Business

The Bronx has a tough time shedding its past

By
Social Links for John Aidan Byrne
Published Feb. 27, 2016, 7:15 p.m. ET

The Bronx is no longer up, as Sinatra once sang, according to new studies released last week.

The findings, dealing with quality-of-life issues as well as real estate pricing, paint an image of the 1970s “Fort Apache” days, when the saying was “The Bronx is burning.”

The negative survey responses released by real estate Web site Homes.com last week gained traction with downward projections in a separate StreetEasy report on housing price trends across the city.

Residential home prices in The Bronx are forecast to plunge this year by 3.7 percent, the worst performer of the five boroughs, according to StreetEasy.

Only Staten Island comes close: Sales prices are predicted to dip there by 1.2 percent. The other three boroughs are forecast to record strong gains: Manhattan, 2.6 percent; Queens, 1.8 percent; and Brooklyn, 2.4 percent.

The bad news was greeted with contempt by Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., who said pollsters had it wrong.

“This survey is totally inaccurate,” Diaz told The Post, referring to the Homes.com study. “The Bronx is filled with friendly, helpful and humble [people].

“We are the most diverse borough in New York City,” he added, “a welcoming place not just to those who call The Bronx home but to visitors from other boroughs, tourists from all over, and those who invest their hard-earned money in our great borough.”

However, with an unemployment rate of 6.9 percent — higher than the citywide 5 percent and the statewide 4.7 percent — and with large swaths of low-income and underemployed households, the disparity with the other boroughs also came into stark relief on another front.

Bronx residents were asked by Homes.com where they would like to live in New York City, and 40 percent said they would prefer to live in any borough except The Bronx.

The vast majority of broader city respondents, 93 percent, said that all the other NYC boroughs had a much friendlier and more welcoming atmosphere than The Bronx.

Despite recent urban renewal projects, new construction and gentrification efforts — plus sparkling amenities including Yankee Stadium and the Botanical Garden — The Bronx has long been long overshadowed by the four other boroughs, analysts say.

“Every borough clearly has its merits and drawbacks. Ultimately, it’s a balancing act as to whether one area is better or worse for folks looking for their next home,” said Grant Simmons, vice president of search marketing for Homes.com.

Still, The Bronx has a hard time shaking off its reputation for a rash of social and economic ills.

“It’s like a village atmosphere here,” Joseph Kelleher, chairman of the Bronx Chamber of Commerce, said of the Homes.com survey, which left him dumbfounded.

Kelleher, who is also the president of Bronx-based real estate company Simone Metro Properties, added, “People say hello to each other in the morning. It’s not like that in Manhattan, where people walk by each other without making eye contact, rushing to work.”