Bed-Stuy: The New Lower East Side?
The Times has a story about an architectural designer who’s moved to Bed-Stuy from Alphabet City and claims that Brooklyn reconnects me to New York City as a cultural and social phenomenon. Michael Andaloro lived on Avenue B for more than two decades and sold two apartments there for $1.2 million last year; he originally…
The Times has a story about an architectural designer who’s moved to Bed-Stuy from Alphabet City and claims that Brooklyn reconnects me to New York City as a cultural and social phenomenon. Michael Andaloro lived on Avenue B for more than two decades and sold two apartments there for $1.2 million last year; he originally paid $60,000 for the properties. Andaloro recently bought a Bed-Stuy building for $775,000 and spent almost that much on renovating the structure, which he says was a 7 on the squalor scale. The new Brooklynite says he doesn’t miss the East Village, which was like spring break in Orlando on Thursday nights and that his new neighborhood’s diversity and possibilities are like the Lower East Side of lore. And, of course, he’s banking on his Bed-Stuy investment eventually paying off the same way Alphabet City did: I always figure that a bleak or notorious neighborhood translates into cachet one day.
Rediscovering New York as It Used to Be [NY Times]
Photo by …neene…
creative apes are harder to come by than the noncreative types.
1:27 PM:
A creative ape could design crap for Hermes stores.
So, you recent commenters stating that people should send their kids to troubled schools in transitional neighborhoods: how many kids do you have in such schools? Are you willing to sacrifice the safety and education of your children in the interest of this principal? How many of the long-term middle-class residents of these neighborhoods do you think send their kids to better schools outside the neighborhood? Do you think your presence and willingness to volunteer is enough to turn around a bad school the moment your child arrives? How many years do you think this magic turnaround will take?
cause that way someone else is doing all the work to open said businesses, while this greedy homeowner can sit back and watch her profits grow. or so they think.
helping improve the schools would actually take effort.
cleary the poster is only thinkin about one thing….
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Actually 3:47, what the guy said is that school is no problem because his kids are already in GOOD ones, which, to me, implies that the local schools are NOT good (in the poster’s opinion). So my question is, if you love where you live and are so very invested in your community, and are having a big leaf raking, vacuum sharing, yard work party every day, why not put your kid in the local schools and work hard to make that school good too? Wh not be as invested in the local schools as you are in the local wine bars, bookshops and bakeries?
wow, this is so funny.
I’m really interested to see the repsonse. I’m so happy to see what this guy did–it’s something I wanted to do on the corner of Jefferson and Patchen and my architect did her best to talk me out of it. But the truth was I didn’t have the funds or the time. I still think it would have been a good idea.
Yeah, Brooklyn is changing.
Prospective Buyer, you won’t be a prisoner of your house in Bed Stuy. I don’t even have a car any more, and I’m not stuck here. And my neighbors are perfectly nice.
Thanks rf at 9:10pm.
My feeling is those that have made the move to Bed-Stuy have thicker skin and are optimistic about the way things may be shaping up for the community there. Sure there are safer neighborhoods, those that offer more services, closer to manhattan etc. But its the trade off for more space, authentic brownstones with original details intact and not cut up into 4 condos or apts. that CH, FG, and PS faces.
Granted foreclosures may be up and the overall subprime mortgage market looks terrible, but when are you suppose to buy. When things get better? You buy when the blood is in the streets. Remember 9/11? Was that the time to sell US Equities or buy. I bet a lot of orders came in that day to liquidate because of fear. FEAR makes for opportunity. Scared hands give away what stronger hands are willing to bear with.
I will consider a home in Stuy Heights. In fact, the home is 2 blocks from the A train so avoiding that crazy G might be a good look. I am not looking to flip and make a quick profit and will own for decades to come. And if the neighbors are as nice as some of the B-Stuy posters here, I’ll be fine.
I’ve never been to Bread-Stuy but the service at Tillie’s is neither problematic or exceptional. I would miss Mike’s Coffee Shop the most. But I am still a Brooklyn resident and its only a few minutes away by car.
Prospective Stuy-Heights Buyer.
Good for the guy.
Not Park Slope (PS), Snob Slope!!