The person I’ve chosen to spotlight from my neighborhood- Washington Heights- is Jose Valdez. He is the owner of a prominent multiservices business agency in the heart of the Washington Heights. Located at 161st street and Broadway, he is a great person to interview to know just how much the neighborhood has changed. Since I have decided to focus on Hispanic business owners and what they have to say about the changing demographics in the area, I would love to talk to him about how he started his business, what has changed since then, and how he has had to adapt because of the nearing gentrification process that will eventually occur. He is also involved in the community and is an advocator to more Hispanic local leaders. I am extremely interested in investigating this further, because it seems like the once Hispanic-American population that was so prominent in Washington Heights is constantly dwindling. There have been rent hikes in the area, business closings for more “hipster” places to reopen in those once family owned restaurants, as well as a new population of different races moving into the neighborhood. As a Hispanic-American, I want to investigate this further in order to get down to the real reason this is happening. I would like to get Jose Valdez’s take on this,as he has seen many changes in Washington Heights throughout the years. Some of the multimedia I plan on including will have video footage of our interview as well as the neighborhood,and a podcast/voice over about how Washington Heights is changing and how this is affecting the Hispanic population in this area.
Tag Archives: Neighborhood
South Slope
Many can argue about the margins between Park Slope and South Slope. I decided to focus on South Slope because the lack of attention it receives. Only people who live here, like myself, know South Slope and can testify about it’s transformation.
For the profile feature I would write about the owner of Luigis Pizza, famously known for their feature in the movie Big Daddy with Adam Sandler. The pizzeria is interesting to me because it one of the only mom and pop shops still around since 1973, with it’s old school Italian pizzeria charm.
The business feature idea would be on a new bakeshop called Woops. Woops is located on 5th Avenue between 17th and 18th Street, which is the block receiving the most transformation in the entire neighborhood. I would like to interview the owner on why they decided to choose the street with the most renovations. Just recently on the same street a polish grocery store shut down since it’s opening in 1939.
The neighborhoods Prospect Avenue R train stop and its surrounding blocks is a crime hot spot. The train stop is also extremely small and becomes overpopulated when exiting from the Northbound side. My story can either be on the subway station and opinions from MTA customers or on the crimes taking place in the surrounding area. The street on the Prospect Avenue station (17th Street between 4th and 5th avenue) is extremely dark at night, most of the cameras on houses and stores are only for show and there is a sketchy Brooklyn Expressway entrance midway into the block. The block is completely residential, besides the deli’s and a bagel shop on three of its corners. The street is either filled with people walking home from the station or completely empty, which in my opinion makes it a target for crime.
Another possible feature
250 Words on Washington Heights
The area of New York City that I’ve chosen to investigate is Washington Heights. All my life, I either grew up in upper Manhattan or found myself visiting friends and family in the area. Currently, my mom owns her own insurance company in Washington Heights, and the neighborhood is quickly changing. Last month, an entire section of local businesses were shut down within a span of two weeks and signs with new business ideas and the phrase “gentrification in process” were left where the old businesses once stood. I would like to investigate why exactly this is happening, and further understand why Washington Heights is the next target area to undergo gentrification.
Back when I was younger, Washington Heights was full of bodegas, small restaurants, and playgrounds. Now, there are a slew of new cafes, organic juice bars and even barbershops that are extremely different from the Domincan-owned salons I would frequent with my dad when I was younger.
I want to start by interviewing the owner of a local business- Sweet Life Pastry. This bakery just opened up and is not only a cafe, but also a Mexican lunch restaurant. I would like to interview the owner and see how her new business is doing now that more and more local businesses are being shut down in the area.
I would like to also highlight another kind of business that has been in business for over 20 years- Valdez Enterprises. This is a multiservice business agency, and I believe I can get great insight on what Washington Heights used to be from the owner, Mr. Jose Valdez.
I would like to get in touch with one of the local community representatives to see what they foresee for Washington Heights in the future, due to the fact that it has already changed so much in the last couple of years. This project will allow me to further investigate Washington Heights and learn many new things about it.