Monthly Archives: September 2015

Neighborhood Backgrounder: Soho

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Demographics: According to 2010 census data, Soho’s total population is 14,432 with male and female population almost even in percentage. The female population makes up 50.9% and the male population makes up the remaining 49.1.

12,198 of Soho residents are white, making them 84.5 % of the population. Asians make up 9.2% of the population and the rest is made up of African Americans (2%) and other races. Fun fact: as of 2010, there were 6 native Hawaiians living in Soho.

-Infoshare Database.

History:Soho was initially a neighborhood full of production factories, the, artists were attracted to the area’s big spacious empty lots. Clandestine living was big until the city addressed the problem back in the 1960’s. Today, most art galleries have moved to, mainly, Chelsea. Soho, of course, is famous with tourists because of the large commercial area with the chain sores and smaller businesses.

Contemporary Land Development: The city council is currently funding the re-construction of the Soho Square park. NYC Parks is currently providing basic information on the progress and the estimated funding is, according to NYCgovparks.gov, is between 3 million and 10 million dollars. This information was last updated on the website on September 28, 2015.

 

 

 

Neighborhood Faces Query: Father Joseph F. Lorenzo

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Father Joe is a pastor at the Shrine Church of Saint Anthony of Pauda, located just south of Houston Street in Soho. I am interested in Soho’s role to help out the poor and homeless. Father Joe’s initiatives such as the JoyJ initiative to hand out coats and pillows to the homeless is the type of activity I am interested in because it shows how one person, through the leadership he has by being a pastor of the church, drives members of a community towards a common goal.

I am choosing Father Joe for this profile article because even though today many people do not view “the church” as a significant force for positive outcomes in the world, it is interesting to see the positive actions a church takes to improve or help relieve, issues and conflicts in its community on a local level.

New Brighton Backgrounder

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Demographics:

(Most recent census 2008-2012)

  • Total population: 40529

 

Population By Gender:

  • Male population: 19917 (40.1%)
  • Female Population: 20612 (50.9%)

 

Population By Race:

  • Caucasian population: 24304 (60%)
  • African American Population: 10192 (25.1%)
  • Native American Population: 47 (0.1%)
  • Other: 2261 (5.6%)
  • Person of two or more race: 1252 (3.1%)

Schools:

  • PS. 31
  • PS. 16
  • IS. 61
  • Saint Peters Boys High School
  • Saint Peters Elementary
  • Curtis High School
  • Ralph R. Mckee High Scchool

Transportation:

Local train: Staten Island Railway

Buses: S42, S52, S44, S40, S46, S48, S61, S62, S66

Staten Island Ferry

Local Businesses:

National Action Network

Famous NY Pizza

D&B Chinese Restaurant

5 Bodegas

Laundromat

Conflicts/hot issues:

New Courthouse getting sued over interview room cameras (http://www.silive.com/northshore/index.ssf/2015/09/new_courthouse_flap_legal_aid.html#incart_2box_silive-homepage-featured )

Homicide Victim (http://www.silive.com/northshore/index.ssf/2015/11/man_found_shot_to_death_in_new.html)

Murder Statistics this year for Staten Island (http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2015/12/despite_citywide_trends_murder.html)

 

Alphabet City Backgrounder

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Alphabet City is a small neighborhood in New York City. Its boundaries are East Houston St to the north and E 14th St to the south and contains Avenue A, B, C and D. It gains its name from these avenues. Some more popular locations in the area include Tompkins Square Park and the Nuyorican Poets Cafe.

It is a very artsy area that is heavily populated with German, Polish, Hispanic and Jewish. During the 1980s there were African Americans and Puerto Ricans living in the area as well as hundreds of struggling artists. The area also had a very high crime rate and high levels of illegal drug activity. Today it is 58th safest for all crime. There are many schools in the neighborhood such as The Neighborhood School, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Tompkins Square Middle School, New York City Community School District 1 Region 9,  Escuela Hispana and the George Jackson Academy.

In my research I found the following statistics as of 2013. The median household income was $68,148. The median rent was $1,374.There was more females than males but not by much. There was 31,769 males and 34,355 females documented. The median age for both sexes in the neighborhood was 35 years old. There was 25.9% of married couple families with children and 20.4% single-mother households. 13.1% of people do not speak english in the neighborhood and 24.4% were foreign born residents. 34.8 % of people were born in another U.S state and 35.7% were born in New York.

