Brooklyn's Identity Crisis

The borough, which 'once epitomized working class America,' faces intense gentrification.

1 minute read

April 29, 2005, 5:00 AM PDT

In the Williamsburg neighborhood, "Rents, running $300 to $500 a month before 2000, jumped to $1,500 and even $2,000 as hipsters moved in to escape Manhattan prices." Many original residents were displaced as a result. "With the Bloomberg administration pushing a new waterfront zoning plan that will accelerate the rapid rent hikes in Williamsburg, it will only get worse for plenty of longtime local residents." City planners claim that an inclusionary zoning program will preserve affordable housing in the area, but only a fraction of the original residents will be able to take advantage of it. One community activist "is rankled when news accounts refer to the neighborhood as a 'frontier' and the newcomers as 'pioneers.' It's 'like Columbus.'"

Thanks to David Gest

FULL STORY: 'Discovering' Williamsburg

Tuesday, April 26, 2005 in The Village Voice

Community / Economic Development New York

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