Is Pelham Bay Safe? Bronx Livability, Crime & Rent
Pelham Bay scores 5.4—a safe, transit-connected neighborhood with few housing violations, but moderate noise and a weak outdoor score temper the appeal.
The figures on this page cover the whole Pelham Bay-Country Club-City Island Neighborhood Tabulation Area (BX1003), which takes in Country Club and City Island as well as Pelham Bay.
Pelham Bay at a glance
- Borough
- Bronx
- Livability score
- 5.4/10
- Borough rank (NYC Open Data guides)
- #4 of 22
- Safety verdict
- Much Safer Than Average
- Crimes (12 mo)
- 1,288
- ZIP codes
- 10461 (57%), 10465 (26%), 10464 (17%)Share of residential units, NYC PLUTO 26v2
- Subway stations
- 2 (Buhre Av, Middletown Rd)
- Data updated
- 2026-09-14
Is Pelham Bay Safe?
Pelham Bay, Bronx scores 5.4/10 for overall livability, ranking #4 of 22 Bronx neighborhoods scored from NYC Open Data. Pelham Bay scores 5.4—a safe, transit-connected neighborhood with few housing violations, but moderate noise and a weak outdoor score temper the appeal.
The livability score draws on HPD housing violations, subway access, NYC Parks' tree inventory and parks, and 311 noise complaints per resident from NYC Open Data, refreshed periodically rather than live. It does not include crime; NYPD complaint and shooting figures are on the Pelham Bay safety page. Safety varies by block — check a specific Pelham Bay address below for a block-level breakdown.
Score Overview
Vertical line = borough median. Scale: 0-10.
Practical measures HPD housing violations per residential lot over the last 12 months (higher = fewer violations). Borough medians are computed across DwellCheck's Bronx neighborhood guides.
Neighborhood Character
You'll find Pelham Bay as a residential pocket in the northeast Bronx, anchored by proximity to Pelham Bay Park and Orchard Beach. The neighborhood averages 142 trees within a 200-meter radius with a tree density of 3.5/10. Street-level, you're looking at a neighborhood of houses: one-family (46% of residential tax lots) and two-family (35%), with walk-up apartment buildings on 15% of lots, creating an uneven but lived-in residential texture. The 6 train serves the area at Buhre Av and Middletown Rd, though parks are not immediate: the nearest, Palmer Inlet, is about 782 meters from the neighborhood's center, and the 3 nearest average 1,301 meters.
Livability & Restoration
Trees
142 trees
Expected in a 200m circle (NYC Parks tree inventory) | Density: 3.5/10 (city percentile)
In Toronto, 10 more trees on a city block went with a rise in self-rated health comparable to being 7 years younger (Kardan et al., 2015, Scientific Reports). In a cross-sectional study of London boroughs, each additional street tree per km of street went with 1.18 fewer antidepressant prescriptions per 1,000 residents (Taylor et al., 2015, Landscape and Urban Planning).
Park Access
6 parks
NYC Parks properties inside the neighborhood | largest: City Island Wetlands | nearest to the center: Palmer Inlet, 782m | 3 nearest average 1301m from the neighborhood's center
Acoustic Quality
4/10
Noise proxy score (higher = quieter)
Environmental noise exposure increases the occurrence of hypertension and cardiovascular disease; WHO's night-noise guidelines call average outdoor night noise above 55 dB increasingly dangerous for public health (Basner et al., 2014, The Lancet).
What is the ART Score?
ART stands for Attention Restoration Theory (Kaplan & Kaplan, 1989) — the framework environmental psychologists use to measure whether a place helps your brain recover from mental fatigue, or pushes it deeper into overload. Cities deplete directed attention (the effortful focus you use at work); exposure to restorative environments replenishes it.
DwellCheck uses the idea in two separate places, and they measure different things. The neighborhood ART score below comes from neighborhood-wide data: up to 5 points from tree density (a city percentile) and up to 5 from how few 311 noise complaints there are per resident. An address report has no ART score. It runs the Wellness checks below, and their points go into the address’s overall score.
Within a point of the Bronx median.