Asking prices for buildings has significantly increased over the past 3 years. Vacant buildings are being bought, remodeled and sold for prices reaching over 1 million dollars an apartment.The average housing price for housing units in 3-to-4 unit structures was $1,282,293. The streets are lined with early 19th and early 20th century buildings. Some buildings of note in the area include the St. Nicolas of Myra Church, the Eleventh Street Public Bath, the Congregation Beth Hamedrash Hagadol Ansche Ungarn, and the Congregation Mezritch Synagogue. Public School 64 is a French Renaissance Revival structure that was designed by master school architect C.B.J Snyder and was built in 1904-1906. This was a time period of tremendous expansion and construction of new schools due to the consolidation of New York City and its recently centralized school administration, school reforms, and a burgeoning immigrant population (wikipedia). Some notable residents of  the area Louis Abolafia, Rosario Dawson, Bobby Driscoll, Allen Ginsberg, Madonna, Charlie Parker and Heraldo Rivera.

This neighborhood is growing in money. What once was home to starving artists and immigrants has become expensive area to live in. Crime rate has dropped and the area is filled with young hip adults crawling the bars in the neighborhood. Just like many neighborhoods it is filled with family own businesses and bars that have been around for centuries. A understated but special neighborhood to say the least.

It is changing into a hip trendy area and drawing in a younger crowd attracted to the nightlife. Its filled with more unique businesses and restaurants then ever before.

http://www.city-data.com/neighborhood/East-Village-New-York-NY.html

http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/crime-safety-report/manhattan/east-village

Backgrounder: Englewood, NJ

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Demographics: Englewood is a five square mile city in Bergen County, New Jersey. The population in 2012 was 27,605 people in contrast to the state’s population of 8,867,749. It is a city filled with diversity with almost one-third of the population coming from a different country. The 2010 census showed that Englewood is comprised of 45.3% whites, 32.6% blacks, 8.1% Asians, and 27.5% Hispanic or Latino. Koreans and Colombians made up the greatest percentage of recent immigrants.

As of 2008- 2012, the amount of foreign-born residents was 1.8%. In 2010, it was reported that 34.3% of people spoke a different language other than English at home. http://cityofenglewood.org

Transportation: In proximity to New York, Englewood is 15 minutes away by taking the George Washington Bridge. According to the 2010 census data, 25% of residents work in New York City while 12% work in Englewood. NJ Transit provides an express bus from Englewood that takes 35 minutes to reach Port Authority Bus Terminal.

Households: The median household income for the years 2008-2012 was $69,557 with 11.6% of people below the poverty line, compared to the median household income of the United States at $53,046.

Real Estate: Estimated median house or condo value in 2013 was $372,351.
http://www.city-data.com/city/Englewood-New-Jersey.html#ixzz3mVBmlLuQ

Education: Englewood offers a number of public and private schools for residents. The public schools include Dwight Morrow High School, Academies at Englewood, and Janis E. Dismus Middle School to name a few. The private schools are Dwight Englewood and The Moriah School. The private school system ranges anywhere from $20- 40,000 a year. http://www.epsd.org/home

Recorded in 2012, 87.8% of residents were high school graduates and 46.4% over the age of 25 had a bachelor’s degree or higher.

Religious Institutions: Due to its diversity, Englewood provides over 50 religious institutions for its residents.

Parks/Recreation: The suburbs offer a large amount of open space, allowing for baseball fields, swimming pools, basketball courts, or even ice skating rinks.

Flat Rock Brook Nature Center—is a 150-acre preserve and environmental center located on Palisades Avenue. A last remnant of the Palisades Forest, it provides public information on preserving nature and its resources with nice trials and picnic areas.http://flatrockbrook.org/

Local Businesses /Organizations: Englewood Chamber of Commerce—a not-for-profit organization lead by business leaders to improve life in Englewood. They organize community events and represent each business in front of the city government.

The Bergen Performing Arts Center (bergenPAC)—is a not-for-profit performing art center. Providing about 150 events each year, BergenPAC hosts a variety of artists, concerts, and performing programs. http://www.bergenpac.org

Englewood Hospital and Medical Center—An acclaimed hospital for its bloodless medicine and surgery program, cardiac and vascular programs, and leadership in breast care, oncology, and joint replacement services. http://www.englewoodhospital.com

Issues:

The NJ Transit is the only mode of public transportation in Englewood. Not as efficient as a train, there is talk about extending the Hudson Bergen Light Rail. However, designs are not known yet since it’s been an ongoing issue. Many residents are in favor of new and quick ways to get into the city but worry the light rail will cause congestion and limit parking.

Parking—There is a limited amount of parking downtown where all the shops and restaurants are. People constantly get tickets for going over the meter parking. There should be a parking center because if people can’t find parking they won’t shop and it will affect business.

