Mount Vernon, New York
Encyclopedia : M : MO : MOU : Mount Vernon, New York
Mount Vernon is a city in Westchester County, New York, on the northern border of New York City. It is the eighth largest city in New York state. As of the 2004 census the population was at 68,321.
History
In 1850, John Stevens, a merchant tailor from New York City, set out to improve the condition of the working class in New York. Among his goals was to create a property-holding class out of rent payers. To this end he organized the Industrial Home Association No. 1 of New York. Qualifications for membership were moral character, industrious habits and the desire to promote a common purpose.1,017 due-paying members joined the Association, which purchased the land that then became the Village of Mount Vernon. It consisted of five farms with a combined area of about 370 acres, costing a total of $75,342.88, or roughly $205 per acre. The land extended from what is now Union Avenue on the east to Fifteenth Avenue on the west; and from Valentine Street on the north to Sandford Boulevard and a small portion of Kingsbridge on the south.
Mount Vernon at this time consisted mainly of farm lands crossed by two important railroads, the New York and Harlem, that already had a station there, and the New York and New Haven that had no station until the Industrial Home Association built one for it.
Central Mount Vernon remained mostly undeveloped until Charles Crary bought land on Chester Hill in 1869. He laid out orderly building lots and placed restrictions on the use of the lots and who could purchase them. Chester Hill became a privlidged community.
Mount Vernon was officially incorporated as a city in 1892.
Geography
Mount Vernon is located at (40.914060, -73.830507)[Geographic references#1GR1]. It is the third largest city in the county of Westchester.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 11.3 km² (4.4 mi²). 11.3 km² (4.4 mi²) of it is land and 0.1 km² (0.04 mi²) of it (0.46%) is water.
Neighborhoods
Northside
Traditionally, the border between "northside" and "southside" has been the railroad tracks of the New Haven Line of Metro North, but in recent years the neighborhoods immediately north of the tracks have become demographically and economically more like those on the "South Side", so that today many consider the "northside/southside" border to have moved north a few blocks to Lincoln Avenue.
Much of the North Side contains a neighborhood called Fleetwood. Fleetwood has the feel of a small town with city ties (though there are some luxury mid-rise apartments on and near Gramatan Ave.). This area is unique demographically from the rest of the city in that it is predominantly (but not exclusively) Caucasian and the residents have higher median income and education levels.
Southside
Known in the media for having a moderate-high poverty and crime rate. However, there are exceptions, such as the Langdon Terrace neighborhood and the Mount Vernon Heights section along Route 22 and E. Sandford Blvd, which contains many luxurious homes and whose residents have an income level comparable to Fleetwood on the North Side. Its neighborhood elementary schools, Longfellow and Graham, have a reputation similar to many North Side schools. Nonetheless, much of this area is urban and more densely populated than the rest of the city, with many apartment complexes, the central business district, city government buildings, and shopping centers.
This area borders the Bronx; many of the city residents have said criminals come from there and give the city a bad reputation. For the most part the city's southside has always shared similarities with the Bronx. Both areas have low housing value rates and low employment rates which contribute to poverty and crime which are beginning to decrease with time as the mayor of the city is improving the quality of life by workng with housing and urban development groups such as Westhab to create better and new infrastructures for living and working.
In 2004 the Sanford Boulevard revitalization project went under way. The project was meant to economically revitalize the South Side and provide jobs to low income residents in the city and provide jobs for unemployed residents as well. Companies that were included in this project were Target, Starbucks, Bed Bath and Beyond, Staples, Best Buy, Famous Footwear, Stop and Shop, T.J. Maxx, Petco, and Restuarant Depot. Future projects to help the city on a citywide scale are residental and mixed use office and retail projects. Some named projects are under way which all can be viewed on the city's websites.
Demographics
As of the census[Geographic references#2GR2] of 2004, there were 68,321 people, 25,941 households, and 16,432 families residing in the city. The population density was 8,792.7/km² (15,689.3/mi²). There were 27,408 housing units at an average density of 3,509.3/km² (6,205.9/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 30.63% White, 59.58% African American, 0.32% Native American, 2.12% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 2.85% from other races, and 3.44% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.36% of the population. A significant portion of the White and/or Latino population (depending on if they classified themselves as Hispanic in the census) are of Brazilian/Portuguese origin. Similarly, a significant part of the Black and/or Latino population is of West Indian origin.
