Bushwick
Bordering Williamsburg and Bed-Stuy, Bushwick is quickly climbing up the ladder to become one of Brooklyn’s new trendy neighborhoods. In it’s early days, Bushwick boasted enough breweries to be called “the beer capital of the Northeast.” Today, the warehouses and factories from the Industrial Revolution have been converted into fashionable lofts and apartments, with a steady influx of young professionals moving into the neighborhood. With the J and L subway lines providing quick and easy commutes into Manhattan, Bushwick will undoubtedly continue to be a highly sought-after area in the years to come.
The Vibe: The neighborhood of Bushwick has a strong Latin flair, with close to 70% of its population consisting of Spanish-speaking residents with origins from regions such as Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. There is a strong sense of family and community in this neighborhood, although the area bordering Williamsburg tends to be comprised more of single professionals, artists, and hipsters.
Bragging Rights: Bushwick offers an abundance of green, with over 91% of the neighborhood’s housing units being within 0.25 miles of a park.
Architecture: Bushwick boasts charming brownstones, Brooklyn-esque brick and limestone townhouses, and trendy warehouse lofts along it’s tree-lined streets.
By Day: There is a little something for everybody to explore and enjoy in Bushwick. Children can soak up the sun in the family friendly Maria Hernandez Park, while the centrally located Knickerbocker Avenue offers many independently owned family restaurants where one can enjoy authentic Caribbean dishes such as Arroz con Pollo, Pasteles de yuca, and Mofongo.
By Night: Bushwick has long been known for its flourishing arts scene, ...
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...n, as Cornell University begins construction for its 2.1 million square foot, state-of-the-art Technology campus building, which will surely bring more foot traffic than the island has ever seen before.
By Night: Nightlife is virtually non-existent on Roosevelt Island. The Riverwalk Bar and Grill, located on Main Street, provides the island residents with a place to drink beer and watch sports, and is open until midnight, with the exception of Friday, when the bar is open until 1 AM.
Best Kept Secret: The Octagon building, built in 1834 as part of the New York Lunatic Asylum, was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1972. Once a home to those deemed “insane,” it has since been renovated into a high-end apartment building. All of Octagon’s 500 units feature floor-to-ceiling windows, offering its residents spectacular views of New York City.
Roder, David, and Spielman, Fran. “Condo, town houses planned near Cabrini-Green.” Chicago Sun Times. 30 May 2002.
When people think of Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, they think of crime and violence within the neighborhood. I myself have thought this about Bedford Stuyvesant before I did research and actually visited the neighborhood for myself. Bedford Stuyvesant in my opinion, has two different sides. The side the media portrays to us, the people, and the side people who actually visit/live in the neighborhood see for themselves. My visual representation above shows the two different sides of Bedford Stuyvesant. The first image shows the typical view of what people think of when they think of Bedford Stuyvesant, the projects. When people think of this neighborhood, they think of project buildings housing low income black families. The media portrays Bedford Stuyvesant as a
Another noteworthy urban sociologist that’s invested significant research and time into gentrification is Saskia Sassen, among other topical analysis including globalization. “Gentrification was initially understood as the rehabilitation of decaying and low-income housing by middle-class outsiders in central cities. In the late 1970s a broader conceptualization of the process began to emerge, and by the early 1980s new scholarship had developed a far broader meaning of gentrification, linking it with processes of spatial, economic and social restructuring.” (Sassen 1991: 255). This account is an extract from an influential book that extended beyond the field of gentrification and summarizes its basis proficiently. In more recent and localized media, the release the documentary-film ‘In Jackson Heights’ portrayed the devastation that gentrification is causing as it plagues through Jackson Heights, Queens. One of the local businessmen interviewed is shop owner Don Tobon, stating "We live in a
When the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, America was at last forced to officially enter World War II. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt officially declared war on the Japanese and in his famous radio address to the American people, he professed that December 7 was a day that would live in infamy. Americans and Japanese alike, still remember Pearl Harbor Day, but how many remember the gallant, fighting Marines who served on a tiny atoll in the Pacific by the name of Wake Island?
Throughout the semester I have grown accustomed to my surroundings. Well, at least for the most part. There is still one building that intrigues me to this very day. As I’d walk past it on my journey to Baruch College, I’d stare the entire time. The building seems like a simple rectangular building. However, some aspect of the architectural design captivates me. Strangely enough, army trucks are always parked alongside the building. However, upon attempting to research the building, I could not find it. I was too intimidated to venture in and inquire for the name. None of the bystanders I asked knew the name of the building, nor cared to.
Growing from its humble beginnings as an ash dump in the late 1800's, the Brooklyn Botanic Garden has come to represent today the very best in urban gardening and horticultural display. The Brooklyn Botanical Garden blooms in the middle of one of the largest cities in the world. Each year more than 750,000 people visit the well-manicured formal and informal gardens that are a testament to nature's vitality amidst urban brick and concrete. More than 12,000 kinds of plants from around the globe are displayed on 52 acres and in the acclaimed Steinhardt Conservatory. There's always something new to see. The Brooklyn Botanic Garden offers a variety of public programs all year long. Tours, concerts, dance performances and symposia are always on the roster, as well as special one-time events that feature elements of the Garden at their peak. Each spring the Brooklyn Botanic Garden celebrates the flowering of the Japanese Cherry Trees with our annual Sakura Matsuri (Cherry Blossom Festival), and each fall is spiced up with our multicultural Chili Pepper FiestaA few of the "Many Gardens within a Garden" include the Children's Garden, tended each year by about 450 kids, ages 3 through 18; The Cranford Rose Garden, exhibiting more than 5,000 bushes of nearly 1,200 varieties; The Herb Garden, with more than 300 varieties -- "herbing" is apparently taking the country by storm as people rediscover medicinal, culinary, and other uses; and The Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden, a beautiful creation featuring a Viewing Pavilion, Waiting House, Torri, shrines, bridges, stone lanterns, waterfalls, pond, and miniaturized landscape.
