@ ryanj - You made a good decision moving to Astoria when you did. It's such a great neighborhood and it sounds like you have a great situation so good for you. For the first 5-6 years I lived in NYC, I looked down on Queens. Looking back, I was stupid and snobby. There are many great places in Queens with good access to the city. Astoria is one of them, although it's a lot less affordable now as people have discovered it as an alternative to higher priced neighborhoods.
1
All of westen and central queens is nearing manhattan prices now. Astoria is expensive now and starting to get mad hipstery in some areas. My friend is paying $1700 for a one bed in Astoria and called it a "sweet heart deal". It's depressing.
Why move? Walk, ride a bike, take a bus or a cab or Uber. Is moving that much easier?
5
I guess lets put it in perspective: if I were paying $3,000 for a one-bed I'd demand access to a subway close by too.
4
This has to be the ugliest, most cynical story I've ever seen in the New York Times — as if working New Yorkers can just pick up and move at will when the utter failure of taxpayer-supported public transportation makes life inconvenient.
You are truly the newspaper of the 1%.
You are truly the newspaper of the 1%.
10
I think in fairness you're missing the point. Simply running this story shines a light on the problem....makes you think a little. Lord knows I have serious problems with the Times' elitism and me-too fit-the-narrative journalism over the years, but this is more one of those, "just the facts of life" pieces, an evidence point people need in order to come to the conclusion that "housing is too expensive" or "transit to outer boroughs and suburbs isn't good enough". I'm more concerned in general about whether or not they're covering city issues in sufficient breadth and depth to communicate New York's needs. Articles like this contribute to that, but need to be part of a broader trend of investigating and analyzing policies and laws that cause this dysfunction.
1
Hey all you Brooklynites and future expats... steer clear of the South Bronx. Its not for you. It's is one the last surviving neighborhoods that has the old New York vibe. Stop ruining the city.
12
By old New York vibe, do you mean graffiti, crime, litter, garbage can fires? I remember those.
3
Which old new york vibe? 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 60s, 70s, 80s? The place changes by the decade. If you cant handle change maybe you shouldnt live in a big city bruh.
1
They're called busses. They go go south to trains called JM and Z. Once upon a time, the residents of Williamsburg took them everywhere.
9
These rich hipsters are so spoiled. This will be an inconvenience, not a tragedy. They could take buses, or god forbid a slightly longer commute using another subway line.
5
This weekend the L train was closed on Saturday for some work. I decided to walk to the East River Ferry to 34th street. It was SUNNY and I was waiting and waiting and waiting. The ferry never came to go to 34th street. There is no shade, no shade, no shade. You are standing on a pier out in the East river waiting for a Ferry for 15 minutes, a half hour, 45 minutes for a Ferry that never comes in full SUN, full SUN, full SUN. On a day that the city knows the L train is down you'd think there would be some coordination to have more ferries. OR at least to have the Ferry service run on time. Because of the SUN and no announcement about when the Ferry would ever come, I left. Maybe the city would think of providing some shelter from the SUN or from the rain?
2
Last weekend I waited at the S 11th St ferry stop for 2 hours, awaiting the downriver ferry. Luckily, it was a pleasure trip to meet a friend at BB Park..not a trip to work.
Several boats showed up to pick up passengers heading upriver, 2 boats came and dropped off ferry staff, then departed empty. Those of us waiting for the the downriver ferry were just out of luck.
The ferry staff said to complain on the website there was nothing they can do - I did and got a non-apology along with an excuse about the East River oil spill.
They are promoting this service, but according to their staff, had only 2 boats running the other weekend, and then one went out of service.'If the city wants to promote ferry service as an alternative, they need to provide sufficient boast and staff to run the darn thing.
Several boats showed up to pick up passengers heading upriver, 2 boats came and dropped off ferry staff, then departed empty. Those of us waiting for the the downriver ferry were just out of luck.
The ferry staff said to complain on the website there was nothing they can do - I did and got a non-apology along with an excuse about the East River oil spill.
They are promoting this service, but according to their staff, had only 2 boats running the other weekend, and then one went out of service.'If the city wants to promote ferry service as an alternative, they need to provide sufficient boast and staff to run the darn thing.
1
What's wrong with the sun? The fact that it was a sunny day is not exactly going to engender sympathy, if that's what you're after.
2
This is what is known as a "high class problem."
I don't deny the inconvenience that's likely to result from all of this but it's not something I ever plan to spend more than the 47 seconds I already have considering again.
I don't deny the inconvenience that's likely to result from all of this but it's not something I ever plan to spend more than the 47 seconds I already have considering again.
