3.0 Mount Vernon at a Glance
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3.0 Mount Vernon at a Glance 3.1 Regional Setting 3.1 REGIONAL SETTING The City of Mount Vernon is a New York City inner ring suburb located in the southern part of Westchester County, approximately 13 miles north of Manhattan (see Figure 3-1). The City has a total land area of approximately 4.4 square miles and is home to approximately 69,000 residents, according to the 2010 US Census. It is bordered to the west by the City of Yonkers and to the east by the Villages of Pelham and Pelham Manor. The Village of Bronxville and the Town of Eastchester form the City’s northern border while the New York City Borough of the Bronx is located directly south (see Figure 3-2). Mount Vernon is well situated, with good access the rest of Westchester County, New York City and the region. Principal arterials serving Mount Vernon include the Bronx River, Hutchinson River, and Cross County Parkways, as well as the New York State Thruway (Interstate 87) and the New England Thruway (Interstate 95). The Cross County Parkway traverses the northern portion of the City east to west, while the Bronx River and Hutchinson River Parkways travel along the City’s western and eastern borders, respectively, and interchange with the Cross County. The City’s local street network generally takes the form of a traditional rectilinear grid, providing a relatively high degree of connectivity among the City’s various neighborhoods. Mount Vernon has exceptional access to public transportation. It is served by three train stations on two Metro-North commuter rail lines—the Harlem line running north and New Haven line running east. Two New York City subway stations – the Eastchester-Dyre Avenue station (5 train) and the Wakefield-241 Street station (2 train) – are located within a ten minute walk from the Mount Vernon- Bronx border. The Westchester County Bee Line Bus Service operates ten individual bus lines in Mount Vernon, the majority of which pass through the Petrillo Plaza transit hub in Downtown. Mount Vernon Comprehensive Plan, November 2011 19 3.1 Regional Setting Figure 3-1 Regional Context Map Source: ESRI 20 Mount Vernon Comprehensive Plan, November 2011 3.1 Regional Setting Figure 3-2 Local Context Map Source: ESRI Mount Vernon Comprehensive Plan, November 2011 21 3.2 Population, Housing and Socioeconomic Profile 3.2 PO P ULATION , HOU S ING AND SOCIOECONOMIC PR OFILE A. Population Sex, Age & Race/Ethnicity According to the 2009 American Community Survey (ACS), the total population of Mount Vernon is 68,813, 55 percent of which is female and 45 percent of which is male (see Chart 3-1A). This uneven gender distribution differs from that of Westchester and New York City which are split 51.5 percent female/48.5 percent male and 52.2 percent female/47.8 percent male, respectively (see Charts 3-1B and 3-1C). The median age of Mount Vernon is 38.2 years, slightly younger than Westchester at 39.8 years and older than New York City at 35.8 years. Nearly 26 percent of Mount Vernon’s population is under the age of 20. 20.7 percent are early working age (20-34); 28.2 percent are prime working age (35-54); 11.6 percent are mature working age (55-64); and 13.6 percent are retirement age. Chart 3-1A Mount Vernon Population Pyramid: Sex by Age by 5-Year Cohort 2009 Source: American Community Survey 2009 Two noteworthy features of Mount Vernon’s population are (1) its heavily female weighting, especially in the working ages of 30 to 55 years, and (2) its relatively even distribution of population across age cohorts. This is quite different than the structure of Westchester and New York City’s populations, both of which are more evenly distributed between the genders and less evenly distributed across age groups. Also noteworthy in the Mount Vernon pyramid is that females outnumber males for all age cohorts, save the 15 to 29 age range. 22 Mount Vernon Comprehensive Plan, November 2011 3.2 Population, Housing and Socioeconomic Profile Chart 3-1B Westchester County Population Pyramid: Sex by Age by 5-Year Cohort 2009 Source: American Community Survey 2009 While females outnumber males countywide, the age/sex distribution as a whole is more balanced than that of Mount Vernon. The decline in population shown in the late teen years does not recover until the 35-39 age cohort (prime home-buying age) in Westchester. Also notable is the larger share of men who survive to old age (70 and above). Mount Vernon Comprehensive Plan, November 2011 23 3.2 Population, Housing and Socioeconomic Profile Chart 3-1C New York City Population Pyramid: Sex by Age by 5-Year Cohort 2009 Source: American Community Survey 2009 Despite an overall population that is 100 times greater, New York City’s population is similar to that of Mount Vernon. It too has a greater female population and follows the same basic curves. However, the pyramid is more balanced between genders; there is a slight increase in the 20 to 24 year cohort, attributed to New York City as a significant college destination. In addition, the post- college influx of population begins much earlier in the 25 to 29 age cohort. Mutually Exclusive Race/Ethnicity1 Mount Vernon’s population is ethnically diverse. 