10 Comments
The road to New Harlem – READ THIS SHIT
2010–not quite out of high school
Ithaca falls, Lions justify existence
One more route to liberation dashed. And this one was so fun!
Loading …
Copyright 2023 Bwog Limited. All Rights Reserved.
10 Comments
@When I saw “rezoning” in the same sentence as Harlem, I thought it was their way of spelling “reasoning”.
@Ahaha Overheating in Columbia Dorms? Try living in Wien. The radiators there are like fricking banshees. Either they howl and clang at you all the time, or you open them up and suffocate from the heat. Great choice!
@Tell me about it My heat is always on during the day and invariably off at night. My balls can’t take this kind of punishment!
@mlp My room is never warm at all, thanks to the draft from my window, which won’t close properly. That and my heater barely even feels warm to the touch.
@did I miss the homecoming dance last semester?
@wirc Just the other day, the tax assessment for NYC was redone and most of Harlem had massive tax increases. For whatever reason, they had not done this, and it had kept long-term residents taxed lightly. Rents and sales changed anyway, but the taxes helped. The rate can only change so much in 5 years, but the cost of living for most people there now is at a breaking point.
Gentrification is inevitable, and it’s well on its way.
@the question is who will the neighborhood be made safer for? white middle class columbia students? or current residents of harlem? and is it possible to make it safer for *both* or will massive gentrification and the displacement of residents and small businesses inevitably occur?
@Hang on a sec Are you politicizing the word “safer” now? Columbia students and Harlem residents probably have the same definition of “safe”, which is a street with people around and low crime.
Tenants in Harlem, are, far and wide, living in rent-stabilized apartments, meaning that landlords who want them out have to make it worth the tenant’s while to leave. Gentrification is a much bigger issue in less entrenched communities — but if the current residents choose to leave because they’re given incentives to do so, that’s their business. When the community walks away… so, in this case, crying “displacement” is a little much.
Small businesses on 125th Street ought to be worried about, however. I’m surprised the city doesn’t have a stabilization-esque plan for retailers who lose their spaces, since it’s so easy to evict commercial tenants.
@well i’m not politicizing the word “safer,” i’m saying you can’t make a neighborhood safe for people who can no longer afford to live there.
and we can argue about whether or not gentrification in harlem is inevitable, but if you think it’s not happening, you’re simply not looking.
@Harlem Fan I think the rezoning sounds like a really good thing. If you’ve ever walked down 125th street after dark, you ought to agree: the stores are all shuttered and there are few people around, and the area generally feels unsafe. Having more businesses that stay open later or other foot traffic attractions instead of faceless banks and chain stores could revive the area in the evenings.