Jeffries v. Broker on Neighborhood Names
Today The Brooklyn Paper ran an op-ed from Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries about why he’s introducing a bill to formalize the process of naming neighborhoods as well as one from a Rapid Realty broker named Lanishia Goodwin about why she supports new neighborhood handles. From Jeffries’ piece: “The consequences of realtors providing misleading information are broad….
Today The Brooklyn Paper ran an op-ed from Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries about why he’s introducing a bill to formalize the process of naming neighborhoods as well as one from a Rapid Realty broker named Lanishia Goodwin about why she supports new neighborhood handles. From Jeffries’ piece: “The consequences of realtors providing misleading information are broad. Working families are pushed out of rebranded neighborhoods as housing prices soar. Newer residents pay more to rent or buy, largely as a result of the deceptive marketing. This is why I plan to introduce the Neighborhood Integrity Act. This bill will require the city to develop a community-oriented process before brokers can rebrand a neighborhood or redefine its boundaries simply for commercial purposes. These new names rarely result from community input and are often disconnected from a neighborhood’s history, culture or tradition.” Meanwhile, Goodwin has this to say, in part: “In Brooklyn, even familiar names are nicknames for other neighborhoods. Prospect Lefferts Gardens was borrowed from a group of buildings in the Prospect Heights neighborhood, What about Ocean Hill and Kensington? They’re really Flatbush. And what about Stuyvesant Heights? Most of the owners of the million-dollar real estate in this historical area grew up there won’t argue that it’s Bedford-Stuyvesant…Brooklyn as a whole has also become such prime real estate—there are so many people moving farther and farther into Clinton Hill, Bed-Stuy, Crown Heights, and Bushwick—that it can no longer defined by just prime neighborhoods.”
Jeffries: Neighborhood Integrity Matters [BK Paper]
Goodwin: New Names Help Brooklyn Grow [BK Paper]
The stated premise is faulty, as there is NO PROOF that supposed “misrepresentation” of neighborhoods sets off anything at all. The “problem,” if there is one, is simply that people move into the places they can afford that are otherwise near to amenities they want. Jeffries’ dumb idea cannot and will not stop that. The dumb names follow the organic on-the-ground changes.
My point is that if a broker has described a micro-neighborhood that is simply and totally transparently nonexistent, the naming wouldn’t have any effect. The “problem,” as Jeffries well knows, is that the names DO accurately represent something to people who choose to move there. And he wants to stop that process with layers of bureaucracy and racial-majority politics. The only thing that possibly could do is corrode a lot of time, money and community goodwill.
I don’t think Jeffries is trying to stop gentrification which is, agreed, futile — however, fully realized and important communities, albeit not especially wealthy, already exist and getting people to REALIZE that is a good thing. The name thing is irrelevant in my opinion. It’s merely a cute marketing ploy. Moving established neighborhood boundaries purely for monetary gain is unacceptable.
bxgrl, I’ve seen them. I gave my 2 cents yesterday on the HOTD that is “this far out” when it is closer to Manhattan than Park Slope and on a better subway line. But I think the average Park Slope or Cobble Hill house hunter is probably more familiar with PLG than Flatbush. There’s a foggy area in their minds in that space bordering Prospect Park between Windsor Terrace and PLG.
“So where do I live when I’m priced out of Williamsburg?”
Somewhere else.
“Gentrification is the biggest problem facing Jeffries’ chances of ever getting re-elected.”
That’s right crank. In the Brooklyn Democratic machine, only people of the majority race are allowed to represent that district. State Assemblyman Jefferies must be looking at the census numbers from 2010 and see a threat to his career. While this is sad on one level, to try and prevent this change is covert racism.
Also, how do you think names like Tribeca, Soho, etc were coined? They were used to define neighborhoods that changed and we all freely use those terms now.
Lastly, so not a fan of Jefferies for another reason. He was a big opponent of Bloomberg’s plan to fund the MTA through congestion pricing. Then several months later, he was holding rallies asking for more money from the state for the G line. Hmm, Hakeem, you just voted down a policy that would ensured the capital needs of the MTA for a long time (without providing an alternative) and then you complain about money?
BHS- don’t feel alone. You should read past posts on Crown heights and PLG.
It’s stupid to think that changing a name will stop gentrification. As people with money are priced out of hot neighborhoods they will consider less affluent neighborhoods, pushing up prices there, for good and bad.
One thing that drives me crazy is the way Flatbush is handled on this blog and others. Anything that looks nice is in “Ditmas Park” though it may be nowhere near the historic district, while apartments or less grand houses are labelled “Flatbush”, even though they might be right around the corner from a gorgeous historic district. This is a diverse area, which is part of its charm. It seems like everybody wants to pretend it’s either a scary hell-hole or a suburban paradise.
Ah, Dh- that’s the question all of us are asking these days.
LOL, z!!!