58.2 percent of residents (40,040 people) are Black or African American alone, followed by 26.1 percent White alone (17,655 people); 11.1 percent Hispanic (7,636 people); 2.4 percent Two or More Races alone (1,668 people); 1.8 percent Asian alone (1,251); and 0.3 percent Some Other Race alone (230 people). As shown on Table 3-1, this racial distribution is atypical for the region; Westchester County is predominantly White Alone and New York City is almost equally distributed between White Alone, Hispanic, Black Alone and all other categories in combination. Mount Vernon has a notably greater share of Black or African American Alone population and much smaller shares of Hispanic and Asian Alone residents, which are fast growing populations in Westchester and New York City. 1 Under current Census data collection process, “Race” may include up to 63 possible combinations. These have been consolidated to the five most common and appropriate to Mount Vernon. “Hispanic” is the term used to classify persons who identify as having origins in the Spanish speaking countries of Central and South America, as well as Mexico, Cuba and Puerto Rico. I.e., Hispanics may be of any race. An identified race “alone” indicates the person is not Hispanic and identifies only with a single race. 24 Mount Vernon Comprehensive Plan, November 2011 3.2 Population, Housing and Socioeconomic Profile Table 3-1 Mutually Exclusive Race/Ethnicity 2009: Mount Vernon, Westchester County and New York City Mount Vernon Westchester County New York City Race/Ethnicity Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent White Alone 17,655 25.7% 568,667 59.5% 2,961,851 35.3% Black/African-American Alone 40,040 58.2% 127,413 13.3% 1,931,723 23.0% Asian Alone 1,251 1.8% 55,127 5.8% 998,081 11.9% Other Single Race Alone 563 0.8% 4,165 0.4% 78,615 0.9% Two of more races Alone 1,668 2.4% 11,464 1.2% 106,570 1.3% Hispanic 7,636 11.1% 189,126 19.8% 2,315,041 27.6% Total 68,813 100.0% 955,962 100.0% 8,391,881 100.0% Source: American Community Survey 2009 Educational Attainment 83.9 percent of Mount Vernon residents have at least a high school diploma and 24.5 percent have a bachelor’s degree or higher. This is essentially on par with the United States as a whole with 80.4 percent of people holding a high school diploma and 24.4 percent holding a bachelor’s degree. Mount Vernon is solidly in the middle in regional comparisons on high school graduation: 16 percent of adults 25 years or older have not acquired a high school diploma in Mount Vernon compared to 12.4 percent in Westchester County and 20.8 percent in New York City. Mount Vernon has a greater share of residents with High School diplomas (33.7 percent) and Some College and Associate’s degrees (25.8 percent) compared to Westchester (22.9 percent and 20.7 percent) and New York City (24.5 percent and 20.7 percent), respectively. However, the City lags in total residents with Bachelor’s degrees or higher at 24.5 percent compared to 44.1 percent in Westchester and 34.0 percent in New York City, as shown on Table 3-2. Table 3-2 Educational Attainment of Population 25 and Older, 2009 Mount Vernon, Westchester County and New York City Mount Vernon Westchester County New York City Educational Attainment Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent No High School Diploma 7,465 16.1% 79,559 12.4% 1,192,063 20.8% High School Graduate 15,660 33.7% 147,133 22.9% 1,401,311 24.5% Some College, no degree 5,401 11.6% 90,390 14.1% 826,618 14.4% Associate’s degree 6,582 14.2% 42,692 6.6% 362,532 6.3% Bachelor’s degree 6,278 13.5% 143,398 22.3% 1,138,839 19.9% Graduate or professional degree 5,102 11.0% 140,002 21.8% 809,956 14.1% Total 46,488 100.0% 643,174 100.0% 5,731,319 100.0% Source: American Community Survey 2009 Mount Vernon Comprehensive Plan, November 2011 25 3.2 Population, Housing and Socioeconomic Profile Disability 10.3 percent of non-institutionalized Mount Vernon residents (6,981 people) have a reported disability that limits their activity compared to 8.6 percent of Westchester County residents and 10.7 percent of New York City residents.