There are also several subdistricts within this larger more commonly known Fordham neighborhood. Fordham Manor is the northern portion of this evaluation area cutting west all the way to the Harlem river. The area dates back to the mid 18th century when a large estate (Rose Hill) was constructed encompassing Fordham University. The most well known resident of the area was poet Edgar Allan Poe who spent his final years year. His cabin has been preserved with a nice park surrounding it. By the mid 19th century the estate was broken up and Fordham University emerged, starting as a seminary but eventually transforming into a Jesuit College. To the west of campus the Old Fordham Village slowly grew in the 19th century, accelerating its growth in the late 19th century as it was connected by rail into Manhattan. By 1900 the area was connected to the NYC subway system and thousands of 2nd & 3rd generation Irish and Jewish immigrants seeking to escape the slums of Lower Manhattan flooded in. The Old Fordham Village was transformed into a modern business district by the 1920s along the present day Fordham Rd, which remains a vibrant commercial district with many department and brand name clothing stores. By the 1970s the Irish and Jewish families left for the suburbs or the sunbelt and Black and Hispanic families replaced them. While the Fordham neighborhood was certainly negatively impacted by the fires and disinvestment of the South Bronx, it seemed to retain more of its historic fabric and eventually stabilized by the 1990s.The name Fordham Heights subdistrict is named after the more elevated terrain just south of Fordham Road. Further south along Burnside is the Mount Hope subdistrict named after the historic mansion.

From an urban perspective this is a very solid urban district with better amenities and lower crime than most South Bronx neighborhoods. There are many urban commercial districts in addition to Fordham Rd (i.e. 183th, Burnside, Grand Concourse, Jerome, Webster, Knightsbridge) helping to foster a highly walkable and mixed-used neighborhood. To become a top tier urban district Fordham needs more income diversity, which would foster better housing diversity, more retail and cultural amenities and hopefully fill in the many autocentric-industrial pockets with quality urban form.

Click here to view my Fordham Album on Flickr

URBAN STRENGTHS:

* One of the densest neighborhoods in the Bronx at 100K per square mile. This density is on the same level as the denser Manhattan neighborhoods.
* Excellent Transit Access and solid access to Manhattan as it’s a 40 min subway ride to Midtown and 50-55 to Lower Manhattan.
* Great bike infrastructure including dense bike rental coverage and several north-south dedicated bike lanes. East to west lanes are limited though.
* Lots of urban biz districts including 183th, Burnside, Jerome, Fordham, Webster, Knightsbridge, Grand Concourse and plenty of commercial on residential corners.
* Great sidewalks and ADA standard curbs on about 70% of intersections. Brand new streetscaping along Grand Concourse.
* Solid historic architecture as much of it remains in tact. Mostly planer apartment buildings however.
* A Good number of walkable schools. Public schools are mixed ratings. More private schools than most Bronx neighborhoods.
* Fordham has a ton of rental inventory but most of it is not market rate (7:1 lease below 2K). It does have a good amount of market rentals as well. Decent # of studios and 1-bed rentals leasing btwn 1.5K-2.5K. 2-beds lease btwn 2K-3.5K. Some 4 beds that lease btwn 3K-4K.
* Decent tree canopy for a South Bronx neighborhood.
* Excellent pedestrian activity especially in the commercial districts, foremost with Fordham.
* Decent parks in Fordham but below average for South Bronx.  A couple nice medium sized parks (i.e. St. James, Richman Park), a recreational center, the lengthy Aqueduct Park, and several smaller playgrounds and pocket parks.
 *  Plenty of supermarkets &  drug stores, great shopping options on Fordham Center including tons of clothing stores, a target, and several small department stores, and boutiques. Other retail amenities in the Fordham neighborhood include plenty of salons & barber shops, tons of dessert & bakeries, a couple gyms, a couple post offices and public libraries, several churches, and while no hospitals there are plenty of medical centers and doctor’s offices.

URBAN WEAKNESSES:

* Decent amount of autocentric/industrial uses along Webster and Jerome.
* Hispanic populations represent about 60% of Fordham. Also pretty high levels of poverty (~30%) but decent number of middle class households. Just limited higher income households.
* Certainly some crime in Fordham but pretty average for South Bronx.
* Really only a handful of urban infill buildings. A decent amount of autocentric infill bldgs along Webster and Jerome.
* Okay cultural amenities including a good array of restaurants & cafes, a handful of bars, a couple live music venues, convenient access to the performing arts center at Fordham University, a couple art galleries, the Edgar Allen Poe Cottage,
* For sale options are pretty limited. Some 1 bed condos that sell in the 100Ks & 200Ks. A handful of 2-bed condos that sell in the 400K & 500Ks. Better 3 & 4 beds options selling btwn 500K-800K.