WHERE: The Bronx River Park Reservation between East 233 Street and East Gun Hill Road, known as Shoelace Park
START: Woodlawn station (Metro North Railroad, Harlem Line)
FINISH: Gun Hill Road subway station (2 train), fully accessible
DISTANCE: 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers)
Photographs by Michael Cairl. Map courtesy footpathmap.com
Route of this walk, reading from top to bottom.
This was a sequel to the walk I described in the post on this page entitled “Bronx Park,” taking in a long, narrow green space sandwiched between the Bronx River on the west and Bronx Boulevard on the east. Shoelace Park is the name given it by that amazing organization. the Bronx River Alliance. This walk started at the Woodlawn railroad station, across from the famous Woodlawn Cemetery. That cemetery deserves, and will get, its own walk. From the top of the stairs at the railroad station, turn left and walk over the Bronx River Parkway and the Bronx River. The river, though it is hemmed in by the city, looks idyllic.
The Bronx River, looking upstream from East 233 Street.
At the first crosswalk, turn right to cross East 233 Street onto the park path. The path crosses the ramp to the parkway, and just beyond the path divides. Bear to the left; this will take you to the Bronx River Greenway. It is in far better condition than the park paths closer to the river.
At approximately East 225 Street is this monument to William White Niles (1861 - 1935). The plaque reads “To record the fact that William White Niles was the founder of the Bronx River Parkway, this memorial has been erected by his friends.” According to the NYC Parks website:
In 1881, Niles helped found the New York Park Association. The Association presented comparative studies of parkland in foreign cities, predictions of rapid population growth in New York, and rising land values in a call for more parkland in the Bronx, which was annexed by New York City in 1874. This effort culminated in the 1884 New Parks Act and the city’s 1888-90 purchase of lands for Van Cortlandt, Claremont, Crotona, Bronx, St. Mary’s, and Pelham Bay Parks and the Mosholu, Pelham, and Crotona Parkways. The new properties increased the city’s parkland fivefold, from about 1,000 acres to about 5,000 acres.
Niles continued to strive for the development of Bronx parkland along the Bronx River. The 23-mile river had been greatly contaminated, and Niles was one of many that called for a solution to protect the quality of Bronx Park. The Bronx River Sewer Commission was established in 1905 and the Bronx River Parkway Commission was created in 1906 to reduce the sewage and beautify the edge of the river. Niles, a Bronx resident, served as the vice-president of the Bronx River Parkway Commission from 1907 to 1925. The commission sought the acquisition of land along the river, and the long process was hailed as a success when the Bronx River Parkway opened in 1925.
Niles’ legacy lives on through the efforts in this century by those of the Bronx River Alliance, the City of New York, and Westchester County.
Much of Shoelace Park occupies the original alignment of the Bronx River Parkway. From the Bronx River Alliance website:
The roadbed of the main pathway in the park is the site of a portion of the original Bronx River Parkway. The Bronx River Parkway was completed in 1925 and was seen as both a site for leisure driving and a critical connection from the city to the country. However, shortly after the parkway was completed, its design became obsolete due to advances in automobile technology that made cars too fast for the narrow and curved road. In 1950 the portion of the parkway that is now Shoelace Park was relocated from Bronx Boulevard to where it currently stands, adjacent to [and across] the Bronx River. The original roadbed remained in place and serves as the upper path in the park.
The former life of Shoelace Park is hinted at by this photograph.
On my walk I passed by picnickers and a church youth group. Besides the park paths, there are benches, a basketball court, a comfort station, and a kayak launch. Here’s a fun video about kayaking on this portion of the Bronx River:
The Bronx River Alliance has installed simple but effective signage in Shoelace Park, two examples of which are below. Signs similar to that in the second image should point the way to the Gun Hill Road, 225 Street, and 233 Street subway stations, and to the Woodlawn and Williams Bridge railroad stations.
At East 211 Street I exited the park to make my way to East Gun Hill Road and the subway.
Bronx Boulevard’s grand name belies the fact that for most of its length it is a narrow neighborhood street. The buildings along it are detached houses, attached houses, apartment buildings, and a hospital. One apartment building caught my eye for its late Art Deco ornamentation.
This walk was easy and, except for the stairs from the Woodlawn railroad station to the street. was fully accessible. Though I was never far from the sound of trains or traffic on the Bronx River Parkway, this is a thoroughly enjoyable green space, well worth the travel from where I live in Brooklyn. I saw at least four abandoned CitiBikes in the park; the CitiBike folks should rescue and repair these, and get them back on the streets where they belong.
Bit by bit I’m walking the Bronx River Greenway in the Bronx and I’ll tackle the paths along the Bronx River in Westchester County.