What an address report checks instead (Wellness)
- ±Sensory environment. A calm score minus a busy score, each starting at 50. Busy: a firehouse within 100m (+15) or 200m (+8), and 311 noise complaints within 200m over 6 months (15+ adds 5, 40+ adds 12, 80+ adds 20, and 3 more at 20+ complaints that include vehicle or street noise). Calm: a library (+15), community garden (+12) or public plaza or atrium (POPS; +15 indoor, +8 outdoor) within 200m, and a park within 300m (+10; +15 at 1+ acre; +20 at 5+ acres). A difference of +20 or more adds 8 points; −10 to −29 costs 2; −30 or less costs 4. Bars, museums, tourists and foot traffic are not counted.
- +Third places (Oldenburg, 1989). Public libraries, public plazas and atriums (POPS) and community gardens within 400m: 1–2 add 5 points, 3 or more add 10. Cafés and community centers are not counted. In a meta-analysis of longitudinal studies, loneliness or social isolation went with a 29% higher risk of incident coronary heart disease (Valtorta et al., 2016, Heart).
- 0Street vitality (Jacobs, 1961). Permitted block parties, farmers markets and similar community events in the borough over the past 12 months. The event data has no coordinates, so this is a borough-wide count shown for context. It doesn’t change the score.
Health mechanism. The theory holds that natural settings let directed attention recover. The evidence is mixed: a systematic review of 31 studies (Ohly et al., 2016, Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part B) found that time in natural environments improved 3 of 13 pooled attention measures (Digit Span Forward, Digit Span Backward and Trail Making Test B) and showed no marked benefit on the other 10.
Theoretical foundations. Kaplan & Kaplan (1989), The Experience of Nature; Jacobs (1961), The Death and Life of Great American Cities; Oldenburg (1989), The Great Good Place.
Transit & Commute
Subway Stations
Commute Score
5/10
Borough median: 5/10
Outdoor & Green Space
Avg Tree Count
142
Trees expected in a 200m circle
Tree Density
3.5/10
1,130 trees per km² in NYC Parks' tree inventory (street and park trees); city percentile, 1 = sparsest
Largest Parks In or Near the Neighborhood
- City Island Wetlands
- Palmer Inlet
- Ambrosini Field
- Colucci Playground
- Catherine Scott Promenade
Nearest to the neighborhood's center: Palmer Inlet, about 782m. The 3 nearest NYC Parks properties average 1301m from the center (approximate park centers, not entrances).
Practical Living
Practical (HPD violations): 8/10 (Bronx median 4). It measures HPD housing violations per residential lot over the last 12 months (higher = fewer violations).
Building Mix (Residential Tax Lots)
Share of the 4,563 residential tax lots in the neighborhood by PLUTO building class (NYC Department of City Planning).
Who Pelham Bay Is For
Transit-dependent commuters
Commute score of 5 (borough median 5) means reliable but not premium transit access; two 6 train stops provide steady service.
Pros & Cons
Strengths
Few housing violations
Practical score of 8 (borough median 4), reflecting a low rate of HPD housing violations per residential building.
Stable multi-family residential building stock
4,563 residential tax lots: 46% one-family, 35% two-family, 15% walk-up apartment buildings; a house-heavy stock.
Trade-offs
Moderate noise complaints
2,165 noise complaints recorded (Moderate category)—suggests congested or disruptive conditions despite residential branding.
Below-average outdoor score
Outdoor score 3.3 (borough median 6.7)—the 3 nearest parks average 1,301 meters from the neighborhood's center.
Score Any Address in Pelham Bay
Get detailed livability scores based on building health, transit access, safety, noise levels, and 15+ NYC data sources.
Search an Address in Pelham BayFrequently Asked Questions about Pelham Bay
1Is Pelham Bay safe?
By NYPD data, Pelham Bay is rated "Much Safer Than Average", with a lower crime rate per resident than 90% of Bronx neighborhoods. 1,288 crime incidents and 1 shooting incident over the past 12 months. See the safety page for the full breakdown.
2What is the average rent in Pelham Bay?
Rents in Pelham Bay, Bronx vary significantly by building and apartment type. Market pricing isn't aggregated for this neighborhood yet; use DwellCheck to research specific addresses for HPD registration, HPD violations, and other building-level records. DwellCheck doesn't show rent-stabilization status; request the apartment's rent history from DHCR for that.
3How is transit access in Pelham Bay?
