At least 370 buildings were removed from the parkway and more than $75,000 was collected from the sale of complete buildings and salvaged lumber. As of mid 1916, the BPC reported that it had earned nearly $22,000 in rents from buildings that it owned but had not yet removed or demolished.(142) In 1918, the BPC was able to report that the land acquisition process was largely complete, most of the buildings within the proposed parkway had been disposed of, and practically all the sources of pollution had been abated.(143)

Open for Public Enjoyment

Wherever practicable, the BPC opened the parkway for public use soon after it had been reclaimed. Large areas could be cleaned at a relatively small expense and sites suitable for recreational developments were made available at select points throughout the BRPR. Since the BPC did not consider providing equipment or overseeing recreational facilities as within its scope of work, it encouraged local community groups to take on the responsibility of providing for various means of outdoor recreation. As early as 1914, baseball fields and playgrounds were built along the parkway and the Bronx River was fit for swimming. By 1917, there was a wide range of facilities available in the New York City section, including ball fields, athletic fields, tennis courts, and playgrounds.(144) Community groups applied to the BPC for the right to develop recreational areas. If their plans were approved, they were generally granted revocable one-year permits for the activities. Since the BPC was concerned that the naturalistic beauty of the newly reclaimed landscape would be compromised if facilities for organized sports were allowed to take up too much of the parkway reservation, the commissioners made it clear that the permits were temporary and should not be interpreted as precedents for permanent recreational developments.(145) Recreation areas were located only where they would not intrude upon the broader parkway landscape. Hermann Merkel defended this practice by underscoring that the BPC "considered [it] our first duty to provide a beautiful Parkway, rather than a great number of local parks of diversified character."(146)

Although the BPC claimed it was not responsible for providing equipment and facilities for organized recreation, the commission provided bathing pools and bathhouses at various locations in the BRPR. There was a great demand for swimming opportunities, and bathing pools were established at Wakefield, Mount Vernon, Bronxville, Tuckahoe, Crestwood, White Plains, and various other areas. Bathing areas were also eventually located at Harney Road and Scarsdale Lake. The BPC approved the construction of temporary screens or roofless shelters for dressing and toilet facilities. BPC laborers built the simple structures using lumber salvaged from buildings in the reservation, keeping the cost to about $25 each. With about sixteen pools along the Bronx River, the BPC assigned an assistant parkkeeper to help "preserve order" at the bathing areas and enforce the rule that required bathers to wear swimming suits or trunks. The bathing pools proved to be tremendously popular. The BPC recorded 69,000 bathers and 58,000 using the facilities in 1918, which was nearly twice the number of previous season. In response, the BPC ordered three more bathhouses to be built for the next season. The BPC considered which bathing pools would be open to the public, and the locations varied from one year to the next.(147)

The BPC designed an extensive trail network from Mount Vernon to Kensico to promote walking, biking, and roller skating activities along the parkway. This cinder-paved trail, shown in the 1918 general development plans, follows the Bronx River, usually on the opposite side of the parkway drive. It also served to connect the rail stations along the Harlem Line to local residential areas. One drawback to its design was that the pathway also had several at-grade crossings of the parkway and its cross streets.


 

(142)Bronx Parkway Commission, Final Report, 1925, 34; Report, 1916, 43.
(143)Bronx Parkway Commission, Minutes, July 3, 1918, 94-95.
(144)Bronx Parkway Commission, Report, 1914, 26; Report, 1916, 35.
(145)Bronx Parkway Commission, Minutes, February 25, 1919, 28-32; February 13, 1917, 87-90.
(146)Bronx Parkway Commission, Report, 1916, 81.
(147)Bronx Parkway Commission, Report, 1916, 35; Bronx Parkway Commission, Minutes, July 10, 1917, 187-195; October 29, 1918, 173-175; May 29, 1923, 60-62.

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