Is Morris Park Safe? Bronx Livability, Crime & Rent
Morris Park scores a 6.3 median—a middle-ground neighborhood with strong local walkability and tree cover, offset by significant noise, crime activity, and longer commutes.
Morris Park at a glance
- Borough
- Bronx
- Livability score
- 6.3/10
- Borough rank
- #7 of 23
- Safety verdict
- Safer Than Average
- Crimes (12 mo)
- 1,772
- Median listing
- $0
- Subway stations
- 1 (Morris Park)
- Active listings
- 5
- Data updated
- 2026-04-05
Is Morris Park Safe?
Morris Park, Bronx scores 6.3/10 for overall livability, ranking #7 of 23 Bronx neighborhoods. Morris Park scores a 6.3 median—a middle-ground neighborhood with strong local walkability and tree cover, offset by significant noise, crime activity, and longer commutes.
This score aggregates live NYPD crime data, 311 safety complaints, shooting incidents, and building health signals within walking distance. Safety varies by block — check a specific Morris Park address below for a block-level breakdown.
Score Overview
Vertical line = borough median. Scale: 0-10.
Neighborhood Character
Morris Park is a densely tree-lined neighborhood where you'll walk under a canopy average of 127 trees within 200 meters and experience strong Italian-American roots along Morris Park Avenue. The streets are lined entirely with walk-up buildings, creating a low-rise, pedestrian-scaled environment that feels residential and established. You're within walking distance of Loreto Playground and benefit from direct access to the Morris Park subway station (5 train), though the commute score reflects longer travel times to major employment centers. The neighborhood registers as high-activity for safety (82nd percentile in the borough), but noise and crime data show this is a lively, densely-populated area with challenges: 1,737 noise complaints and a worsening crime trend (+189.7% over 12 months) against 1,344 total crimes.
Analysis based on 5 properties scored across 30+ data points
Livability & Restoration
Tree Canopy
127 trees
Avg within 200m | Density: 9.5/10
10 additional trees per block correlates with health benefits equivalent to being 7 years younger (Kardan et al., 2015)
Park Access
Loreto Playground
Avg 298m away | Score: 2.8/10
Living within 300m of green space associated with 30% fewer antidepressant prescriptions (Taylor et al., 2015)
Acoustic Quality
6/10
Noise proxy score (higher = quieter)
Chronic noise above 55 dB at night associated with 8% cardiovascular mortality increase (Basner et al., 2014)
Street Character
0/10
Enclosure: 0/10
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.
We compute an ART score for every block by combining four signals: access to restorative zones (parks, museums, libraries), sensory load (nightlife and tourist density), street vitality (Jane Jacobs’ “eyes on the street”), and third places (Oldenburg’s informal community spaces).
Meaningfully more restorative than the Bronx average — expect lower sensory load and better access to restorative zones than most of the borough.
What drives the score
- +Restorative zones. Museums, libraries, community gardens, and parks within walking distance. “Soft fascination” stimuli (clouds, tree branches, water) let directed attention recover without effort — the Kaplans’ core mechanism.
- −Sensory load. Bar and nightclub density (5+ within 150m), firehouse siren corridors, tourist chokepoints, and very high foot traffic push the score down by up to 8 points.
- +Street vitality (Jacobs, 1961). Permitted block parties, farmers markets, and community festivals over the past 12 months — a proxy for “eyes on the street” and the informal surveillance that makes blocks feel safe and maintained.
- +Third places (Oldenburg, 1989). Cafés, public plazas (POPS), community centers — the “anchors of community life” that buffer against social isolation. Loneliness has been linked to 29% higher incident coronary heart disease risk (Valtorta et al., 2016).
Health mechanism. Directed-attention fatigue (DAF) is linked to impaired decision-making, irritability, and elevated cortisol. A meta-analysis of 60+ studies (Ohly et al., 2016) found restorative environment exposure significantly improves attention-task performance (Hedges’ g ≈ 0.32) and reduces negative affect.
