Writer Falls For Bed Stuy on First Date
We missed this profile of Bed Stuy in the Daily News on Friday (which surprisingly was accompanied by a photo of five houses on the Clinton Hill side of Classon, recreated above), but a reader flagged it for us yesterday…The writer clearly has a big crush on the nabe, even if it’s his first time…
We missed this profile of Bed Stuy in the Daily News on Friday (which surprisingly was accompanied by a photo of five houses on the Clinton Hill side of Classon, recreated above), but a reader flagged it for us yesterday…The writer clearly has a big crush on the nabe, even if it’s his first time visiting. “You can’t believe something like this is in New York, and then you can’t believe you never knew it existed,” he writes about himself seeing the Montrose Morris-designed Alhambra building. And the architecture isn’t the only thing that impresses him: Its restaurants are “are more Greenwich Village than Greenwich Village.” We also learn how wonderful the residents are: I didn’t like people very much before we opened, says the co-owner of Ms. Dahlia’s Café. But the people here are amazing.” And of course there’s the issue of race, with this quote from a fifty-year resident of Madison Street: We’re going back to how we were in the late 1950s, she says of the current wave of gentrification. We were 80/20 white-to-black then. Then we were 90/10 black-to-white. Now, every new family who comes in is white. We welcome the change. It’s great, but it makes me laugh. Let’s say 20 years ago I moved to Howard Beach? I don’t think I would be as welcomed as the white people coming here are. That tells you something.
High on Bed-Stuy [NY Daily News]
“Let’s say 20 years ago I moved to Howard Beach? I don’t think I would be as welcomed as the white people coming here are. That tells you something.â€
FORGET 20 years ago, how about NOW? Black people walking around in Howard Beach are at the least going to be eyed suspiciously and at the worst harrassed or threatened TODAY. That’s just the way it is. And I agree that in many cases, the white folks now moving into predominantly black neighborhoods are less likely to be treated poorly compared with blacks would in reverse circumstances. Again, that’s just how things are.
There are white people moving into my part of Crown Heights, and that’s cool because I believe anyone can live wherever they’d like. They have blended in well, it’s nice for the neighborhood and there haven’t been any problems that I know of. People talk to each other sometimes, don’t other times, bottom line is they interact. Still, there have been some strange moments, like when some white dude asked one of my neighbors, the widow of a Tuskeegee Airman who’s owned her house for more than 50 years, “When did all of the West Indians take over?” She and I were kind of laughing about that.
That’s the beauty of Bed Stuy. People say hello here and they are NOT hitting you up for something.
people have strange definitions, differing definitions of, what a “friendly” neighborhood is. im pretty sure if i waltzed down the street with a hello kitty backpack im not going to get a friendly response, but then again, maybe that’s for good reason ahhaha. when i lived in harlem it was like, everyone always said hi and stuff. sometimes you wind up saying hi back tho and then a conversation starts and it turns out the person was just trying to sell you drugs or ask for money. not saying that is the case in bed stuy, or with everyone obviously, but sometimes it’s good to be chary about people you dont know who say hi.
good neighbors are silent neighbors that you never see.
*rob*
I’ve spent time in many neighborhoods in the City and I would have to agree that Bed Stuy seems like one of the friendliest. A couple of years ago I spent about four days walking around Bed Stuy looking for a new home for a social service agency. My take is that there are a lot of southerners in the area. All the street greetings reminded me of Richmond.
This is definitely one of the more insightful/less patronizing articles written about Bed-Stuy. I’m also especially glad that the South-Stuy is getting some much-deserved attention. Nostrand-Fulton tends to get overlooked b/c it’s a commercial hub and a bit trashy (literally — though much less so since the BID went into effect thanks to the efforts of the Restoration Plaza and PACC). The architecture really is pretty fantastic. The apt building on Nostrand that got a mention has always reminded me of the Berlin apt buildings with their recessed verandas. It’s gorgeous.
One just has to peruse all the Bed-Stuy BOTDs to date to see what a treasure that neighborhood is
quote:
People say hello on the street, I know my neighbors.
lots of people dont like that tho.
*rob*
I too know all of my neighbors and virtually everyone says “Good morning” or “Hello” when passing on the street, even people you don’t really know.
Wait til this writer sees Prospect Lefferts Gardens! I think some of those blocks are the most mindblowing in the Borough (with Prospect Park South and Stuyvesant Heights closely following.)