Quality of Life--Or Lack Thereof
We’re sure we’ll get accused of being a heartless elitist and some wise-ass will tell us to move to the suburbs, but there are some quality of life issues that can make you question whether living in the big city is really worth it. In our temporary perch in South Williamsburg, for example, noise is…
We’re sure we’ll get accused of being a heartless elitist and some wise-ass will tell us to move to the suburbs, but there are some quality of life issues that can make you question whether living in the big city is really worth it. In our temporary perch in South Williamsburg, for example, noise is the biggest problem for sure. The one-in-the-morning commercial garbage pick-ups outside our bedroom window three nights a week, the next door neighbor with the mufferless motorcycle and the constant drilling and banging from neighboring construction sites are enough to drive anyone crazy. Even though we’re not living in the Clinton Hill house yet, homelessness has been by far the biggest problem there: During the past several months, we’ve had to dislodge three different people who decided our stoop was an ideal spot to sleep, eat, shoot up and relieve themselves–without even the decency to clean up after any of those activities. When asked to move on by us, initially quite non-confrontationally, we were often met with an indignant sense of entitlement, as though they had a right to be there. It’s mighty hard not to let one’s liberal values lapse when your 2-year-old has to navigate her way through crack pipes and pools of urine to make it in your front door.
But enough about us. Here are the top five complaints of Brooklynites from the recent straw poll conducted by Citizens for NYC and Baruch College and reported in today’s NY Post:
1. Dirty Streets
2. Potholes
3. Drug Dealing
4. Vandalism/Graffiti
5. Dangerous Intersections
Top City Gripes [NY Post]
Hey here’s an idea: don’t move into crackhead-infested neighborhoods with 2-year-old kids if you don’t have to. For years the poor have had to live there with zero ability to change things, but now that your there everything should change. Maybe if the priorities of our culture were focuse on equality, that crackhead wouldn’t be there.
Can’t wait till the budget cuts catch up with us and crime comes back to New York, all these suburban-raised softies will be back in Jersey, where they belong…
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As for the delivery guy pissing in the hallway — you were way too nice. His boss prohibiting bathroom breaks is no excuse. Also, it’s stunning that a business owner wouldn’t know that having an easily-traceable way to determine what restaurant the guy is coming from is a great way to kill business. You should have called the NYPost: XYZ Restaurant Encourages Delivery Guys to Piss in Hallways.
The pepper suggestion to deter random dogs sounds like a good one. You hear about places (like outdoor malls) that pipe in classical music to deter teenagers from gathering there, which is supposed to really work. That kind of non-obvious disincentive seems as though it could be successful without being antagonistic. My building has the nicest stoop on the block (Upper West Side), with a wall and a landing; there are few homeless people around now, but 10 years ago we got the occasional homeless person sleeping there. Kind of like they sleep on the warm sidewalk vents in winter. The point is that there are incentives and disincentives; having an unnice, unsheltered stoop is what we needed as a disincentive.
The problem is that you get used to the airplane noise! Then when you go visiting your folks in North Dakota you can’t sleep because it’s too damn quiet. I just got a digital movie camera and was editing some movies on my mac…….I never realized a plane flies over every 10 minutes.
I dont think you have to be native NY to “get it” but I do find the “non-natives” are more likely to not “get-it” and also tend to not recongnize how bad NY was (and therefore can become) in terms of crime and qol. If you “get it” then I dont care where your from, didnt mean to offen new arrivals just sterotyping as I see it.
Alex,
The airplane noise problem is all over b-stone Bklyn. Park Slope has that issue sometimes also. Apparently (and I actually spoke to the FAA about this a few yrs ago) during the summer, increased humidity carries the noise further and louder, in addition to the fact that you generally keep windows open and such in warm weather. Also, I’ve noticed, it’s really bad in the last couple weeks of August (when I think they reroute a lot of traffic due to the US Open).
airplanes, airplanes, airplanes, flying overhead -when the wind’s blowing the “wrong” way, it feels like my CH backyard is LaG runway 5.
Cameras, police, electronic security, etc. needs to be everywhere. Screw privacy. I want 24/7 martial law, damn it!
Every brownstone should have a baseball bat in the entry just in case somebody causes trouble.