...g to give a place for recreation, for the betterment of human welfare and how this was accomplished, just like many of the lessons we have gone covered in this course. Rittenhouse square was intended to be used for recreational purposes and that is the exact thing it is used for, whether it be a family picnicking in the park, a business man escaping from work for a quick lunch on a nearby bench, or just a general visit to look at the wonders this square holds and get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. This is one place I do not believe needs any improvements, the local people have done so much to make this a great place throughout the years. This square has even been referenced as the “perfect urban neighborhood because of its excellent balance of residential and commercial uses, beautiful nature and flora, and diverse architectural styles” by Jane Jacobs.
Santa Catalina Island, often known as Catalina Island, is located off the coast of Southern California, southwest of Los Angeles. Catalina Island forms part of the Channel Islands archipelago. Catalina is the only island, out of eight, that has been significantly developed. There are two major settlement location within the island - the city of Avalon and the unincorporated town of Two Harbors (“Visit Catalina Island,” 2014). Beyond the town boundaries the island is covered by wild life that it is owned and operated by the Catalina Island Conservancy ("The Official Catalina Island Website,” 2013).
The most impressive room in the building was the registry room. It measured 200 feet by 100 feet, and had an impressive fifty-six foot arched ceiling. Twelve narrow aisles, divided by iron bars, channeled new arrivals to be examined by doctors at the front of the room. The officials who worked at the island, however, were not impressed by the architecture. In fact, they constantly complained of leaky roofs, and other problems within the building.
A new phenomenon happening in our city is the rebirth of many of our older and rundown areas. One of the best examples of this is the "Soulard" area of town, which now has an established nightlife as well as exquisite historical antique homes. Lafayette Square has also enjoyed the same type of success as Soulard. It is still in the middle of a high crime area, but is populated by upper-class people with beautiful homes with elaborate wrought iron fences and intricate security systems. This trend of fixing up old flats is spreading out from the areas of Soulard and Lafayette Square to neighboring communities at a rapid pace. The Compton Heights area is coming back with rebuilt old Victorian styled houses and private gated streets that contrast the French styled flats of Soulard. The Shaw and Tower Grove area are also following the lead of revitalization similar to these charming old neighborhoods.
In the early nineteenth century, Boston increased in size by filling in the marshy area around where Washington Street is today. The city, concerned about crowding in the already established neighborhoods downtown and on Beacon Hill, decided to develop this area into new residential neighborhoods. The population of Boston had increased dramatically in the first half of the nineteenth century from the large number of immigrants and the steady rise of industry in a port city. Between 1850 and 1875, the area south and east of Washington Street (the ocean side) became the South End, which was intended to attract the growing middle class and to persuade them not to move to the suburbs. The pattern and plan of the South End are the main contributors to its architectural unity and also what sets it apart as its own distinct neighborhood. The choices in materiality and organization of space give the South End a visual coherence unlike any other neighborhood in Boston. It is one of the largest remaining Victorian residential neighborhoods in the United States.
New York City’s population is a little over 8.3 million people. 8.3 million people are spread out among five boroughs and each have their own set routine. Each one of those 8.3 million see New York in a different way becuase “You start building your private New York the first time you lay eyes on it” (“City Limits” 4). Some people are like Colson Whitehead who “was born here and thus ruined for anywhere else” (“City Limits” 3). Others may have “moved here a couple years ago for a job. Maybe [they] came here for school” (“City Limits” 3). Different reasons have brought these people together. They are grouped as New Yorkers, but many times, living in New York is their only bond. With on going changes and never ending commotion, it is hard to define New York and its inhabitants in simple terms.
Beginning in the 1960s, middle and upper class populations began moving out of the suburbs and back into urban areas. At first, this revitalization of urban areas was 'treated as a 'back to the city' movement of suburbanites, but recent research has shown it to be a much more complicated phenomenon' (Schwirian 96). This phenomenon was coined 'gentrification' by researcher Ruth Glass in 1964 to describe the residential movement of middle-class people into low-income areas of London (Zukin 131). More specifically, gentrification is the renovation of previously poor urban dwellings, typically into condominiums, aimed at upper and middle class professionals. Since the 1960s, gentrification has appeared in large cities such as Washington D.C., San Francisco, and New York. This trend among typically young, white, upper-middle class working professionals back into the city has caused much controversy (Schwirian 96). The arguments for and against gentrification will be examined in this paper.
When you associate anything with New York City it is usually the extraordinary buildings that pierce the sky or the congested sidewalks with people desperate to shop in the famous stores in which celebrities dwell. Even with my short visit there I found myself lost within the Big Apple. The voices of the never-ending attractions call out and envelop you in their awe. The streets are filled with an atmosphere that is like a young child on a shopping spree in a candy store. Although your feet swelter from the continuous walking, you find yourself pressing on with the yearning to discover the 'New York Experience'.
Where I live is one of the greatest neighborhoods in the city to live in; however, it does have its drawbacks. Importantly, it has nearly everything a resident might want, beautiful picturesque scenery, proximity to shopping, and many of the cultural centers. Nevertheless, the roads can be some of the most congested in town, and the streets are not safe to walk late at night. Fortunately, I wake every morning to the most beautiful sun-lit house. I sit on my porch sipping coffee, while I drink in an atmosphere that steals my breath away.