Census says: ‘Hola, welcome to Riverdale’

There are more Latinos, same-sex couples and young and old people in Riverdale and Kingsbridge than there were 10 years ago. 

Census data released last week, which includes age, race and gender breakdowns for every zip code in New York as well as statistics on households, paints a picture of a changing neighborhood.

When it came to race, the most notable change was that the Hispanic or Latino population spiked at a rate faster than the rest of the Bronx. 

Despite the contention that some neighborhoods with large immigrant populations were undercounted, the census calculated that the Hispanic or Latino population in both local zip codes is on the rise. 

Hispanic or Latinos make up of 46.6 percent of the total population of 10463, up from 38.2 percent in 2000. In 10471, that number rose from 15.1 to 20.1 percent. In the Bronx, the Hispanic or Latino population rose from 48.4 to 53.5 percent.

The black or African-American population and the Asian population remained relatively steady over the decade while the white, non-Hispanic population dropped almost 10 percent in 10463 and approximately 5 percent in 10471.  

There are more youngsters and more elderly people in our midst. Over the last decade, the under-5 and over-90 populations have risen. Zip code 10471 — which includes North Riverdale, Fieldston and Riverdale north of West 238th Street and Manhattan College Parkway — saw a large increase in the little ones, while the age makeup of 10463 — which includes South Riverdale, Spuyten Duyvil, Kingsbridge, Marble Hill and parts of Kingsbridge Heights, remained steady. 

That is in contrast to the borough as a whole. There was a sharp decrease in the under-5 population Bronxwide between 2000 and 2010.  

Riverdale may be known for its old-age homes, but the number of senior citizens who are in their 90s may still come as a surprise. 

Based on percentage of population, three times more people over 90 years old live in 10471 than the rest of the Bronx.