| About Yonkers
- Yonkers, bordering the New York City borough of the
Bronx and just 2 miles (3 km) north of Manhattan at
the closest point of each, is the fourth largest city
in the U.S. state of New York, with a population of
196,086 (according to the 2000 census). A July 1, 2002
estimate showed the city's population to be 197,234.
It is by far the largest city in Westchester County.
Younger residents have termed the city "the sixth
borough" as well as "the backyard of the Bronx",
referring to Yonkers' location on the New York City
border resulting in a somewhat urban character not commonly
associated with suburbia.
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Its best-known attraction is Yonkers Raceway, a harness
racing track, which has contemplated adding legalized
video slot gambling. There is also a large shopping area
along Central Park Avenue (New York Route 100), which
attracts many shoppers from the surrounding areas, including
New York City. Central Park Avenue is informally referred
to as "Central Avenue" by area residents. In
fact, a few miles north in White Plains, New York, the
street is officially designated as "Central Avenue."
Living in Yonkers
People of Yonkers - As of
the census2 of 2000, there are 196,086 people, 74,351
households, and 49,294 families residing in the city.
The population density is 4,187.5/km² (10,847.5/mi²).
There are 77,589 housing units at an average density
of 1,656.9/km² (4,292.2/mi²). The racial makeup
of the city is 60.18% White, 16.61% African American,
0.44% Native American, 4.86% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander,
13.44% from other races, and 4.42% from two or more
races. 25.93% of the population are Hispanic or Latino
of any race.
There are 74,351 households out of which 30.9% have
children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.2%
are married couples living together, 17.2% have a female
householder with no husband present, and 33.7% are non-families.
29.2% of all households are made up of individuals and
11.9% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age
or older. The average household size is 2.61 and the
average family size is 3.23.
In the city the population is spread out with 24.3%
under the age of 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 30.6% from
25 to 44, 21.2% from 45 to 64, and 15.0% who are 65
years of age or older. The median age is 36 years. For
every 100 females there are 88.6 males. For every 100
females age 18 and over, there are 84.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $44,663,
and the median income for a family is $53,233. Males
have a median income of $41,598 versus $34,756 for females.
The per capita income for the city is $22,793. 15.5%
of the population and 13.0% of families are below the
poverty line. Out of the total population, 24.8% of
those under the age of 18 and 9.9% of those 65 and older
are living below the poverty line.
Neighborhoods Yonkers
Though Yonkers contains dozens of small residential
enclaves and communities, it could probably be best
described as consisting of four major regions:
Northeastern Yonkers: This is a rather
modest, heavily white (especially Irish-American, Italian-American),
suburban, and largely middle class area. Houses are
generally smaller and set closer together than in other
more affluent suburbs nearby. The main thoroughfare
is Central (Park) Avenue, lined with a vast array of
stores as well as several high-rise apartment buildings,
a sight not typically seen in most of generally affluent
Westchester County. Tuckahoe Road, which intersects
Central Avenue, contains many stores as well. Notable
former residents include Steven Tyler of the rock band
Aerosmith (born Steven Tallarico), who had his childhood
home just off of Central Avenue. Northeastern Yonkers
contains the Crestwood section of Yonkers, as well as
several other enclaves. Landmarks include St Vladimir's
Seminary, the Tanglewood Shopping Center (one-time home
of the Tanglewood Boys gang), as well as Sarah Lawrence
College. The Lawrence Park and Cedar Knolls sections
are unique in many ways from the rest of Northeast Yonkers.
These two neighborhoods include more upscale housing
and residents are generally commuters to Manhattan.
This is mostly due to the promixity of various nearby
Metro-North commuter railroad stations. Both sections
are heavily white but unlike most other Yonkers neighborhoods
are not dominated by any particular ethnicity. Because
they share the zip code of the neighboring upscale village
of Bronxville, many residents feel they are more a part
of Bronxville than Yonkers even though they still pay
taxes to and get services from the latter.
Northwestern Yonkers: A difficult area
to categorize, northwestern Yonkers is a collection
of widely varying neighborhoods jumbled together, spanning
from the Hudson River to around the New York State Thruway/I-87
and north of Ashburton Avenue, roughly speaking. While
Warburton Avenue and other areas on the Hudson River
contain some beautiful, older Victorian homes, a walk
a few blocks east to Lake Avenue drastically changes
the landscape as the riverside estates give way to not
only a more inner-city feel but also one of sheer desolateness
reminiscent of back-end neighborhoods of New York City's
nearby outer boroughs. In sharp contrast, northwestern
Yonkers looks nearly identical to the upscale neighboring
village of Hastings-on-Hudson as one approaches the
northern boundary of Yonkers. The population of northwestern
Yonkers is more mixed in ethnicity and less heavily
Italian-American or Irish-American than in northeastern
Yonkers; the remainder of the Jewish community in Yonkers
mostly lives in this part of the city, though it is
not large enough or concentrated enough to really be
called a Jewish neighborhood. The Runyon Heights neighborhood
in the southeastern part of this area is a historically
African-American enclave that is more upscale and suburban
than a similar population cluster in the southwestern
part of the city. Landmarks include Stew Leonard's (the
only New York location of a well-known Connecticut-oriented
"super"-supermarket chain that focuses on
dairy products and produce) and the Hudson River Museum.
Southeastern Yonkers: Southeastern
Yonkers is mostly white, Italian- American and a huge
population of Irish- Americans though somewhat more
visibly working class, urban and a large Catholic population.
Much of the architecture and types of stores in the
area cause southeastern Yonkers to bear a greater resemblance
to certain parts of the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, or
Staten Island than to points north. This is not surprising
as southeastern Yonkers is largely within walking distance
of the Riverdale, Woodlawn, and Wakefield sections of
the Bronx. Many residents regard eastern McLean Avenue,
home to a vibrant Irish community shared with the Woodlawn
section of the Bronx, to be the true hub of Yonkers.
Similarly, a portion of Midland Avenue in the Dunwoodie
section has been called the "Little Italy"
of Yonkers. Landmarks of southeastern Yonkers include
the Cross County Shopping Center, Yonkers Raceway, and
St. Joseph's Seminary.
Southwestern Yonkers: This inner-city
part of Yonkers is commonly regarded as dirty, poor,
and crime-ridden, southwestern Yonkers is the area predominantly
responsible for the Yonkers' somewhat negative reputation.
Relatively speaking, this area is not actually as dangerous
nor as impoverished as many believe. While main drags
like South Broadway are certainly less than upscale,
there are residential neighborhoods right off South
Broadway which feature residential streets of million-dollar
plus, turn of the century mansions, much like in the
Flatbush section of Brooklyn. However, blighted sections
do exist as well, especially around Getty Square (Broadway
& Main Street, also called "Ghetto Square"
by some residents), which serves the focal point of
downtown Yonkers. Just recently many new multi million
dollar luxury apartment buildings were being built along
the Hudson. A new monument park, the renovation of the
only Victorian age pier, a new library, and many new
projects to revitalize downtown Yonkers. Unlike the
east side of Yonkers, this area is predominantly black
and Hispanic demographically. Famous former residents
include rapper DMX, who grew up in a housing project
on School Street.
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