9
I feel sorriest for the businesses that will get left behind when so many residents make tracks. It takes years to build up a clientele at one location....
11
Please god NYT dont ever publish anything about Sunnyside again. Its already pretty much manhattan prices here, now you want to turn it into brooklyn?
Who the hell thinks $1800 for a one bed is a deal??
Ps. RIP Center Cinema we miss you so
Who the hell thinks $1800 for a one bed is a deal??
Ps. RIP Center Cinema we miss you so
25
Um, here in TriBeCa, a 1BR will cost 3600.
There are two locations that the article omitted where, in the face of this mass transit catrastrophe, the hipsters might feel very much at home relocating to: Columbus, Ohio and Topeka, Kansas.
20
That's genuinely happening. I'm 32, and have two friends left in NYC after living here for thirteen years, starting with going to college. Much cheaper cities - Nashville, Austin, Pittsburgh - are getting huge arts and music scenes (or had them already) and young people are realizing that they can make a ton of money AND actually buy a house in different cities after gaining their NYC experience. I'm thinking of the same thing. I love it here, but I can't pay out the nose much longer for a tiny apartment.
5
@ Patrick - I totally agree with you. There are many great cities in the US where the quality of life is better with a vibrant arts scene, etc. I lived in NYC for 14 years but left in 2015. (I was not a hipster.) I don't miss daily life in NYC - commuting and working being a large part of that for the average person. I started looking at cities that were "underrated" and relocated to Sacramento never having been here and not knowing anyone. It was rough initially but I've been here 1.5 years now and my quality of life is much better than it was for the last 6 years living in NYC. If you have a lot of $$$ and don't have to work (and don't have to deal with the subway) then NYC is the place to be. But for the everyday working person, you jump over multiple hurdles on a daily basis - the L train shutdown being just one example.
1
I would love to know the degree of "interplay" between developers and the NYT real estate staff. It just seems too cozy to be ethical, much less moral.
30
Haha, I never thought of that before but you're probably right!
My entire family lived on Stanhope Street starting with my grandparents at 309 and me at 255. We all took the L (was the LL then) tovenue.starting back when the Dekalb Avenue/Stanhope Street station was first opened starting with my grandparents. It was convenient for us because there were so many transfer points. I rode to the end to catch the A or E to my job at the World Trade Center. Ny father used to get to his job in New Jersey. My grandfather used it to to his job in Maspeth and my grandmother for her job on Grand Avenue. No wonder it is one of the most heavily traveled line in the city.
I'm glad I'm not there now.
I'm glad I'm not there now.
6
I used to live on Pacific St. in BedStuy during the early 80's crack epidemic. I was in a rent stabilized apartment. Now the apartments in the building where I lived are selling for $750k to 1.2mil.
8
I found this article nauseating, and the poor souls who will suffer in leaving their beloved Bedford Ave "haunts" behind pathetic. I have been lucky enough to live in a beautiful brownstone in Fort Greene for 5 or 6 years, knowing what a "deal" (in reality, still far beyond my means) I've been getting. In the last year or so I've watched the glass towers go up a short walk south on Flatbush—cookie-cutter condominiums blotting out the sunlight and turning the area around BAM and Atlantic Terminal into a generic nightmare-hub of gentrification. Now, with the addition of Gotham Market at Ashland Place, or whatever that nouveau wonderland of "hip" dining has been christened, Wall Streeters who wanted the grit factor of Brooklyn can exit their luxury condos a block down and head on over to Mason Jar (I kid you not) for some $16 kale salad. Fort Greene was already gentrified, but yes, it's quieter and more genuinely diverse—whatever that means anymore—than the phantom hip-topia of Williamsburg these days. What a world, where it's only with the rise of glass towers for the 1%-in-disguise that the Times deems a neighborhood acceptable.
28
If it is beyond your means, how can you have been living there for five or six years?
3
Thanks so much for your nuanced reply to my comment. It's beyond my means because it takes up a far greater percentage of my income than it should, as is the case for many people paying rent in New York City. I can't speak for the rents in Washington, D.C.
18
No ... "beyond your means" means that the rent is unaffordable to you and you can't live there. What you describe is a rent that is uncomfortably high, but that you are managing to pay. I owned a small condo in Washington, DC. When its carrying costs became beyond my means, I sold at a loss and left. My costs in Chicago are uncomfortably high. (I share a subscription with another family; that's why WDC is still listed above.)
1
After reading this article, I'm so relieved for the wealthy, young professionals, who will get to avoid the inconvenience of subway repairs by moving to luxury condos in more impoverished, less gentrified neighborhoods! (Not.)