Pelham Bay has a commute score of 5/10. 2 subway stations serve the area: Buhre Av, Middletown Rd.
4What are the best streets in Pelham Bay?
The best streets depend on your priorities. Use DwellCheck to compare specific addresses across livability, safety, transit, and environmental factors.
5What is Pelham Bay known for?
Pelham Bay sits in Bronx and ranks #4 of 22 Bronx neighborhoods scored from NYC Open Data on DwellCheck's livability score (5.4/10). It's served by 2 subway stations (Buhre Av, Middletown Rd). Pelham Bay scores 5.4—a safe, transit-connected neighborhood with few housing violations, but moderate noise and a weak outdoor score temper the appeal.
6What is it like to live in Pelham Bay?
DwellCheck scores Pelham Bay, Bronx from NYC Open Data on practical (HPD housing violations per residential lot over the last 12 months (higher = fewer violations)), commute (subway stations and lines in the neighborhood), ART (tree density and 311 noise complaints per resident), outdoor (trees and park proximity). Pelham Bay's composite is 5.4/10. Pelham Bay scores 5.4—a safe, transit-connected neighborhood with few housing violations, but moderate noise and a weak outdoor score temper the appeal. For the block-by-block view, run any specific Pelham Bay address through DwellCheck.
7Where is Pelham Bay?
Pelham Bay is in the Bronx, New York City. DwellCheck maps it to the Pelham Bay-Country Club-City Island Neighborhood Tabulation Area (BX1003), which falls in the Census tabulation area that approximates Bronx Community District 10 (Co-op City-Throgs Neck). Its main ZIP codes are 10461, 10465 and 10464. Subway stations in the neighborhood include Buhre Av and Middletown Rd.
8What ZIP code is Pelham Bay in?
Pelham Bay spans ZIP codes 10461 (57% of residential units), 10465 (26%) and 10464 (17%). Shares are of the 12,509 residential units in the Pelham Bay-Country Club-City Island Neighborhood Tabulation Area (BX1003), from NYC PLUTO 26v2 tax-lot records.
9Can you walk around Pelham Bay at night?
Pelham Bay is classified as "Much Safer Than Average" by NYPD complaint data. Over the past 12 months it recorded 1 shooting incident and 1,288 total crime incidents. Walking at night carries the same risk profile as anywhere in NYC: stay on commercial corridors with foot traffic, avoid empty side streets after midnight, and prefer subway lines that run 24/7.
10Is Pelham Bay dangerous?
By NYPD data, Pelham Bay is rated "Much Safer Than Average", with a lower crime rate per resident than 90% of Bronx neighborhoods. 1,288 crime incidents over 12 months. Block-level risk varies; check the address-level safety score for any specific street or building.
11What parts of Pelham Bay should I avoid?
NYPD complaint records carry approximate incident coordinates, but a neighborhood total can't tell you which blocks drive it, so we don't publish an "avoid this street" list. For a specific block, use DwellCheck's address-level safety score, which counts NYPD crime complaints within a 300m radius of the building over the latest 12 months of published data and compares that count with the borough average.
12Is Pelham Bay a good place to live?
Pelham Bay scores 5.4/10 for overall livability and has a lower crime rate per resident than 90% of Bronx neighborhoods. Pelham Bay scores 5.4—a safe, transit-connected neighborhood with few housing violations, but moderate noise and a weak outdoor score temper the appeal. Whether it's a good fit depends on what you weight: families, solo renters, and remote workers each prioritize different factors (noise, transit access, parks, building quality).
13What is the average DwellScore in Pelham Bay?
The composite score is 5.4. A high practical score (8) reflects few housing violations; a weak outdoor score (3.3) reflects the 3 nearest parks averaging 1,301 meters from the neighborhood's center.
14How accessible is public transit?
Commute score is 5 (borough median 5). Two 6 train stations serve the area: Buhre Av and Middletown Rd.
15What's the safety situation?
Pelham Bay has a lower crime rate per resident than 90% of Bronx neighborhoods. Total crimes 1,288 over 12 months; noise complaints 2,165 (moderate). Crime is stable, up 4.5% year-over-year.
16Is there green space nearby?
Average tree count is 142 within 200m; tree density 3.5/10. Parks include Ambrosini Field and Colucci Playground; the 3 nearest average 1,301m from the neighborhood's center.
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