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Brownsville & Ocean Hill

At Brooklyn’s eastern edge, “the city goes back to the marsh, and even the subway ends,” Alfred Kazin wrote of his native borough corner in A Walker in the City, his 1951 ode to Brownsville. The neighborhood, along with Ocean Hill, have seen a rich ebb and flow of cultures, from Kazin’s youth, when the area’s were largely a hub of Jewish immigrants, to their current incarnation as a largely black and Puerto Rican nabe in transition. Brownsville is home to the highest density of low-income public housing in the United States. both neighborhoods are included in an ongoing rezoning effort by the city.