land area in the southwestern section of the neighborhood (roughly .2 sq miles), with ballfields and playgrounds and a pedestrian/bike greenway along the left bank of the Bronx River estuary from Lafayette Avenue to Leland Avenue.

"Parque de los Ninos" was recently granted $1.6M for renovations. The playground at the corner of Morrison and Watson avenues opened in 1956 and was renamed in 1995 to honor six neighborhood children who were killed in the late 80's.

Low-income public housing projects

There are ten NYCHA developments located in Soundview.

1. 1780 Watson Avenue, one 6-story building.
2. 1471 Watson Avenue; one 6-story building.
3. Boynton Avenue Rehab; three rehabilitated tenement buildings, either 3 or 6 stories tall.
4. Sotomayor Houses; twenty-eight 7-story buildings.
5. Bronx River Houses; nine 14-story buildings.
6. Bronx River Addition; two buildings, one 6 stories tall another 14 stories tall.
7. Clason Point Gardens; forty-five buildings, all 2 stories tall.
8. Monroe Houses; twelve buildings, either 8, 14, and 15-stories tall.
9. Sack Wern Houses; seven buildings, each 6 stories tall.
10. Soundview Houses; thirteen 7-story buildings.

History

Before and after rehabilitation, now low-income housing.

A high school built inside a once abandoned warehouse

Until the 1940s, the neighborhood was relatively undeveloped. Most of the residential housing, primarily multi-unit rowhouses and tenement style apartment buildings, had been built near the Pelham elevated line on Westchester Avenue and along major streets like Soundview Avenue (once served by a streetcar). In 1941 Clason Point Gardens was the first development constructed by the NYCHA in the Bronx. It was followed by many other low and high-rise NYCHA developments across the neighborhood from the 1950s until the 1970s, which boosted the population significantly. During the 1950s, two controlled-access highways, the Bronx River Parkway and Bruckner Expressway, were constructed. Later in the 1970s, large high-rise rental and co-op apartment complexes flourished across the neighborhood, under the badge of the Mitchell Lama program.

Like neighboring Hunts Point, Soundview began to fall into rapid decay in the 1970s.

In more recent years, a citywide housing crisis spurred construction of modern multi-unit row houses and apartment buildings. Many of them are multi zoned for retail and have mixed-income qualifications. There have also been studies conducted to develop this type of housing on vacant land within the confines of NYCHA property along with significant renovations and improvements to existing grounds and buildings. Soundview Park, built on a former landfill and the largest in the South Bronx, has undergone a complete transformation including enhanced pedestrian access and completely renovated and redesigned recreational areas. Future plans in accordance with PlaNYC initiatives will create an urban oasis in this dense community; complete with recreation nodes, Greenway connections, bike/hike trails, designated fishing areas, a boat launch, and esplanades with skyline views. The neighborhood has become increasingly more diverse with a rise in varied Latin American immigration in recent years.

Transportation

Aerial view of The Bronx which includes on Clason Point/Soundview.

The IRT Pelham Line, an elevated New York City Subway line serving the 6 <6> trains, traverses southwest to northeast through the neighborhood, along Westchester Avenue.

• Elder Avenue (6 train)
• Morrison Avenue–Soundview (6 train)
• St. Lawrence Avenue (6 train)

The following MTA Regional Bus Operations bus routes serve Soundview:

• Bx4: to Westchester Square (6 train) or Third Avenue-149th Street (2 5 trains) (via Westchester Avenue)
• Bx4A: to Westchester Square (6 train) or Third Avenue-149th Street (2 5 trains) (via Westchester Avenue and Metropolitan Oval)
• Bx5: to Co-op City and Bay Plaza Shopping Center or Simpson Street (2 5 trains) (via Story Avenue)
• Bx27: to Simpson Street (2 5 trains) or Clason Point (via Rosedale Avenue)
• Bx36: to Pugsley–Randall Avenues or George Washington Bridge Bus Terminal (via 180th Street)
• Bx39: to Wakefield–241st Street (2 train) or Clason Point (via White Plains Rd)

NYC Ferry's Soundview route started serving Soundview on August 15, 2018.

Education

A high school built inside a once abandoned warehouse

Soundview and Parkchester generally have a similar rate of college-educated residents to the rest of the city as of 2018^[update]. While 23% of residents age 25 and older have a college education or higher, 30% have less than a high school education and 47% are high school graduates or have some college education. By contrast, 26% of Bronx residents and 43% of city residents have a college education or higher. The percentage of Soundview and Parkchester students excelling in math rose from 23% in 2000 to 44% in 2011, and reading achievement increased from 27% to 30% during the same time period.

Soundview and Parkchester's rate of elementary school student absenteeism is higher than the rest of New York City. In Soundview and Parkchester, 28% of elementary school students missed twenty or more days per school year, more than the citywide average of 20%. Additionally, 69% of high school students in Soundview and Parkchester graduate on time, lower than the citywide average of 75%.

Schools

The following public schools are located in Soundview:

Public:

• P.S. 47 John Randolph (1794 E 172nd St)
• P.S. 93 Albert G Oliver (1535 Story Ave)
• P.S. 69 Journey Prep School (560 Theriot Ave)
• P.S. 100 Isaac Clason (800 Taylor Ave)
• P.S. 107 (1695 Seward Ave) Boys Prep Elementary Charter School
• Bronx Arena High School (1440 Story Ave)
• Felisa Rincon De Gautier Institute For Law And Pub High School (1440 Story Ave)
• Bronx Public School 152 (1007 Evergreen Ave)
• Junior High School 123 James M Kiernan (1025 Morrison Ave)
• Junior High School 131 Albert Einstein (885 Bolton Ave)
• Soundview Academy For Culture And Scholarship (885 Bolton Ave)
• Metropolitan Lighthouse Charter School

There is also one parochial school:

• Holy Cross Elementary School

Libraries

The New York Public Library (NYPL) operates three branches near Soundview.

• The Clason's Point branch is located at 1215 Morrison Avenue. The branch opened in 1952 and moved to its current location in 1971.
• The Parkchester branch is located at 1985 Westchester Avenue. The branch opened in 1942 within the Parkchester development and moved to its current two-story structure in 1985.
• The Soundview branch is located at 660 Soundview Avenue. The branch opened at this location in 1973.

Notable residents

Images for kids

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  Bronx Quonset Huts

• 

  Soundview Park