As of writing this, the Meatpacking district consists of nine blocks sandwiched in between Chelsea and the West Village. Marketing surrounding the district touts it as “a dynamic hub of fashion, technology, culture, and dining, enriched by history and embracing of change.” which was not exactly evident upon my inspection of the neighborhood. Immediately upon stepping off the C train and exiting to the street, you are greeted with a plethora of high fashion stores the average consumer typically would not be able to afford (Christian Louboutin, Aesop, Gucci, Marni, Rolex) the Whitney Museum, a vast array of luxury apartment complexes, and a small man-made island in the distance referred to as “Little Island.” Nothing about the neighborhood’s exterior would suggest that this place was once a hub of prostitution, queer nightlife, crime, and nothing about its exterior suggested that it was “enriched by history and embracing of change.” In fact the opposite seemed to be true. Upon closer inspection, it seemed like a mass conspiracy was taking place where someone went through a great deal of effort to cover up nearly all hints of any identity the neighborhood once had, which only left me wondering, if the Meatpacking district was once such a diverse community, where did everybody go?
Field Notes
- Noticeable lack of trash and garbage anywhere
- Most shops are high end (gucci, hermes, marni (which i need to stop by) and a sephora (which actually looks really good)
- Quaint square mostly empty with chairs, tables, and umbrellas
- Wide bike lanes meant for pedestrians
- Whitney Museum
- Noticeable lack of graffiti
- Most of the rentals are marketed as luxury, with a handful of them being old storefronts or garages repurposed as apartments.
- Heavy presence of tourists with an impression that it was specifically remodeled (the district) for tourists to visit. Many shops, art galleries and photo ops
- Most of the community is presumably affluent, white, and appear to be visiting with kids.
- At night, lines of people (around early 20’s) in fashionable clothes wait anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour to get into clubs
- The community seems to have been deeply sanitized
- Noticeable lack of homeless people
My first time visiting the Meatpacking district was on the night of May 2nd, 2024 for a free DJ set featuring artists Jackson Walker-Lewis, MGNA CRTA, The Dare, and a surprise performance from Charli XCX. From what little I had heard about the Meatpacking district, the night life seemed to be the one thing that stood the test of time. A line of 20 somethings wrapped around the venue, Le Bain, who eagerly anticipated the performances. Drinks were expensive, clothes were stylish, and (unbeknownst to me) Kesha was dancing.
The official Meatpacking website briefly touches on the history and culture of the neighborhood, with a major focus on current events, restaurants, shops, and (albeit somewhat limited) reasons to visit. The images used attempt to show a specific interest in arts, fashion, and cuisine. The median resident of the Meatpacking district is 35 years of age, and has a demographic breakdown of about 75% white/caucasian residents (as reported from city-data.com, pulling from the 2020 census). The shops and diners in the Meatpacking districts are primarily patronized by wealthy tourists looking to shop at the high end stores such as Gucci and Hermes, with only one remaining dilapidated Meatpacking plant on the brink of the neighborhood along the coast of the island.
In 1990s the Meatpacking District experienced a wave of “creative and entrepreneurial minds” which began to reimagine the neighborhood’s potential. With its historic architecture and cobblestone streets, the area had unique charm and character that attracted visionaries and artists.
One of the first notable transformations was the conversion of former warehouses and industrial spaces into chic nightclubs and bars. These venues, such as the legendary Studio 54 and the glamorous Chelsea Market, became iconic nightlife destinations, drawing in crowds seeking a unique and vibrant experience.
It’s not wrong to say life improved for those in the Meatpacking District. Crime saw a significant drop throughout the years. According to Dnainfo.com Crime Report, “The neighborhood, which also includes the nightclub-heavy area of the Meatpacking District, ranks 68th out of 69 in DNAinfo.com’s Crime & Safety Report for overall crime, for property crime and for grand larceny categories.
