Pest Control in Wakefield, Bronx
Wakefield is the northernmost neighborhood in the Bronx, bordering the city of Mount Vernon along East 241st Street and the Bronx River to the west. White Plains Road, lined with Caribbean restaurants, bakeries and shops, is the main commercial strip, and the 2 train ends at Wakefield–241st Street. Metro-North's Harlem Line stops at Wakefield station near the Bronx River. The neighborhood is made up largely of detached and semi-detached houses, many with small yards and driveways. Wakefield has one of the largest Jamaican communities in New York City, along with Guyanese, Trinidadian, African American and Bangladeshi families, and Woodlawn Cemetery lies just to the west.
Also known as: 241st Street.
About Wakefield
Wakefield developed in the late 1800s as a small village along the New York and Harlem Railroad, and it was annexed to New York City in 1895. Frame houses and small cottages were built on former farmland, and the extension of the White Plains Road elevated line to 241st Street in 1920 brought additional development. Italian, Irish and German families lived here in the early 20th century, and Caribbean immigrants began arriving in large numbers in the 1970s and 1980s.
Common Pest Problems in Wakefield
Wakefield's older wood-frame houses, many built in the early 1900s, face a range of pest challenges that are more common in suburban areas. Subterranean termites can damage porches, sills and framing where wood touches damp soil. Raccoons and squirrels from Woodlawn Cemetery, the Bronx River corridor and the neighborhood's mature trees frequently move into attics, chimneys and soffits, especially in older houses with gaps along the roofline, loose chimney flashing or unscreened attic vents.
Mice are common in the neighborhood's detached and two-family homes during the colder months, slipping in through basements, garages and utility entries. Rats forage around the busy White Plains Road commercial strip and in backyards with gardens, compost or pet food left outside. German cockroaches tend to appear in walk-up apartments near the elevated line, where they can spread from restaurants and groceries on the ground floor into upper units.