The New York Times real estate section often focuses only on the "woes" of the hipsters and yuppies-- should they fork out an extra $1000 per month to move closer to their Wall Street job? Dare they move a mile away from their beloved bar scene? What about all the people who currently live in places like Mott Haven and will be priced out? But what about those who live in Williamsburg and can't just decide to relocate to a high-rise in Downtown Brooklyn? How about the fact that nearly half of NYC's population leaves at or near the poverty line?
By catering to a wealthy and mostly-white readership, the NYT real estate section is not only presenting gentrification as ethically neutral; it is erasing the very real real estate struggles of those who don't get to choose.
The New York Times real estate section often focuses only on the "woes" of the hipsters and yuppies-- should they fork out an extra $1000 per month to move closer to their Wall Street job? Dare they move a mile away from their beloved bar scene? What about all the people who currently live in places like Mott Haven and will be priced out? But what about those who live in Williamsburg and can't just decide to relocate to a high-rise in Downtown Brooklyn? How about the fact that nearly half of NYC's population leaves at or near the poverty line?
By catering to a wealthy and mostly-white readership, the NYT real estate section is not only presenting gentrification as ethically neutral; it is erasing the very real real estate struggles of those who don't get to choose.
98
The sooner the better. I can't wait to get my neighborhood back--even a little--but I really do feel sorry for the other places that must endure the onslaught of the bros, dudes, and hipsters. I also can't wait for the developers who have destroyed the South Side to start feeling the effects. I've already noticed one spartment building near me with a foreclosure notice pasted on the front door. I look forward to seeing more.
23
So offensive. So tone deaf. So what.
This, and many other of your articles, regarding real estate are infuriating and embarrassing?
Why does the NYTimes real estate section focuses only on the whiny well-off white people?
Why isn't there any discussion about the people who already live in the "undiscovered" neighborhoods?
These types of real estate issues are only discussed in a section about poor people.
“The street life is not going to be ideal” near Flatbush Ave? or Downtown?
This has already driven my friends and I out of our neighborhood. We lived here for 9 years.
This, and many other of your articles, regarding real estate are infuriating and embarrassing?
Why does the NYTimes real estate section focuses only on the whiny well-off white people?
Why isn't there any discussion about the people who already live in the "undiscovered" neighborhoods?
These types of real estate issues are only discussed in a section about poor people.
“The street life is not going to be ideal” near Flatbush Ave? or Downtown?
This has already driven my friends and I out of our neighborhood. We lived here for 9 years.
39
The Times caters to the 1% crowd or have you not noticed the real estate section? There is no affordable housing in NY and the outer boroughs, If you don't make 6+ figures it's not a problem or if you are on section 8 vouchers. The backbone of the city are the ones left out in the cold. Just love what Bloomie did to the city. Gave it away to his developer friends this is the end result. There is no affordable housing, what apartments are set aside are taken by the landlords friends and families then the other units go for top dollar. Have several friend who live in LIC been living there their whole lives and all of them in fear of being pushed out by the beanie and bun wearing crowds and the apartments that are being sold and are not being used just a place to park ill gotten gains by the foreigners coming in. The city is only for the wealthy.
3
Kew Gardens, Queens. Worth a look. Proximity to transit. LIRR 18 min to midtown; also E/F lines; Affordable for singles, new families if you look. New coffee shops; bookstore later this year; CSA group; indy cinema; organic market; Forest Park; established residents preserve friendly "village" vibe; room for new voices, new energies, creatives, inovators. Not listed in trendy articles. You can be yourself here and grow. Who knew?
2
I've live in Kew Gardens for over 35 years. The last thing in the world this neighborhood needs is an influx of overpaid so called hipsters moving in from Brooklyn. They've ruined enough of New York City.
32
I'd say it's not listed in trendy articles because it's not particularly trendy. It is no Forest Hills or Astoria. It's a very quiet, affordable area. The best feature is Forest Park. Transit-wise...I still think it leaves a bit to be desired. The LIRR doesn't run frequently enough; the E/F are not particularly quick (especially since there's always some kind of inexplicable train traffic between 71st and Roosevelt, and Roosevelt and Queens Plaza), and outside of rush hour, the J/Z only runs every 10 minutes on a good day. If most of your time will be spent locally, it's not a bad option, but if you spend lots of time in Manhattan, it can be rough.
