It is no secret that East Village residents are typically socially-conscious and opinionated people. Tompkins Square Park, the neighborhood’s central park, is one of the city’s most politically active centers, hosting throngs of renegades, squatters and dissenters for years past. There are few people hanging out in Tompkins that would not have an opinion on the recent gentrification of the area.
Not surprisingly, a 13-story glass condominium building that has recently erupted on the corner of 4th Street and Bowery has faced protests and anger from locals for months. While lately, East Villagers have managed to silence their dissent in a manner that suggests that the issue is not one worth fighting, the initial erecting of the building was met with sneering faces and unpleasant messages from the people.
I remember discussing the matter on a bench in Tompkins once with a long-time villager named Abe, a renegade and socially-conscious local passing out fliers for an upcoming organized protest against the development.
“It sticks out like a sore thumb! It’s hideous!” he said.
Of course, being relatively new to the neighborhood, I had passed the building several times on way home from school without even noticing it. For weeks after, I could not pass the building without a disgusting feeling in my stomach. It is a large and flashy glass structure that looks like it belongs in Miami, rather than in the center of several (quite charming) smaller, brick East Village-y buildings. The issue at hand goes beyond the ugly building’s gaudiness, however. The building represents a new arrival and reinvention of the neighborhood. It suggests that the East Village is now a “destination” and a luxurious, gated community. It invites the wealthy and pushes out the poor. In some ways, the condo is the antithesis of what the East Village has stood for for years. The general consensus, it seems, is that the building is ugly, unwelcome and an eye-sore for East Village residents.
Although the neighbors dissent did little to halt the erection of the condo, it shows, in some ways, that the locals are not giving up the fight for justice now. In fact, a group of East Village historians and artists created the East Village History Project (http://www.east-village.com/) to help maintain and nurture the culture of the East Village. The website says its purpose is to “promote awareness and appreciation of the history, culture and community of the East Village.”
While the neighborhood will likely face many more unwanted commercial visitors, it is essential that the local culture of the neighborhood remain and flourish. Neighbors like Abe the protester and the people at the East Village History Project are proof that the East Village of the past has not transformed into a chic and desired gated community for the wealthy.
The East Village has always been a fascinating place to walk through because of its ability to preserve its “charming” architecture. I support your belief that it is an “antithesis of what the East Village has stood for for years.” Yes, modernization is inevitable, especially when time and technology is changing but, the east Village’s culture should be preserved. It is a sweet escape from the skyscrapers.