Speaking with Odalis.

A place that means a lot to me: I’ve always liked River Bank State Park. It’s two blocks from my place. It’s a really big park, right on the Hudson. Nothing has really changed there, which I really like.

There is a restaurant, skating rink, tennis courts, basketball courts, a pool. You can walk downstairs to be right down by the Hudson and have the view of Jersey, or the George Washington Bridge. There are now bikes by the entrance, so you can just get on bike and go down the river.

What concerns me: I’m all for change for the better but I know that my neighborhood has always been predominantly Hispanics, and Blacks. I’ve seen new supermarkets and restaurants that are more upscale, and that don’t really fit into the neighborhood. I see new people coming in. I don’t mind new faces, new friendly faces, as long as we all get along. Just given the fact of income differences…those of us who live there, we won’t really go to those places, it’s just too expensive for us.

What I would like to see 5 years from now: Because of the pandemic there are not a lot of places for people to drop off scraps of food for composting. I’d really like there to be more of that. More gardening projects.

****

Live in this district? Share your story of a place that means a lot to you in your neighborhood, and what you would like to see in the future.

View the interactive map of NYC for other views!