7
@Res Ipsa: The problem with the LIRR isn't frequency (at least 2 trains an hour except weekday midday when everyone's at work; lots more in rush hour), it's the fare. The problem with the E/F isn’t speed (the F is the only late-night express service outside Manhattan) but the location of the station at the edge of the neighborhood. Whatever. If it keeps the hipster influence to a few nice places, it's all good with me.
1
I am a fan of the NYT, but when I see stories like this one heralding neighborhoods "on the cusp", I see speculative developers in the background greedily rubbing their hands at the prospect of the cash they'll make, and no acknowledgement of the folks who already live in these areas, who have enriched these areas in various ways, but will soon be priced out of for the more privileged.
The Mott Haven section is especially tone deaf. It's the South Bronx, and dozens of grassroots organizations have fought to make it better for those there already. It's not a tabula rasa to superimpose an identity onto; it has an identity, just not one that power and privilege respect.
And let's be clear: the temporary shuttering of the L from ONE STOP in Brooklyn to Manhattan is an inconvenience, not a tragedy. There are plenty of other options for getting across the river. This is not a transit desert.
The Mott Haven section is especially tone deaf. It's the South Bronx, and dozens of grassroots organizations have fought to make it better for those there already. It's not a tabula rasa to superimpose an identity onto; it has an identity, just not one that power and privilege respect.
And let's be clear: the temporary shuttering of the L from ONE STOP in Brooklyn to Manhattan is an inconvenience, not a tragedy. There are plenty of other options for getting across the river. This is not a transit desert.
61
It's too bad that money wasn't invested in shoring up the infrastructure of this once-great city instead of building and building and building! There are high-rise condos going up everywhere in the city, but the transit system, tunnels and bridges have not been kept to the level that can sustain such an increase in population. So long as REBNY owns our politicians, body and soul, this will continue until Doomsday.
8
The level of hysteria among some is like that we saw around Y2K.
Grow up.
My local subway station ( Bay Ridge Avenue on the R ) is fully closed and will remain closed for another 5 plus months. We walk 8-10 blocks to the next station, and life goes on.
Grow up.
My local subway station ( Bay Ridge Avenue on the R ) is fully closed and will remain closed for another 5 plus months. We walk 8-10 blocks to the next station, and life goes on.
53
Also 53rd and now Prospect Avenue. Most Manhattan bound stations on the N were closed for well over six months (soon to be Coney Island bound stations for a similar length of time) and nary a peep was heard about it. Hysteria is right. I can't believe people are thinking of leaving apartments they presumably like because it will take them longer to commute for a limited amount of time.
14
The area around Barclays center is going to be hit hard by this. If there is anything that can change the disparity in property values and high rents it's better public transportation. I'd live in Dykes Heights if I could get to work on time without so much pain
1
Spoiled for choice. I am envious of what your state of perceived lack of transit options will be.
Bike a mile, bus over, or take the G and go around. J down the street. More Lyfts than you can imagine. Half of you probably don't even work in Manhattan and the weekends would be bearable again.
Feel blessed you're in one of the best transit systems around.
(By the way, Brooklyn needs another north south line pls thx)
Bike a mile, bus over, or take the G and go around. J down the street. More Lyfts than you can imagine. Half of you probably don't even work in Manhattan and the weekends would be bearable again.
Feel blessed you're in one of the best transit systems around.
(By the way, Brooklyn needs another north south line pls thx)
8
thanks for driving the rent up even higher in sunnyside..!
17
From a housing cost perspective only, I do feel sorry for anyone that lives in New York City " Pre -war one bedroom apartments can be had for $1800/month" Ouch. And then there is this: "Williamsburg, where, the typical studio rents for $2,690 a month."
Hats off to you all - I have no idea how you all can do it.
Hats off to you all - I have no idea how you all can do it.
12
I couldn't believe the level of smuggness when I read this, what a thing to say.
"But those seeking trendy Williamsburg-type bars and shops may be disappointed, for now. Under elevated subway tracks, Broadway, the nearest major commercial strip, is dim, loud and a bit dirty, and sidewalk racks sell $4 bath mats."
This is why us locals find that the way the new people come in and see what we think of small local guys trying to make living, then this new people come in and start complaining to the cops about street vendors. I support street vendors, and food carts, they give our city personality, and help many people to have an income. One of the things I liked about Anthony Bourdain's recent episode in Queens, was when he had a group from the a street vendor association, and spoke about the same things. Let people make a living.
"But those seeking trendy Williamsburg-type bars and shops may be disappointed, for now. Under elevated subway tracks, Broadway, the nearest major commercial strip, is dim, loud and a bit dirty, and sidewalk racks sell $4 bath mats."
