Parts Of The X Back On The Map

By Amy Yensi--

Jeff Saltzman once said: "If you have ever wondered if you're in Hell, then you are experiencing a rather normal spiritual quandary that you share with many. If however, you know without a shadow of a doubt that you are in Hell, then you must be on the Cross Bronx Expressway." Every time I read the quote it takes me back to my early years growing up in the Bronx. Specifically, it reminds me of a spring afternoon when I was in kindergarten. I was playing in the school yard and noticed small plastic tubes with caps in just about every color of the rainbow; not far from the crack bottles was a syringe with the needle still attached. I was about to pick it up, when my teacher tapped me on the shoulder. She grabbed my arm and moved me away from where it was. I now wonder how many other children were lured by the pretty colors.

The quote brings back another childhood memory as well. It reminds me of a time I sat on the stoop in front of the apartment building where I lived. It was a summer afternoon. A group of people began to run frantically inside. I had no clue what was going on and just sat there. A few seconds later, I saw a young man chasing another down the street--then I heard gunshots. After some minutes passed by, people began to come out of the building. I was still sitting at the stoop when my older brother ran to hug me and tell me he didn't see me sitting there when he ran for safety.

Two decades later I walk by that neighborhood and it looks the same--rundown. Not so far away, there is the Mott Haven section of the Bronx. This area was also infested with poverty, drugs, and crime, but it has come such a long way. Abandoned warehouses have been turned in to loft apartments and townhouses have been remodeled into co-op and condos. The area still maintains its Bronx flavor; the sounds of Salsa and a bodega are not that difficult to find here. However, this section's urban renewal is still in its infancy.

Gentrification might be positive if it doesn't ostracize the original inhabitants. If DUMBO is any indication, however, this conditional may be paradoxical to the highest degree.