Streetlights—Englewood is a city where many of its residents choose to walk at night whether it is to a friend’s house or the local religious institution. There have been accidents where cars have hit pedestrians because of the darkness. In 2011, the curb line on Broad Ave was illuminated with $30,000 worth of solar powered lights, now needed on more streets to prevent fatalities. There is a story that a local doctor was killed walking to his daughter’s house because a car didn’t see him. I could go to the police department and see how many deaths are caused a year by car accidents in Englewood, get residents and city council views on the issue of lighting, and family anecdotes.http://www.northjersey.com/news/city-park-renamed-to-honor-doctor-1.204788 http://www.northjersey.com/news/solar-lights-to-boost-safety-1.265268

Neighborhood Faces Proposal

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Someone I would like to interview is someone on the queens community board district 5 because that person would be more knowledgable about the issues in Glendale. Residents can enter the community board because they hold general meetings on Thursday. Since illegal conversion is an issue that occurs often I have thought about contacting an agent or employee of the Department of Buildings but I figured that would be really difficult and almost impossible. Someone on the community board who frequently attends the meetings would have the best interest of Glendale and are better equipped suggest a solution to the problem. Since anyone can be a board member I can assume that person is in the working middle class and has a family. They might live in a two family house and have at two children and be married. They live a nice and simple life so they give their time to bettering the community by getting involved on the board. The best candidate to choose for an interview that will an understanding of illegal conversion would be someone who owns the building they live in because they would be able to have knowledge and understanding of the consequences and violation given to them had they been caught illegally converting their family house. This person would be able to talk about the issue in further detail because the people who are doing illegal conversion on their house can diminish the real estate value and cause further damage to the community.

Backgrounder: Astoria, Queens

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Demographics

National Geographic states that Astoria, Queens is the most diverse neighborhood present in the world. According to the 2010 U.S. Bureau Census, the total population of Astoria is 191,105, and of that population more than half (54.7%) consists of people of diverse backgrounds. These diverse populations are made up of: 27.6% Hispanic; 14.1% Asian or Pacific Islander; 9.8% Black/African American; and a total of around 2% of mixed races. Of the population of 191,105 people residing in Astoria, 161,284 people are adults, making up the majority of the population.

 

Location

Astoria is located in Queens Community District 1, which is in the northwest corner of the borough of Queens. The neighborhoods included in this district are: Astoria Heights, Queensbridge, Dutch Kills, Ravenswood, Rikers Island, Steinway, and Long Island City (which is also included in District 2). Astoria is also bordered by the East River. It is a neighbor to District 2, which consists of Long Island City, Sunnyside, and Woodside.

 

Community Board

The chairperson of the community board for Astoria is Vinicio Donato and the District Manager is currently Lucille Hartmann. The community board office is located in Astoria at 45-02 Ditmars Blvd and the office can be contacted at 718-626-1021

 

Schools

In Astoria, there are three public high schools: the Young Women’s Leadership School, William Cullen Bryant High School, and Frank Sinatra High School. There are also two private schools: St. John’s Preparatory School and St Demetrios School. In addition to this, there is also one middle school and four elementary schools (the majority of which are private schools). In addition to these schools, there are also a handful of daycares located around the neighborhood.

 

Local Businesses

The majority of Astoria’s local businesses cluster around the heavily trafficked 30th Avenue, 31st Street, Steinway Street, Ditmars Blvd, and Broadway. These local businesses consist of restaurants, beauty supply stores, hair salons, drugstores, vegetable stalls and convenience stories.

 

Real Estate and Housing

According to the 2010 Census, Astoria possesses 39,030 total family households and 37,603 nonfamily households, creating a grand total of 76,633 households. AddressReport names Astoria as the best neighborhood for young professionals because of its proximity to the city and reasonable housing prices.

 

Commuting

Astoria is easily accessible by the N and Q subway lines as well as with the Q18, Q19, Q102 and Q103 bus lines. Astoria is also only about a half hour drive from Manhattan.

 

Hot Topics

The Kaufman Arts District located in Astoria will soon see an installation of new condos. The Kaufman Astoria Studio is an active studio that currently filming the Netflix series “Orange is the New Black.” The president of the studio claims that with the improvement of the Museum of the Moving Image (also located in this district), and the popularity of Frank Sinatra High School, improving the residential area “seemed like the next step” for attracting talent to the area.

