Where Tourism and Gentrification Meet

Filtered Coffee in the South Bronx

This week, the New York Times travel section put out a list of the 52 places it suggests you visit in 2017 and one place is the South Bronx.

The newspaper said the neighborhood is experiencing a revival and it highlighted some of the shops and restaurants that have recently opened in the area. On The Brian Lehrer Show, Monica Drake, editor of the paper's travel section, said that for many people outside of New York City, the Bronx still suffers from a negative reputation that dates back to the 1970s, and that the paper wanted people to know that's changing.

But as the article focused on new businesses — many with ties to a developer planning to build several luxury high rises along the waterfront — that upset some people in the community. One of them is Ed Garcia Conde, author of the blog "Welcome 2 the Bronx" and an outspoken advocate for the neighborhood he calls home. He penned a response to the Times', offering up his list of local places to visit. Garcia Conde joined WNYC's Jami Floyd to talk about his suggestions and about the concerns of residents struggling with the changes happening in this neighborhood because of increasing gentrification.