This is why us locals find that the way the new people come in and see what we think of small local guys trying to make living, then this new people come in and start complaining to the cops about street vendors. I support street vendors, and food carts, they give our city personality, and help many people to have an income. One of the things I liked about Anthony Bourdain's recent episode in Queens, was when he had a group from the a street vendor association, and spoke about the same things. Let people make a living.
48
That stretch of Broadway is indeed loud and dirty. And it's not because of tourists from the Midwest that come to litter the sidewalks. It's local people who throw their garbage everywhere that makes life unpleasant for everybody. Please, get off your sanctimonious horse and call the spade a spade.
1
Broadway is real Brooklyn, Sharon.
You said call a "spade a spade" ?? really??. We don't like people using racist tropes like that here in Brooklyn. Perhaps you can find better non racial terminology?? or maybe you move .. to the Midwest or Texas with that mouth
You said call a "spade a spade" ?? really??. We don't like people using racist tropes like that here in Brooklyn. Perhaps you can find better non racial terminology?? or maybe you move .. to the Midwest or Texas with that mouth
1
I've been looking for a reason to leave this city for years, this is probably it.
12
The 14th Street 'People Way' is a concept that would change the L Train shut down from a disaster for commuters and those who live in the area. 14th Street could become a 'complete' people friendly street. Commuters from Brooklyn would choose between ferries, dedicated bus lanes and protected bike lanes. Emphasizing alternative forms of transportation would lead to reduced traffic. Check out the plan on the Transportation Alternatives website.
8
THREE THOUSAND for a one bedroom on the Lower East Side! I lived nearly 25 years in the projects on the Lower East Side. The old Essex Street Market used to STINK! I hated going in there. But you know what? There was life there. I went back home recently and the projects were empty. There were no kids in the street and the parks were desolate. No one on the swings and slides.
The Lower East Side is now for rich people.
The Lower East Side is now for rich people.
27
That was the plan for over 30 yrs. I used to live there and there were abandoned tenements that were not repaired in order to get the tenants out. That is where the $3000.00 one bedroom apartments come from.
14
I think the L train shutdown will be a nice development for those who remember what Williamsburg was like 15-20 years ago. It'll weed out wealthy transients.
22
Williamsburg is alo serviced by the JMZ train and anyone living near the water has the excellent ferry service. The majority of commuters who use the L train live beyond well Williamsburg and yet rarely do they get a mention. The rents will barely budge, New Yorkers will adapt (as they always do) and the MTA will continue its long history of chronic mismanagement and underinvestment.
10
Be fair. I'm no fan of the MTA (mismanagement brought to us courtesy of New York State and its upstate-oriented financial priorities), but Sandy wasn’t its doing.
1
EVERYONE! PLEASE!
It's not the 'amount' of people.
It's the 'number' of people.
Unless you are speaking in terms of cannibalization.
It's not the 'amount' of people.
It's the 'number' of people.
Unless you are speaking in terms of cannibalization.
36
Thank you!!! That's an error I see more and more often and it's maddening.
3
For those who bemoan gentrification (rightly so), let's keep some perspective.
Shall we go back to the 70s and 80s when no one dared stepped below 59th street or above 14th street after dark? Back when Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and large swaths of Manhattan(!) were war zones. Because that was so great, wasn't it?
How fondly I recall my father being hospitalized with a brain injury (from which he never fully recovered and drove our family into bankruptcy) after being jumped in broad daylight on his way to work. That time I was jumped on the 9 train on my way home from school at 3 in the afternoon. Or the four times I was mugged, thrice at gunpoint, once at knifepoint, in various parts of MANHATTAN(!). The time my sister...well, that's her story.
Oh, the good old days!
Obviously, gentrification is a problem but people have always moved to NYC looking for their dreams. The influx of people to NYC is not the problem; greedy developers, and politicians who enable them are.
Shall we go back to the 70s and 80s when no one dared stepped below 59th street or above 14th street after dark? Back when Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and large swaths of Manhattan(!) were war zones. Because that was so great, wasn't it?
How fondly I recall my father being hospitalized with a brain injury (from which he never fully recovered and drove our family into bankruptcy) after being jumped in broad daylight on his way to work. That time I was jumped on the 9 train on my way home from school at 3 in the afternoon. Or the four times I was mugged, thrice at gunpoint, once at knifepoint, in various parts of MANHATTAN(!). The time my sister...well, that's her story.
Oh, the good old days!
Obviously, gentrification is a problem but people have always moved to NYC looking for their dreams. The influx of people to NYC is not the problem; greedy developers, and politicians who enable them are.
