Closing Bell: Are You Happy to Call Brooklyn Home?
As first reported by Brooklyn Hall of Fame, an article from YourNabe.com reports that most Brooklynites are happy. In fact, 81% of those surveyed said they were either very satisfied (27%) or somewhat satisfied (54%) with the quality of life in their neighborhood. Only 19 percent of those surveyed reported being not at all satisfied….
As first reported by Brooklyn Hall of Fame, an article from YourNabe.com reports that most Brooklynites are happy. In fact, 81% of those surveyed said they were either very satisfied (27%) or somewhat satisfied (54%) with the quality of life in their neighborhood. Only 19 percent of those surveyed reported being not at all satisfied. However, 53% of Brooklynites felt their neighborhoods would become too expensive for them in the future.
So are you happy to call Brooklyn home?
When I first came to NY, in 1977, I wanted so badly to live on the Upper West Side, most of which was not a desirable area at all. I loved the architecture, and most of all that sense of being in an area surrounded by creativity and the arts. I was a music student, and all around me were musicians, artists, actors and dancers, as well as all of my classes, workshops and rehearsals. Never did, couldn’t afford it unless I lived with 6 other people, so I ended up in the North Bronx, and lived with my mother.
We looked for a house in Harlem for a long time, and almost got a couple, but the deals always fell through. Started to look in Bed Stuy, where my mother had lived for a short time as a child. The first time I came up from the A train at Nostrand, I could see the beauty of the neighborhood, and we ended up renting an entire house, where I lived for the next 17 years.
Over the years, I’ve explored much of the borough, and have read a lot of history, seen a lot of historical pictures and data, and talked to a lot of people. There is so much here, and there are so many people who have lived their entire lives in Brooklyn, and can tell wonderful stories. Manhattan is always changing, it doesn’t seem to have any permanence. Brooklyn changes too, but underneath is a spirit of neighborhood, and that applies if you have, or don’t have. I still enjoy coming up the stairs from the A train, and crossing Atlantic Ave to Crown Heights. It’s a different world, and if I struck it rich tomorrow, I’d still stay here.
I’m from the formerly 3rd-tier Borough of Brooklyn, since 1961. While it has been nice to see Brooklyn undergo a renaissance, it’s puzzling as to why so many feel the need to talk about how great it is. It reminds me of the way people in Seattle used to speak about Seattle in the mid-90’s. More puzzling is the way in which new arrivals tend to be overly defensive about their new neighborhoods.
Brooklyn’s a nice place to live, and I like Brooklyn Heights, where I’ve been for the past 20 years. The day-to-day is easy, and like many neighborhoods in Brooklyn, it’s a good place to raise kids.
But Brooklyn is not as great as people make it out to be. We all live in a city with a decrepit infrastructure, and a lot of people can barely afford to live here. Nice to see all the changes for the better in the Borough, but it’s not as good as it could be.
Santa-
“like the Caribbean, China, and Poland?
lame”
No, I have no issues with the people who have moved here from the Caribbean, China and Poland.
Try San Francisco, LA, Seattle, the Midwest, Florida, St Louis, Ohio.
lame beyond words.
Some people can’t believe that I actually PREFER Brooklyn to Manhattan. I fell in love with Brooklyn in the mid 80s when I moved from the Upper East Side to Brooklyn Heights. I was much closer to work, I had a great apartment, I loved the peace of the place (after getting burglarized a FEW times in Manhattan), the beauty. Then when I returned to NY 6 years ago after a stint in a company in the MidWest, I decided to buy a building in Fort Greene and I couldn’t be happier about where I live. Sure, it would be nice to have a few more stores around here, but it is so peaceful and pretty and I love the autonomy of having my own place. I really can’t see myself moving. I’m home.
Some people can’t believe that I actually PREFER Brooklyn to Manhattan. I fell in love with Brooklyn in the mid 80s when I moved from the Upper East Side to Brooklyn Heights. I was much closer to work, I had a great apartment, I loved the peace of the place (after getting burglarized a FEW times in Manhattan), the beauty. Then when I returned to NY 6 years ago after a stint in a company in the MidWest, I decided to buy a building in Fort Greene and I couldn’t be happier about where I live. Sure, it would be nice to have a few more stores around here, but it is so peaceful and pretty and I love the autonomy of having my own place. I really can’t see myself moving. I’m home.
like the Caribbean, China, and Poland?
lame
Wouldn’t it be great if all the “somewhat satisfied” assholes went back to wherever they came from? More room for the “very satsified”.
Seriously, if Brooklyn ( and NYC for that matter ) just aren’t your cup of tea GO THE HELL BACK to whatever dismal suburb or 3rd tier city you came from.
I can’t imagine anywhere more wonderful to live than the old Dutch village of Flatbush, home to hard-working people from around the globe, and an easy subway ride into the strange and exciting canyons of Manahatta. There is a really cool park at my doorstep, a historic district worthy of Newport, RI a block away, and the best neighbors anywhere. There are challenges aplenty, but then my motto for living in Brooklyn is: “Never Easy. Never Dull.”
Rob, Park Slope lacks a sense of humor. Now you know.