The good news, though, is that property crime rates in the 6th Precinct, which covers the area, are trending downward, except for car thefts, which jumped 18 percent in 2010, to 45. Still, the area ranks 14th for this category. Burglaries fell by 24 percent, to 176, and grand larcencies were down 4 percent, to 1,053. Long-term trends show even more significant improvements, with overall crime down 71 percent from 1993 to 2010 and steep declines in car thefts (94 percent) and burglaries (78 percent) over that period.”
In a brief interview with a friend, I was informed of the change of demographics over a roughly 10 year period in the meatpacking district. She informed me that the minimization of the district via the expansion of the surrounding districts, increasing rent prices, and the addition of high end shops over the years have contributed to the income inequality of the neighborhood only becoming more severe. The economic impact of the community, particularly the afluent and those able to afford the cost of luxury rentals, further push the lower income families out of the neighborhood.
I returned for the second time ever on July 25th, 2024 searching for signs, evidence of change, and marks of culture which proved to be a somewhat intriguing task. With only about nine blocks of space, and two hours of exploring various streets, it was evident that many of the once working class shops and storefronts are now mere husks of what they used to be. The vast majority of the Meatpacking district now contains luxury apartments/housing with faint writing adorning the sides of the buildings reading “AUTOBODY,” “COLD STORAGE,” “MIDDENDORF AND ROHRS,” with none of these establishments still remaining. Graffiti was sparse with one installment being nestled along a street of closed shops where not much foot traffic seemed to be.
Atop the Hermes store, for a brief second I believed I spotted stray graffiti, wondering how it both got up there and stayed for so long in a high end area, only to see that it was the word “HERMAZING!” (a portmanteau of Hermes and Amazing) in the style of typical graffiti placed strategically to give the shop an “urban” look.
In the biggest affront to the past of the neighborhood, a large poster of an elderly woman and black woman were plastered on a window, with the phrase, “BE YOUNIQUE,” in large letters.
In “Cock a Doodle Do!” (Season 3, Episode 18) from Sex and the City, which aired on April 15, 2001, we find Samantha Jones navigating the nightlife of the meatpacking district and its effects on the upscale community flocking to the burgeoning neighborhood. The episode captures the district’s transformation from a gritty industrial area to a trendy nightlife hub, serving as a time capsule of its early 2000s reinvention. We are given a brief glimpse of life in a neighborhood where uniqueness was driven out and the culture was painted over.
Reva Lucia, the founder and writer of Carrie Bradshaw is the Worst, states “Samantha throws a Kiss and Make Up party for the hookers she has been fighting with. It is a rooftop party and they’re drinking flirtinis and one of the party guests basically asks Carrie to work it. Which she is more than happy to do as it puts her in the center of attention. GAG. Also I’m confused about her outfit. Are those shorts or underwear? Do I also wish I could be thin enough to pull off that look? Yes… Did I hear Samantha correctly when she was ranting about how she pays $7,000 a MONTH for her apartment? That’s…a lot of money.”
The idea of being told to be “YOUNIQUE” by people who were not only priced out but erased from the culture, paints a bleak picture of what’s to come for the future of the Meatpacking district. The appropriation of aesthetics and the masking of every and all remnants of the former Meatpacking district of the 80’s/90’s demonstrate that the neighborhood and tourists crave semi-authentic cultural tourism while not wishing to witness any homeless people or minorities, essentially desiring a sanitized New York.
To see a future for the Meatpacking District that includes the wealthy elite, affordable rent, graffiti, the delicious “flirtini,” the transsexual women of the night who once lived there, and any mark of cultural authenticity, we would require Superman to fly around the world really fast in the opposite direction, reversing time, taking us back to the days when a job writing a column was enough to support going out every night, a manolo addiction, and a one bedroom apartment in the West Village. In a perfect, Sex and the City world, the Meatpacking District could be beautiful. Some may think the Meatpacking District’s gleaming new image is just as much of a façade as Samantha’s $7,000-a-month apartment but, I couldn’t help but wonder, are we really embracing progress, or are we just sipping flirtinis while pretending the past, was never there at all.