Kingsbridge

By Sara Stefanini | Special to amNewYork

March 22, 2007

With a growing central commercial area chock-a-block with big chain stores, restaurants and shops, Kingsbridge has become a noisy, bustling neighborhood.

Nowadays, the Bronx community's business district, which runs along Broadway between the two main subway stops, 231st Street and 238th Street on the No. 1 train, has just about anything and everything to offer, residents say.

From old Irish pubs (remnants of the large Irish population that once dominated Kingsbridge) to newer Hispanic and Asian haunts and fast food restaurants, it's all there.

"You've got everything you want here, you've got all kinds of good food, you've got all the buses, all the subways, it's all here," said Bill Pedoty, 85.

Discount superstores such as Staples, Stop and Shop, International House of Pancakes, Petco and Loehmann's clothing store all line the strip of Broadway beneath the above-ground subway tracks.

Flanked by Riverdale and Marble Hill, Kingsbridge, which was once part of Yonkers in Westchester County, has grown into a family neighborhood, where housing is still relatively cheap -- though prices are rising -- with easy access to Manhattan and various parks.

Once a quieter neighborhood mostly made up of Irish and Italian immigrants, the area has been developing and diversifying for a while, and more change is on the way. In addition to a number of residential buildings going up, plans to build an urban mall have recently been solidified, which will draw in even more businesses, said Anthony Perez Cassino, chairman of Community Board 8, which covers Kingsbridge.

"This area is really being discovered by businesses," Cassino said. "We still lose shoppers to Westchester and Yonkers, but I think that's changing."

The Buzz
The new mall, slated to go up one block east of Broadway by the 231st Street subway stop, has generated a lot of talk.

The city recently sold the block of land, currently a parking lot, to a developer, said Anthony Perez Cassino, chairman of Community Board 8. The project is expected to draw a number of department stores and Kingsbridge's first movie theater.

"This new development will really help to anchor the area," he said. "I think people are really excited about what's going in there. Right now there's no movie theater anywhere near here. It's generally upgrading the area."

To party
The nightlife in Kingsbridge mostly consists of old Irish pubs and bars, where locals gather to watch sports over cheap beers.

Keenan's Bar
A fixture on Broadway for at least 50 years, this pub, equipped with a modern jukebox and a pool table, attracts an older local crowd by day and younger group by night.
5588 Broadway
718-548-9751

Riverdale City Grill
A sports bar often frequented by Manhattan College students, it also offers nachos, wings, wraps and make-your-own-salads during the daytime.