North Bed Stuy, Crime Question
Thanks for your interesting comments, Cate and Pitkin (the others I ignored as they were short one-liners and that usually means blog trolls). The house I’m looking at is between Broadway and one of the blocks to the west. It’s a block from the projects, but the block it’s on has mostly rowhouses, and some Fedders buildings built recently. Not far is that curious ‘Colony 1209’ thing and to the west are massive projects, north and west. The projects are quite close, to answer your comment. But it’s less than a mile from the L, though unfortunately close to the Woodhull Hospital. I have confidence in the area but at the moment the area under the elevated train on Broadway has its issues – as the crime map and anecdotal experiences suggest. Houses on Kosciuszko and south, though, are on sale for over 1.1-1.2, and 8-900 is the price of a shell these days. I can fully see how noise can be an issue. The existing character of the neighborhood in the summer months, and the young hipster crowd on top. One worry is the direction that a lot of neighborhoods like this are taking: either you’re living in a 800K condo / 1.5m house, or you’re in subsidized housing. That must be a recipe for crime – it’s the vast class differences that unnerve people. It’s hard not to hope that your neighborhood will turn into the next Crown Heights or Fort Greene, despite this, admittedly!
soundhoner
in About Brooklyn 10 years and 6 months ago
8
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8 replies
soundhoner | 10 years and 6 months ago
Hey there, I’m aiming at a house purchase and it so happens that what’s been falling in my budget is the J/M/Z / north Bed Stuy area and a possibility came up. I’ve been spending some time walking around there and I’m curious what other people think about the following. Personal opinions, anecdotes are welcome. On the one hand: According to crime maps, it’s a ‘highest’ relatively speaking, particularly around Woodhull and the projects around there (which abound). The trulia map will show, from the last month alone, “stabbings/shootings”, robberies, larcenies on just about every block near there. The cutoff point seems to be Broadway heading to Bushwick. Walking along Hart coming from the west, one sees beautiful brownstones, and then one suddenly comes across the projects across from St. John the Baptist Church, a beautiful, large church surrounded by high concrete walls and barbed wire at the top. The sidewalk there is pitch dark (no street lighting) and littered with garbage flying around. On the other hand: Since the last time I was scouting the area a year ago, a few more restaurants and bars have opened up along Broadway and east in Bushwick. One sees many faces of those that are clearly students, young professionals or young artists. One sees lots of construction activity, and reads the curbed pages and sees developments in the blocks around. What are the possible scenarios here? It’s hard to imagine all those projects going away, and thus the crime going down significantly. Crown Heights established police standing on the corners of Franklin, and walking the beat. Are there any initiatives in Bed Stuy and Bushwick to do the same? Do you see this area gentrifying to the same degree as Williamsburg or east Bushwick?
catboot | 10 years and 6 months ago
“Do you see this area gentrifying to the same degree as Williamsburg or east Bushwick?” I sure hope not. Unfortunately the hipsters are coming and are all over BedStuy already.
pitkin11208eny | 10 years and 6 months ago
The projects and everything that comes with it aren’t going anywhere. Honestly unless you associate with people involved in illegal activity or hangout outside of Bodegas or liquor stores the odds of most of those crimes happening to you are slim. Property crimes like muggings or stolen property sure but that can happen almost anywhere.Even then even the worst ghettos in this city have very low crime when compared to years like 1993, it just seems “high” when compared to the overall historically very low crime rates throughout this city. The area will improve since the trend is going east towards Broadway Junction as more and more people are priced out, add in the planned rezoning of Ocean Hill/East New York which is just east of your area and in a few years your neighborhood will be completely different (by then so will Williamsburg as well). barring any economic/environmental/terrorist catastrophe of course.
pigthree | 10 years and 6 months ago
Check the map for register sex offenders in this area. wide eye emoji
BSDOD | 10 years and 6 months ago
Welcome to the hood…some how people survived and thrived in Bed Stuy for decades, it’s probably not for you.
argentina | 10 years and 6 months ago
If you are afraid to live around brown people brooklyn is not for you…nor the rest of NYC. Believe it or not poverty is not a crime; living in the projects doesn’t make you a criminal.
thetinkerswagon | 10 years and 6 months ago
look at what pigthree says. I did that before buying my house and still check it once in a while just to see who is living near me.
cate | 10 years and 6 months ago
I agree with Pitkin. Are you talking about the Myrtle Broadway J stop? It’s all gentrifying, it’s been gentrifying for years. The Myrtle Broadway J stop area in particular in the last, say, oh, five years or so. My advice in general, not just for this particular area, is to find a house that is not too close to the projects, and preferably on a block with at least some townhouses with owner occupants, especially longtime owner occupants, rather than only renters. Introduce yourself to the neighbors on the block before you make an offer, and check out the area at night. A concern might be noise. The particular area you mention, to the west of Broadway, in Bed Stuy, is not landmarked and has a lot of empty space. FYI, it’s probably going to be covered in development soon. The area to the east, in Bushwick, is already being developed. Massive 80/20 luxury/affordable buildings are planned not far from here near Flushing in the old Rheingold Brewery space, and lots of other new buildings have just gone up or are going up within two blocks of Myrtle and Bushwick Avenue. I can think of five off hand. Bushwick and Bed Stuy already have cops walking a beat, as you say, as well as other initiatives. Speaking for myself, I don’t think I’d buy in an area hoping it will become like some other area, although it’s probably going in that direction.