36
Having grown up on the Upper West Side in the 50's and 60's, I won't dispute your assessment of the dangers. However, I would like to add as a caveat a true story.
Once, I was walking home alone on West 85th Street from Riverside Park. I must have been around 10 years old. A slightly older guy, possibly with a knife, told me he wanted my money. There was no one else around. I didn't want to give him all my money. So I negotiated. I told him needed fifteen cents for the subway. OK, he agreed. And, having won the first round, I told him I needed another fifteen cents for the transfer. Okay, he agreed. I handed over the rest - probably about seventy cents. And then, each of us was on his way.
No, I do not appreciate getting robbed. Still, once I gave my money, there was no further threat - and the amount was negotiable.
Once, I was walking home alone on West 85th Street from Riverside Park. I must have been around 10 years old. A slightly older guy, possibly with a knife, told me he wanted my money. There was no one else around. I didn't want to give him all my money. So I negotiated. I told him needed fifteen cents for the subway. OK, he agreed. And, having won the first round, I told him I needed another fifteen cents for the transfer. Okay, he agreed. I handed over the rest - probably about seventy cents. And then, each of us was on his way.
No, I do not appreciate getting robbed. Still, once I gave my money, there was no further threat - and the amount was negotiable.
6
Sorry about your father, but your take on NYC is way, way off. Living in NYC for many years, going south of 59th or north of14th after dark was perfectly safe. Like always, including today, you needed to have some street smarts, but please don't think it was dangerous after dark. That's a complete fallacy.
2
what's the 9 train?
The MTA recently purchased used buses from the Toronto transit agency (TTC) for use during the 'L' closure. A neighbor is a manager out at the MTA Yukon bus depot. He told me that retired buses, including express buses, are being kept in the 'reserve fleet' also for use during the closure. But no firm plans on exactly how those buses will be used.
https://www.timeout.com/newyork/blog/the-mta-just-bought-200-diesel-buse...
https://www.timeout.com/newyork/blog/the-mta-just-bought-200-diesel-buse...
2
Here's an idea: These "creatives" should go back to the Iowa and Wisconsin suburbs they came from and stop heralding the hyper-gentrification of neighborhood after neighborhood in NYC and other major cities, helping to price out locals and working-class people.
19
No way to stop people moving to NYC, and you left out Ohio.
8
Sure...let's go back to the 70s and 80s when no one dared stepped below 59th street or above 14th street after dark. Back when Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx were war zones. Because that was so great, wasn't it?
Obviously, gentrification is a problem but people have always moved to NYC looking for their dreams. The influx of people to NYC is not the problem; greedy developers, and politicians who enable them are. Perspective, friend.
Obviously, gentrification is a problem but people have always moved to NYC looking for their dreams. The influx of people to NYC is not the problem; greedy developers, and politicians who enable them are. Perspective, friend.
7
If enough of them had done that, maybe we wouldn't have to deal with President Trump today.
2
East Harlem is a very convenient and DIVERSE neighborhood. People are friendly and helpful. Not to mention that my Spanish has improved :). I've already seen a huge influx of the hip, artsy younger crowd. Coffee houses and good restuarants galore, bike lanes, near Central Park and literally 5 minutes from the UES. You can always get a seat on the 6 train if you take the very first car after 8:30 AM. I have seen tremendous change since I've been here. Yes, the newer buildings are quite expensive (I got in on time), and on the other hand, there are a few areas that one would not walk through very late at night (as in other neighborhoods throughout the city). In any case....as the song goes, I'll take Manhattan.
7
Northern Greenpoint is a short walk to the 7 train - one stop away from Manhattan.
4
A short walk. Lol.
What? No mention of Harlem or Hamilton Heights? Why all the worry about commuting to Manhattan when you can just live here?
13
SHHHHHHH! I don't need my rent to increase any further.
3
Ridgewood? M train?
7
For all the folks that criticize NY and the high rents this is why they are high - proximity to public transit. A better commute will be the mantra of the 21st century and people are willing to pay for it
2
Los Angeles?
3
Hard to feel sorry for those who've contributed to the rents going so high that many native brooklynites can't afford the place they grew up.
32
All those soon-to-be-displaced people who shop for $4.00 bath mats on Broadway near the Marcy Ave subway stop better start saving up for the soon-to-be-sold $400.00 organically sourced hand woven hemp dye-free home-spa mats.
38
Huge fan of NYT, but this article reeks of geographic discrimination. Mott Haven's been creative, Flatbush Ave has history, and Telco is awesome. Not everyone wants our NY neighborhoods to look and feel like a suburb in urban clothing.
