Crown Heights is a small neighborhood located in the center of Brooklyn, NY. The neighborhood is known for its aesthetic row houses and tree-lined avenues. The neighborhood seems to be next on the inevitable list of neighborhoods being gentrified in Brooklyn. The gentrification appears to be spilling over from Manhattan and eastward into Brooklyn, Crown Heights is next on the map after recently gentrified neighborhoods seem to be running out of options.
Demographics:
According to the US Census Bureau there are a total of 55,775 people in Crown Heights. There are 25,299 males and 30,476 females. Crown Heights is predominately Black or African American Populated as the US Census Bureau lists them accounting for a little over 89% of the population. Other ethnicities making up the total population include Hispanic and Latino races with approximately 4,436 residents and there are about 1,221 accounting for the White population.
The Median household income in Crown Heights is 25,135$ leaving 3,365 families below the poverty level. 35,109 residents of Crown Heights are 35 years or older, 23,531 of which have High School degrees or higher. Of that same group, only 4,454 have a Bachelor’s degree or higher. 26.9% of families in Crown Heights make less than $10,000 a year, leaving that group as the highest percentage possible.
Local Schools:
According to the Crow Hill Community Association Website, there are 8 schools in Crown Heights. The main public school is PS 138 located on 760 Prospect Place. Being that Crown Heights is a heavily populated Hasidic Jewish Community, there are several schools for the Jewish Children. The Beis Chaya Mushkah School located on 1492 Saint. Johns Place serves children from Pre-Kindegarten to 8th Grade. For grades 8 to 12, the children can attend Chanoch Lenaar School on 876 Eastern Parkway. Other schools in the area are; Carmel Christian School; David Grayson Christian School; Epiphany Lutheran School; Hebron SDA Bilingual School and the Crown Heights Youth Center.
Local Businesses:
In recent years, Crown Heights has seen a flood of new cafes and restaurants opening up in the area. These shops have welcomed both longtime and newly acquainted Crown Heights residents into their small shops. Four coffee shops all within 3 blocks of each other have created Crown Heights and more specifically Franklin Avenue as a place to get a really good cup of coffee. The four shops are; The Pulp and The Bean (my favorite), Bristens (which also has a full lunch menu) unlike the other 3 shops, Breukelen Coffee House which specializes in organic and fair trade coffees and then Lily & Fig which boasts its fancy treats and baked goods more than their coffee.
Crown Heights doesn’t just have coffee shops, obviously after you have all of these people caffeinated, they’re going to need places to hang out at night, right? Which is why Crown Heights has many different places to have dinner or go out for a drink. My personal favorite restaurants include; Chavellas, which is an amazing Mexican Restaurant with the most amazing torta’s I’ve ever had. There is Mikes Pizza on Nostrand Avenue which for 10$ you can get an amazing pie delivered right to your doorstep. The most populated establishment in Crown Heights is probably Franklin Park, which is a fantastic beer garden. Franklin park is an intriguing establishment as it contains 2 full bars, connected by a large garden with tables and chairs, and then attached to the street side of the one bar is a newly renovated burger joint called Dutch Boy Burger. Delicious Burgers, shakes and fries until about 1 AM, it is needless to say that this place doesn’t disappoint no matter what your needs are.
Issues:
Crown Heights has had it’s fair share of issues in its day. Most notably the Crown Heights Riot in the summer of 1991. On August 19, 1991 a Guyanese child was hit by a car and killed while playing in the street, the person driving the vehicle was a Hasidic Rabbi. When an ambulance arrived at the scene to try to rescue the child, it was ordered off by police who were already feeling the tension from the black community. Even today it seems like the tension between these two communities still exists.