JEROME AVENUE THE BRONX Commercial District Needs Assessment
in partnership WHEDco with Davidson Community Center ABOUT JEROME AVENUE Background
The Jerome Avenue corridor is a 73-block area that serves as a major transit corridor in the West Bronx. The corridor connects several densely populated neighborhoods, including West Concourse, Highbridge, Morris Heights, University Heights, and Mt. Eden. At the street level, Jerome Avenue is defined by its low-scale industrial and automotive- The Neighborhood 360° related businesses and by the elevated 4 train that traverses the length of the corridor program was created by the NYC north and south. The elevated structure’s columns stand on the Jerome Avenue roadbed, Department of Small Business making for a distinctive streetscape environment where trains, cars, trucks, buses, and Services to identify, develop, and launch commercial revitalization pedestrians intermingle in a play of activity and sound. projects in partnership with local stakeholders. Through proactive planning and targeted Jerome Avenue is bisected by the Cross Bronx Expressway. Built between 1948 and 1972, investments, Neighborhood 360° the Cross Bronx Expressway creates a physical barrier for West Bronx residents and supports projects that strengthen local retailers. Despite this challenge, the Cross Bronx Expressway’s nearby intersection and revitalize the streets, small businesses, and community- with the Major Deegan Expressway has made Jerome Avenue a convenient location for based organizations that anchor automotive businesses to service motorists entering and exiting both highways. There New York City neighborhoods. are a wide variety of automotive-related businesses along the Jerome Avenue corridor, The Neighborhood 360° including vehicle and parts dealerships, automotive repair and body shops, automotive Commercial District Needs glass replacement services, and electronic equipment retailers that specialize in sound, Assessment (CDNA) highlights alarm, navigation, and entertainment systems. a neighborhood’s existing business landscape and consumer characteristics. There are several vibrant community-serving commercial and retail corridors that run This CDNA features East 183rd perpendicular to Jerome Avenue at East 167th Street, East 170th Street, Mount Eden Street, Burnside Avenue, Avenue, Edward L. Grant Highway, Tremont Avenue, Burnside Avenue, and 183rd Street. Tremont Avenue, Cromwell Avenue, Inwood Avenue, These local shopping nodes consist of long-standing “mom & pop” retail and restaurants, 170th Street, and 167th Street many of which cater to the flourishing immigrant communities of the West Bronx. In commercial corridors that run particular, Burnside Avenue is a bustling retail corridor with many stores and restaurants alongside Jerome Avenue, and was conducted in partnership with that serve the West African and Latin American communities of Morris Heights and Davidson Community Center University Heights, and connects Jerome Avenue to Bronx Community College to the west and the Women’s Housing as well as the Grand Concourse in the east. and Economic Development Corporation (WHEDco) between December 2015 and July 2016. See more on page 14 Key issues and opportunities Neighborhood Demographics identified through this assessment will help prioritize SBS-supported local investments, and serve as Jerome Avenue has long been a diverse and welcoming community to immigrant families. an informational and marketing resource for the neighborhood. Today there are more than 290,000 residents living within a quarter mile of Jerome Avenue, 43% of whom are foreign-born, a larger immigrant community compared to both the Bronx (29%) and New York City as a whole (37%). While the local population is mostly Latino and African American, the area has seen a growing number of West African, In This Report Dominican, and Mexican families plant roots in the community. It is just as common to hear Existing conditions, business Spanish as English in the streets and in local businesses, and many of the area’s vibrant data, and qualitative depictions small businesses are immigrant-owned and operated. of the neighborhood were gathered from more than 852 See more on page 5 surveys and 15 stakeholder meetings with neighborhood Future Opportunities merchants, shoppers, workers, property owners, and residents. The Jerome Avenue corridor knits together many neighborhoods in the West Bronx, from Jump to... the Concourse to Fordham Heights. Several entertainment venues are at the doorstep of Key Findings 4-5 Jerome Avenue, like Yankee Stadium, which attracts more than 3 million visitors annually, Business Inventory 6 and the Bronx Museum of the Arts, which provides the area with accessible, world-class What Merchants Say 7-9 exhibitions. As an active transit corridor lined with neighborhood-serving stores, Jerome Business Outlook 10 connects these anchors to educational institutions further north, including Bronx What Shoppers Say 11 Community College and Fordham University. The retail nodes are busy, diverse, and home Physical Environment 12 to high concentrations of long-standing businesses that can adapt to serve a growing Data Appendix 13-15 community.