42
Telco is awful.
2
It gets the job done thus not sure what more you could ask for? No, you wouldn't go there for high-end drapery.
3
Don't go to Queens! Please!
20
I'm surprised Crown Heights isn't on here.
6
When will we see the article about the displacement caused by this article? Isn't it a sacred rule of journalism to not become or cause the story? We have enough problems with gentrification as it is. We're not "pre-gentrification" we're in the thick of it
42
This isn't a news story; it's intended to give information that's usable as well as readable. Compare with, say, a travel article?
Curious minds want to know: there's a whole country out there with cheaper, lots roomier real estate. Why do you all crowd into NYC?
10
I'll refer you to a quote by Updike: “The true New Yorker secretly believes that people living anywhere else have to be, in some sense, kidding.”
55
Question for you, who apparently lives upstate. There are a ton of states with warmer weather and cheaper cost of living. Why do you stay upstate?
33
Because they like living there. They like the people, the vibe, the culture and the political leaning. In other words: it is their tribe.
14
What about Greenpoint?
10
Oil spill under the neighborhood. The end.
2
The New York Times must get a lot of ad revenue from the real estate industry and the banks for articles like this. My old Greenpoint neighborhood is being paved over with the ugly waterfront development that is "whitening" the area. Need I say more. Yuck!
30
According to the subway map, the L goes all the way to Canarsie. According to this article, it only goes to Lorimer Street. I'd be way more curious to find out how working class people with few options are going to make it, as opposed to wealthy recent transplants who have many options.
105
My thoughts exactly. This reporter failed completely to look outside of their own limited perspective. It's shameful that this went to press without the reporter speaking to one person who lives out past the most gentrified stops on the L.
4
In fairness to the NYT, if you live in Canarsie you can transfer from the L to the M, J, Z, A, or C trains to get to Manhattan.
2
Looking forward to the L train shut -down.. should be interesting.
Then I again I commute by bicycle aprox. 3x per week. As a w/b resident for 30 years, (not counting a hot summer in Greenpoint in the mid 80's) I would never move to w/b now but can't afford to leave either. During the shut down I would like to see 3x more ferries and more cycling infrastructure. The Bedford L stop needs wider staircases and at least two more exits /entrances to get to the turn styles from the street. The staircases could be between Berry and Bedford. There are too many 'bottle-necks' and the platform should be widened while you are at it. The amount of people using this system now really astonishes me and it seems frankly dangerous. The condo developers have over-saturated the ancient transit system.
I say to the MTA, take your time and do it right.
Then I again I commute by bicycle aprox. 3x per week. As a w/b resident for 30 years, (not counting a hot summer in Greenpoint in the mid 80's) I would never move to w/b now but can't afford to leave either. During the shut down I would like to see 3x more ferries and more cycling infrastructure. The Bedford L stop needs wider staircases and at least two more exits /entrances to get to the turn styles from the street. The staircases could be between Berry and Bedford. There are too many 'bottle-necks' and the platform should be widened while you are at it. The amount of people using this system now really astonishes me and it seems frankly dangerous. The condo developers have over-saturated the ancient transit system.
I say to the MTA, take your time and do it right.
20
well, the mta is good at taking its time, anyway...
The west end of the Bedford Street Station is at Bedford not Berry Street. The walk from the G Metrpolitan Street stop is already monstrously long. You would want to move the entire station a half block east for the w/b condo developers? And push the tracks where exactly when you widen the platform?
the "number" of people using this system......PLEASE Number, not amount.
Maybe not the best not the best touch to call people inconvenienced by train maintenance 'refugees'.
82
No, it is a very apt description because they will have to transfer to the G train.
I think I'll just take the Canarsie Line.
2
Sunnyside is only going to be awful soon
4
"But the scene inside Filtered Coffee on a recent morning featured a woman in a Nirvana T-shirt serving people hunched over phones and laptops."
Thanks for laughs, NYT.
Thanks for laughs, NYT.
29
And if you look at the photo of all those people standing on the platform at the Bedford Avenue station - it's also easy to see that everyone of them is white --
And now - suddenly, no one is laughing anymore...
And now - suddenly, no one is laughing anymore...
9
and upstate while it has space and nature is largely segregated with little appreciation of what diversity is really all about. the density can be exhilarating. it is a shame what developers do to neighborhoods but they usually move on and something else evolves. ny's artistic communities have come and gone and they were all special...the ones I knew. williamsburg looks much like soho.
2
Diversity is the most overused word today, and should be the least concern when choosing a place to live.