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
3/10
Borough median: 5/10
Walk Score Proxy
0/10
Based on street geometry analysis
Financial Landscape
Median Price
$0
Price per Sq Ft
$0
Price Distribution
Price by Building Type
Investment Indicators
Avg Unused FAR
0 sqft
Development rights potential
Unused development rights valued at $30-$80/sqft in Brooklyn (Glaeser, 2011)
Avg Days on Market
0
Market velocity signal
Multi-Family Stock
0%
2-4 family buildings
Multi-family owner-occupants build 2.4x wealth vs single-family (Herbert, 2013)
Outdoor & Green Space
Avg Tree Count
127
Within 200m radius
Canopy Density
9.5/10
Normalized canopy coverage
Park Network
- Loreto Playground
Avg distance: 298m
Practical Living
Building Types
Who Morris Park Is For
Transit-dependent commuters on a budget
Direct 5 train access and a Practical score of 9 (well above borough median of 4) mean solid access to essential services, though Commute score of 3 reflects longer travel times to job centers
People prioritizing walkable streets and green space
ART/Livability score of 6.8 (above borough median) paired with exceptional tree density (127 avg within 200m, canopy 9.5/10) creates strong pedestrian appeal
Community-oriented residents seeking established neighborhoods
Established Italian-American character and proximity to Montefiore Medical Center anchor the area, though you'll need to accept higher noise and crime activity
Pros & Cons
Strengths
Exceptional tree canopy and green infrastructure
127 trees average within 200m radius with 9.5/10 canopy density—substantial greening for a Bronx neighborhood
Strong walkability and practical services access
Practical score of 9 (more than double borough median of 4) reflects concentrated access to groceries, pharmacies, and essentials
Direct subway access with established character
Morris Park (5 train) station provides transit connectivity; neighborhood anchored by Montefiore Medical Center and Italian-American heritage
Trade-offs
Very high noise levels
1,737 noise complaints recorded—a significant volume indicating street activity and congestion
Worsening crime trend and high-activity safety profile
Crime up 189.7% over 12 months with 1,344 total crimes; 82nd percentile for borough activity indicates this is a high-incident area
Long commute times to major employment areas
Commute score of 3 (below borough median of 5) reflects distance from Manhattan job centers despite direct subway access
Score Any Address in Morris Park
Get detailed livability scores based on building health, transit access, safety, noise levels, and 15+ NYC data sources.
Search an Address in Morris ParkFrequently Asked Questions about Morris Park
1Is Morris Park safe?
By NYPD data, Morris Park is rated "Safer Than Average" — safer than 74% of Bronx neighborhoods. 1,772 crime incidents and 3 shooting incidents over the past 12 months. See the safety page for the full breakdown.
2What is the average rent in Morris Park?
Rents in Morris Park, Bronx vary significantly by building and apartment type. The median listing price is $0. Use DwellCheck to research specific addresses.
3How is transit access in Morris Park?
Morris Park has a commute score of 3/10. 1 subway stations serve the area: Morris Park.
4What are the best streets in Morris Park?
The best streets depend on your priorities. Use DwellCheck to compare specific addresses across livability, safety, transit, and environmental factors.
5What is Morris Park known for?
Morris Park sits in Bronx and ranks #7 of 23 Bronx neighborhoods on DwellCheck's livability score (6.3/10). It's served by 1 subway station (Morris Park), with a median listing price of $0. Morris Park scores a 6.3 median—a middle-ground neighborhood with strong local walkability and tree cover, offset by significant noise, crime activity, and longer commutes.
6What is it like to live in Morris Park?
Living in Morris Park, Bronx weights against six livability dimensions: practical (HPD-violation density), commute (subway proximity), arts/culture (venue density), outdoor (parks + trees), financial (price level), investment (price trend). Morris Park's composite is 6.3/10. Morris Park scores a 6.3 median—a middle-ground neighborhood with strong local walkability and tree cover, offset by significant noise, crime activity, and longer commutes. For the block-by-block view, run any specific Morris Park address through DwellCheck.
7Is Morris Park expensive?
Median listing price in Morris Park, Bronx is $0 based on 5 active listings as of 2026-04-05. Whether that reads "expensive" depends on the comparison: it's lower than Manhattan averages and varies considerably by building. Rent-stabilized units in Morris Park can run 20-40% below the median; check DHCR rent history for any specific address to verify.
8Can you walk around Morris Park at night?
Morris Park is classified as "Safer Than Average" by NYPD CompStat data. Over the past 12 months it recorded 3 shooting incidents and 1,772 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.
9Is Morris Park dangerous?
By NYPD data, Morris Park is rated "Safer Than Average" — safer than 74% of Bronx neighborhoods. 1,772 crime incidents over 12 months. Block-level risk varies; check the address-level safety score for any specific street or building.
10What parts of Morris Park should I avoid?
NYPD CompStat reports incidents at the precinct level, not block-by-block, so a granular "avoid this street" answer isn't possible from public data alone. The most reliable signal at the block level is DwellCheck's address-level safety score, which weights NYPD incidents within a 250m radius of a specific building. As a general rule across NYC: industrial blocks with no foot traffic are higher-risk than residential blocks; subway-station-adjacent commercial corridors are lowest-risk.
11Is Morris Park a good place to live?
Morris Park scores 6.3/10 for overall livability and ranks in the 74th percentile for safety in Bronx. Morris Park scores a 6.3 median—a middle-ground neighborhood with strong local walkability and tree cover, offset by significant noise, crime activity, and longer commutes. 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).
12What is the average DwellScore in Morris Park?
The median composite score is 6.3 (interquartile range 5.9–6.7). Practical services score highest at 9; commute is lowest at 3. The neighborhood's strength lies in walkability and green infrastructure, weakened by safety and commute challenges.
13How safe is Morris Park?
Safety registers as high-activity (82nd percentile in the Bronx), meaning elevated incident density. 1,344 total crimes in the last 12 months with a worsening trend (+189.7%). Rodent complaints are low (72), but noise complaints are very high (1,737).
14What's the transit situation?
You have direct access to the Morris Park (5) station, but the Commute score of 3 (below borough median of 5) reflects longer travel times to major employment hubs like Midtown Manhattan. Best for those working in the Bronx or upper Manhattan.
15What kind of buildings are in Morris Park?
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