Pssst...Have You Heard About Bushwick?
Newsflash: Bushwick is hot, hot hot! “Next-neighborhood development has now reached a pivotal juncture in Bushwick. The area still won’t be mistaken for the Upper West Side or even Williamsburg. There is no giant luxury supermarket; there are no dry cleaners in the warehouse district, and not many anyplace else. Crime is still bad, or…
Newsflash: Bushwick is hot, hot hot!
“Next-neighborhood development has now reached a pivotal juncture in Bushwick. The area still won’t be mistaken for the Upper West Side or even Williamsburg. There is no giant luxury supermarket; there are no dry cleaners in the warehouse district, and not many anyplace else. Crime is still bad, or really bad (the rates of violent crime are still among the highest in the city) — last year, the local precinct reported 15 murders, 40 rapes, 467 robberies and 399 felonious assaults. And while there may not be as many cars burning in the warehouse district as there used to be, the streets still feel desolate. But Bushwick is now definitely in the next stage. In May 2004, the neighborhood got its first video store-cafe, the Archive. Northeast Kingdom, the latest artist-affiliated restaurant, opened in October 2005, started by two Vermont natives currently living in Williamsburg proper. In the past year, luxury condos started showing up for $400,000. And there is even a festival — a festival that uses an acronym, acronyms seeming to be the linchpin of the real-estate business.”
Last we checked, Bushwick was ahead in the NYT poll for “next cool neighborhood” through Bed Stuy was running a close second.
Have You Heard About Bushwick [NY Times]
I’m all for the Bushwick getting featured in the NYT’s.
Let the change begin!!
Bushwicker – once again, we are of one mind. The second I read the Headline I wondered who need to sell what and what a mule the NYTimes can be.
Anon at 5:35 made good points better than I could, but I will add that when you’re poor, it’s hard to find an apt anywhere–where you can afford it, where you have help with the kids–and you can complain but landlords will mess with you and you already have so much stress you can’t afford more. Poor people are often transient, owing to many factors, so it’s harder to get any building or block fixed when people are moving all the time. It’s not just artists or yuppies pushing the poor out–they have been pawns in nastier real estate games than you can imagine for longer than you can believe.
i appreciate the work that “make the road by walking” is doing. as a native new yorker and the child of immigrants i know first hand that my family (who lived in bushwick)were afraid to complain, were not aware that there was even a forum in which to complain, and came from countries that restricted their voices so speaking out wasn’t a trait that they came to america with. as the years went by they learned of their rights and then they became very active. I am sure you will see lots of active churches in this community because that is where people went to learn about how to change their neighborhood and what services are available. i am saddened that the people who are living in these areas are often depicted as not caring. they are fearful, they are new to america, they are many things, but indeed they want what we all want. i just worry that as every city in ny becomes “hip” and happening. where do todays immigrants go to start building their american dream?
Can environmental awareness be one positive addition along with all the negatives? Can some of these polluted areas be cleaned up for EVERYONE living there?
Wow, this is turning out to be one of those forums that makes wasting my time on the internet actually worth while (oxymoronic as that sounds).
The reason Bushwick is considered “discovered” is because it has been “discovered” by Corcoran and the other agents.
I applaud all the community leaders (including artists) who have long fought to keep neighborhoods such as Bushwick (and Soho, and Tribeca, and Chinatown, and Williamsburg) safe from transient forces such as real estate trends. There are generations of italian families who are still living in soho (not many, but a few), and there are artists over 60 living in Williamsburg — I rent my place from one of them, on South 3rd.
They are people who don’t sell their homes when the kids need more “back yard” and move to Jersey,and they are people who don’t move to manhattan as soon as they can afford to.
Sometimes people stay put because they are poor. But sometimes, they stay DESPITE being poor — despite having large sums of money dangled in their face. I know a few of these people myself, and I LOVE their tenacity. They give my neighborhood, and a lot of others, the few rare lasting roots in this oh-so-trend-happy city.
‘Stoner – didn’t mean to take over there, I had a knee jerk liberal reponse. Back to you, sir…..
3:08 – kudos to you and your organization. Your comments were spot on, and very encouraging. Please keep us updated, especially since Bushwick is in the spotlight now, and as we all know, community groups like yours have to take advantage of media and other attention while it is there, and make hay while you can. Any way we can help?
I work for Make the Road by Walking, the non-profit that’s mentioned in the article. I can tell you that our 1,400 members and community partners fight the good fight–we organize, and effect change, for low-income workers, tenants in sub-par buildings and children every day. We focus on community organizing because power in numbers is all low-income people really have in terms of clout.
Suzy is right in that it can be hard to effect change when you can’t put food on the table. It’s especially hard in Bushwick, when so many residents are foreign-born and they believe, sometimes correctly, that speaking up about anything will jeopardize their immigration (or illegal immigration) status. Speaking up is also difficult when you’re just learning English.
Yes, artist types are discovering Bushwick, which can be good for a neighborhood. But the counterpoint to that should be more protections, and increased affordable housing, for the folks that have lived here for years–and kept the place open for business after the ’77 Blackout.