There were 25,941 households out of which 31.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.9% were married couples living together, 28.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.2% were non-families. 30.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.63 and the average family size was 3.27.
In the city the population was spread out with 25.3% under the age of 18, 8.3% from 18 to 24, 31.1% from 25 to 44, 22.4% from 45 to 64, and 12.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 82.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 76.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $45,128, and the median income for a family was $52,573. Males had a median income of $39,493 versus $34,871 for females. The per capita income for the city was $22,827. 15.2% of the population and 13.1% of families were below the poverty line. 12.3% of the population is 65 or older.
Brazilian community
One in 10 people in Mount Vernon is from Brazil, and according to estimates by the city and the Brazilian Consulate in New York, two-thirds of those Brazilians are from Poços de Caldas, a blue-collar city of 140,000 in the mountains of southeastern Brazil.The Brazilian community is heavily concentrated in an area along and near West Lincoln Ave. from its beginning at the corner of Mt. Vernon Ave. going about half a mile down to Gramatan Ave. and has begun to spread into East Lincoln Avenue. Brazilian stores line commercial areas in these parts of Mount Vernon (especially within Gramatan Ave. from the railroad tracks to Lincoln Ave. and adjacent blocks) and neighborhood public schools have brought in teachers and counselors who speak Portuguese. The language can be heard on the streets throughout this area.
The Brazilians living in Mount Vernon have also transformed their Brazilian hometown, pumping millions of dollars into its economy and helping to pay for new homes and businesses there. So important are these remittances that Brazilian jouranlist Walther Alvarenga has made Mount Vernon the focus of a series of documentaries for Brazilian public television called New York, O Sonho Brasileiro ("New York, the Brazilian Dream").
In November 2005 Mayor Ernest D. Davis traveled to Poços de Caldas to sign a sister-city agreement to strengthen the bond between the two cities."A Brazilian Outpost in Westchester County." The New York Times 26 June 2006.[link]
Education
The city has two high schools (Mount Vernon High School and the Nelson Mandela Alternative High School, a third high school, Thornton, will be opening in the late 2000s), three middle schools (Longfellow, A.B. Davis, and Franko), and ten elementary schools (Traphagen, Penington Grimes, Longfellow, Graham, Lincoln, Columbus, Parker, Edward Williams, Hamilton, and Holmes).The city has the largest public library system in the county of Westchester and the 6th largest in New York State.
Transportation
From its founding the city has been well served by passenger rail. Metro North has three train stations in Mount Vernon: Mount Vernon West, Mount Vernon East, and Fleetwood. In the 19th century The New York and New Haven Railroads ran on the surface through Mount Vernon, but the tracks are now depressed in right-of-ways dug for improved rail service.
Both the 2 train and the 5 train of the New York City subway terminate just before the Bronx border of Mt. Vernon.
The city is also serviced by the Bee-Line Bus System routes 7, 40, 41, 42, 52, 53, 54, 55, and 91 which operate during the summer. The city also has several taxi services such as New Line Taxi, Reliable Taxi, Parkway Ride, Sherwood Taxi, and Available Taxi.
Mount Vernon is notable for being the third busiest transit hub in Westchester county after White Plains and Yonkers.
Famous residents
Denzel Washington, Ken Singleton, Dick Clark, Art Carney, Heavy D, Al B. Sure!, Axella Johannesson, Betty Shabazz, Ben Gordon, Gus Williams, Michael Imperioli, Pete Rock and CL Smooth, Roz Kelly, DMX and P. Diddy were born (or grew up) in Mount Vernon.External links
- [Mount Vernon official website]
- [Maps and aerial photos]
- * Street map from [Google Maps] or [Yahoo! Maps]
- * Topographic map from [TopoZone]
- * Aerial image or topographic map from [TerraServer-USA]
- * Satellite image from [Google Maps] or [Windows Live Local]
- [mvinqiurer.com]
- [thejournalnews.com community select Mount Vernon]
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