2 Neighborhood 360° Commercial District Needs Assessment NEIGHBORHOOD CONTEXT Jerome Avenue
Fordham Points of Interest University Assessed Commercial Corridors Parks & Public Spaces
Public Facilities Healthcare & Community Institutions University Heights
E 183 ST Notable Places
Francis Martin 1 2 Library Harlem River 4
Bronx Community
3 College
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l Keltch Park The High Bridge i
Morris Heights JEROME AVE B
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h Health Center E BURNSIDE AVE
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N 3 4 - Davidson Community Center
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E TREMONT AVE
Aqueduct Walk Bronx Community College New Settlement Community Center
Mt. Hope E Morris Heights S R
U O 5 6 E 176 ST C N O C Metro-North Railroad D N A R G
Morris Heights Health Center Bronx Lebanon Hospital Center UNIVERSITY AVE JEROME AVE Bronx Lebanon Hospital Center 6 MT. EDEN AVE Neighborhood Events Claremont Park New Settlement 4 Mt. Eden CROSS BRONXCommunity EXPRESSWAY Center
E E 172 ST D W A R D L G Keltch Park 1 R A N E 170 ST T Burnside Summer Walks 2 H W The High Bridge Y
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WHEDCo
Highbridge GRAND CONCOURSE E 167 ST WHEDCo Resident Workshop with Parsons Students JEROME AVE
Merchant & Business Groups Concourse Burnside Avenue Merchant United Auto Merchants Association The Bronx Museum Association (UAMA) of the Arts 0 0.2 Miles 170th Street Merchant WHEDco Yankee Stadium Association Davidson Community Center
Jerome Avenue 3 KEY FINDINGS & OPPORTUNITIES Strengths Vibrant commercial corridors and retail nodes with very Diverse ethnic and cultural communities, including stores low retail vacancy (5%) that are owned by immigrants from Latin and West African countries Active transportation connections along Jerome Avenue and the Grand Concourse, as well as the Cross Bronx Unique concentration of automotive businesses, which Expressway draw customers in from outside the neighborhood Long-standing businesses in place for 10+ years, with Active and well-organized neighborhood advocacy groups, many established merchants optimistic about their plans as well as community support for small businesses to grow and expand in place Challenges Numerous pedestrian safety concerns for residents and Public spaces, such as plazas, parks, and step streets that shoppers, including dangerous intersections and poor are not well maintained quality sidewalks Concerns about public safety, especially at night The corridor is dominated by the elevated train, The vast majority of businesses rent their commercial which contributes to constant noise, concentrations of space and are vulnerable to rising lease rates litter at subway entrances, and a lack of lighting and street trees Local retailers in need of new tips and tools for marketing their merchandise Significant parking challenges throughout the corridor for both residents and business owners Many automotive businesses park cars on the sidewalk and create dangerous obstructions for pedestrians Open, green space is limited, with uninviting entrances
Jerome Avenue and E. 170th Street Corridor Bronx Community College Hall of Fame for Great Americans
Burnside Avenue Corridor Keltch Park
4 Neighborhood 360° Commercial District Needs Assessment Clifford Place Step Street Jerome Avenue CDNA Workshop
176th Street Step Street Burnside Avenue 4 Train Station
Opportunities
Develop and market a “shop & buy” local campaign Strengthen existing merchant associations to expand to promote and highlight long-standing "mom & pop" outreach, recruitment and business advocacy retailers Evaluate the feasibility of Burnside Avenue Business Cultivate relationships with institutional anchors such Improvement District (BID) as Bronx Community College and Morris Heights Health Center to enhance connectivity along West Create a “Safe Place” program to visibly designate local Burnside Avenue businesses where residents can seek refuge when they feel unsafe Install temporary lighting, seating, and street furniture to activate space under the elevated train on Jerome Explore opportunities to revive Inwood Park, Jerome Avenue Playground, Keltch Park, and Mullaly Park as active green spaces that are open to the community Bolster local community events and street fairs to create greater customer awareness and drive additional foot traffic to the commercial corridors Revitalize and maintain step streets throughout the corridor with arts programming and other active uses Engage the community to develop a corridor What’s Next? beautification/cleaning program centered on Burnside- To address these key findings and opportunities, Neighborhood 360° Tremont, Devanney Triangle, and Townsend Walk Grants will be made available by SBS to not-for-profit organizations. For more information, visit: nyc.gov/neighborhood360
Jerome Avenue 5 BUSINESS LANDSCAPE: JEROME AVENUE Business Inventory 775 5.4% Total Number of Storefronts Storefront Vacancy*
*Note: In 2015, New York City’s 69 Business Improvement Districts reported an average ground floor Storefront & Retail Mix vacancy rate of 8.3% and median ground floor vacancy rate of 5.6% (SBS BIDs Trends Report, 2015).
A tomoti e sinesses 142 arbersho s alons 68 ast ood nac ho s 52 Delis odegas 46 rocer tores 43 esta rants 43 acant 42 d cation and ther er ices 39 lectronics A liance tores 37 A arel Accessor tores 35 Despite an abundance of cash ealth ersonal Care tores 34 advance and money transfer eneral erchandise tores 32 services, the commercial corridors in Jerome lack ther iscellaneo s tore etailers 32 financial institutions, such as a er ices a n ho s Cash Ad ance one rans er er ices 30 banks and credit unions that serve both residential and ealth er ices 17 commercial needs. an s a ings ending nstit tions 15 eat ish ar ets 13 Business inventory and retail mix rnit re ome rnishing tores 11 data were gathered by Davidson Community Center and WHEDco Constr ction an act ring 10 through a comprehensive inventory ars Cl bs i or tores 9 of storefront businesses located along East 183rd Street, Burnside ns rance eal state n estment er ices 8 Avenue, Tremont Avenue, 170th a er ice ars ar ets 7 Street, Mt. Eden Avenue, 167th Street and Jerome Avenue between blic Administration ocial er ices 5 167th Street and 183rd Street. eligio s rgani ations o ses o orshi 5 (December 2015 to May 2016)
E. 170th Street Corridor Burnside Avenue Corridor W. Tremont Avenue
6 Neighborhood 360° Commercial District Needs Assessment What We’ve Heard from Jerome Avenue Merchants
How many years have you been in What kinds of resources would help you business here? grow your business?