Downtown's Bedroom, Not Boardroom, Growth
Crain’s has a story saying Downtown has become Brooklyn’s “fastest-growing residential neighborhood,” a somewhat unexpected turn of events given that the city’s 2004 rezoning aimed to make the area the city’s third-biggest business district. The Downtown Brooklyn Partnership says 4,300 residential units have been constructed since ’04. Meanwhile, less than a third of the forecast…
Crain’s has a story saying Downtown has become Brooklyn’s “fastest-growing residential neighborhood,” a somewhat unexpected turn of events given that the city’s 2004 rezoning aimed to make the area the city’s third-biggest business district. The Downtown Brooklyn Partnership says 4,300 residential units have been constructed since ’04. Meanwhile, less than a third of the forecast 4.5 million square feet of new office space has been developed since then, and vacancy rates have gone up with the recession. Booster quote: “The boom, even since the downturn, would be the envy of any other American city, according to Joe Chan, president of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership. Critic’s quote: “We were sold a bill of goods,” says Councilwoman Letitia James of the rezoning not living up to its promise. James says the area doesn’t have critical amenities like groceries and schools, and that more affordable housing would be welcome.
Downtown Brooklyn’s Residential Growth [Crain’s]
No, you don’t need a grocery store to be “nice” but having one makes the area more convenient and desirable.
I call the grocery store augment lame because many other blocks in Brooklyn that are considered to be nice are just as far or farther away from a grocery store than most of Downtown Brooklyn.
I am not saying that proximity to a grocery store is not good, but it is not a requirement for a neighborhood to be “nice”
It can never be really “nice” because there are no brownstones.
Fidi is a nice area BECAUSE it doesn’t have the hipster bar scene that Williamsburg has. 🙂
15-20 thousand residents in 2001 to 56,000 in 2008 seems like a pretty successful boom to me. More so than Downtown Brooklyn and Williamsburg combined most likely for that short amount of time.
The grocery argument is not lame, the Toren grocery will be a welcome addition to the area so there is full service grocery within a block or two of the new buildings. I walk from Metro Tech to Brooklyn Fare, which is not that far, but in the winter one block would be much better!
A school wouldbe great, lots of families seem to be moving into the area.
FiDi may not have the hipster bar scene that Williamsburg has but it’s still a nice area.
Financial District, NYC
“Previously, the neighborhood was considered to be primarily a destination for daytime traders and office workers from around New York City and the surrounding areas. The neighborhood now has a growing number of full-time residents, with estimates made in 2008 showing that there were approximately 56,000 people living in the area, a jump from the 15 to 20 thousand living there before 2001, with many buildings being converted from office space to apartments and condominiums during the 1990s and 2000s.
The Toren has signed a lease for a grocery store.
It was off, but now back on. Signs are in the window.
I think one issue that the financial district has for residential living is that it covers a larger area than downtown Brooklyn and only has a convenient border with a more established neighborhood on one side.