 

 

Resources

National Geographic: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/big-idea/02/queens-genes

2010 Census for District 1: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/pdf/neigh_info/socio_demo/qn01_socio_demo.pdf

Queens Community Portal: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/html/neigh_info/qn01_info.shtml

Queens Community Board: http://www.nyc.gov/html/cau/html/cb/queens.shtml

AddressReport of Astoria: https://www.addressreport.com/blog/best-neighborhood-in-queens/

New Condos in the Kaufman Arts District: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/23/realestate/new-condos-in-astoriaskaufman-arts-district.html?_r=0

Backgrounder: Washington Heights

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Location: Washington Heights begins at 155th street and ends at Inwood (200th St). It is bordered on the East by the Harlem River, and on the West by the Hudson River.

Demographics

Total Population (2010): 190,020, percent change-8.8%

  • White/Non Hispanic: 33,442
  • Black/African American: 13,954
  • Asian/Pacific Islander: 4,814
  • American Indian/ Alaska Native: 228
  • Nonhispanic/other race: 672
  • Hispanic Origin: 134,976

Real Estate/Housing: : 

  • Occupied housing: 69,182
  • Owner-occupied: 6,452
  • Renter occupied: 62,730
  • Multiple Nursing Homes/Hospitals/Hospices and Ambulatory Programs

Schools: 

  • I.S. 218
  • P.S. 152
  • P.S. 173
  • P.S. 18
  • P.S. 48
  • P.S. 5
  • P.S./I.S. 187

Transportation: 

MTA – A, C, 1 trains, Bx7, M100, M101, very accessible in all forms of public transportation.

Conflicts/hot button issues: 

  • Planned traffic improvements: Right turn restriction at Edgecombe Ave coming off the Harlem River Drive, rejected by community board (2014)
  • Rent Hikes- businesses are having to shut down, look for locations elsewhere
  • Changing Demographics (There has been decrease in Hispanic Population that grows greater every year)
  • East New York Rezoning: borders of different communities are constantly changing
  • One of the boroughs quickly changing due to gentrification

 

Resources: 

 

Background: Glendale, NY

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There has always been people of different backgrounds residing here but Glendale has had a history of Germans, Italians, and Irish people living here for decades. According to the New York City Department of Health and Mental, in 2006 west central Queens, which includes Glendale, had a demographic of 60% Caucasians, 22% Hispanics , 13% Asian , 2% African America, , and 3% as other. From 2006 to 2014 there has been an increase in minorities living in Glendale. According to the New York City Department of City Planning, in 2010 the population of district 5, the Queens community, 54.9% were Caucasians, 1.4 % were African Americans, 7.7% were Asian, and 34.7% were Hispanics. There are several private religious schools in Glendale as well as one public middle school. There is St. Pancras school, Redeemer Lutheran school, Sacred Heart school, and St. John’s which are private religious schools. Intermediate School 119 is the middle school I attended between 2006 to 2009 and it has 3 divisions within the school.

http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/data/nyc-health-profiles.shtml

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/html/neigh_info/qn05_info.shtml

The local businesses are reflected by the background of residence here and their culture. There are way too many pizzerias on almost every block. There are specific businesses tailored to Italian immigrants and clubs for people who love Italian soccer leagues and clubs. Unlike in other areas where a pizzeria may have employees or be owned by an non-Italian, the pizzerias here are owned by Italians and their Italian family and friend help run their business. The other businesses that are also on every block are bars and pubs. These businesses are either owned by the Germans or Irish and few are owned by the Polish. Other than pizzeria’s and bars there is the usual diners and deli’s around here. The biggest commercial real estate in Glendale is Atlas Mall. It is like the one of the malls you might see in Long Island or the suburbs. Atlas Mall has had it’s up and downs throughout the years because I have seen many stores come and go since it opened in 2007.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/27/realestate/glendale-queens-living-in-tucked-away- and-neatly-tricked-out.html?_r=0

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/html/neigh_info/qn05_info.shtml

Overall the housing and real estate in Glendale would be considered middle class. Many people are owners of the building in which they reside in for many years. Glendale is a small family oriented community that many not know about because it feels isolated from the rest of the Queens. There are hardly frequent transportation and ways to get here from other areas of Queens. For example, It takes me an hour and a half just get to Forest Hills and it takes that same amount of time to also get to Manhattan. It is a strange thing but Glendale is also surrounded by many cemeteries that might also isolates itself and make it unknown it to many others. One issue that I’ve seen over the years is that some families buy a two family house and do illegal construction to illegally convert the house. This is an issue also talked about in the District Needs Statement for Fiscal Year 2016 created by Community Board for district 5. The statement did suggest ways in which the issue could be resolved but there needs to be strict procedure for issuing violations to these people who are illegally converting their two family houses.

http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/pdf/neigh_info/statement_needs/qn05_statement.pdf