3
Starting in April 2017, L trains will stop running between Eighth Avenue in Manhattan and Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn, but will continue to serve other Brooklyn stops to the east. What?
3
Yes, the L Train shut down is actually the L train is shut down from Bedford Avenue into Manhattan. The L will continue to run in Brooklyn.
8
You're forgetting neighborhoods on the other side of Manhattan across the Hudson: Jersey City and Hoboken. These neighborhoods have transit directly into the West Village, Chelsea, Midtown and the new PATH station at World Trade Center. Better than the L train by far.
16
Shhh. Don't tell them about our secret!
8
Agree with Narikin! Shhh, I like my cheap one bedroom and being 10 mins from work in Chelsea
3
Me too! Don't tell people!
1
Why do people in Williamsburg need a special place to move to when their train stops running? There are thousands of diverse, interesting neighborhoods in NYC with small businesses that could benefit from their patronage. Are they some special breed that can only thrive in neighborhoods that are on the process of becoming gentrified? Or they could stay put and use the shuttles that will be provided by the MTA just like other New Yorkers have in the past when their train service was disrupted long term.
62
most work in Manhattan.
This article could be interpreted as a redirection of gentrification, when considering the new and current demographic that can be found along the L train.
Not to mention the question of who of these people, transient as they may be, have the resources to relocate from these areas and into other neighborhoods that may become so promising in appealing to their lifestyles and consumer interest.
In this case, Mott Haven has been reduced to the small area south of the Major Deegan which symbolizes an embryonic Williamsburg in its earlier days as an emerging mecca for hipsters, with no relation to its surrounding community and character.
Not to mention the question of who of these people, transient as they may be, have the resources to relocate from these areas and into other neighborhoods that may become so promising in appealing to their lifestyles and consumer interest.
In this case, Mott Haven has been reduced to the small area south of the Major Deegan which symbolizes an embryonic Williamsburg in its earlier days as an emerging mecca for hipsters, with no relation to its surrounding community and character.
30
When Shanghai streets were getting clogged by newly empowered Chinese driving their cars at the turn of this century, the government decided on a plan of action - build SEVEN subway lines. We built TWO STATIONS on a "new line" and consider that a reason to celebrate. We build a "new bridge" over the BQE that doesn't even span water and throw a fireworks display when in fact we should feel entirely SICK that this was the "first new bridge in a half century in NYC". We could have been building a new tunnel in the time it's taking to start and finish repair of this century-old clunker but now, more people thrown into a system on the verge of a mechanical nervous breakdown. Oh, and please don't tell me that "we're not Communist" so we don't have the luxury of doing what they did in China because I'll take Communism that builds 7 new subway lines over Fascism that lets our system crumble while the 1% enrich themselves any day of the week.
127
uhhh -- that bridge does span water - its called the Newtown creek.
12
Though, as someone who used to kayak there, I'd say 'water' might be a generous description of what oozes there.
11
Having just been in Shanghai, I agree with you, and furthermore the impact of our infrastructure problems are too behind to fix to world class city status.
We are no longer a great city.
I disagree with you regarding the Communist system, it doesn't take Communism to make great infrastructure, have you been to Tokyo, HK, London, Berlin, Seoul? They all have great systems, in pretty democratic societies.
We are no longer a great city.
I disagree with you regarding the Communist system, it doesn't take Communism to make great infrastructure, have you been to Tokyo, HK, London, Berlin, Seoul? They all have great systems, in pretty democratic societies.
4
This article is a disaster to all who have affordable apartments in any of your targeted neighborhoods.
Question - In what way does the southside of Williamsburg represent a different neighborhood than Williamsburg? Curious minds want to know. We have already suffered much displacement.
Question - In what way does the southside of Williamsburg represent a different neighborhood than Williamsburg? Curious minds want to know. We have already suffered much displacement.
61
I took what my friends and family thought was a "huge risk" and jumped on something called the "N TRAIN" to what was then the "Italian neighborhood" called Astoria.
16 years later, i'm still in Astoria. My commute to Midtown in rush hour is less than 25 minutes door-to-door, i live in a safe area, on a quiet street, with children, trees, and very little through traffic. My apt.& buliding are rent stabilized and although it is not terribly big, is meticulously maintained by the landlord. i know all my neighbors and everyone in my building by name. Some of us even keep each others' keys in case we get locked out. I can take the N/W or take two different buses to either the F train, Queensboro Plaza, or Queens Plaza. I can even take a bus right into Williamsburg in half the time it would take me on the L.
C'mon folks. Brooklyn played itself.