BROOKLYN BOUND
Hello All!
My roomate and I are moving to Brooklyn in the near future and are hoping to get some feedback from this message board. We currently live in Albany and have made a few trips down to do research. We are 2 Caucasian females in our 20s and recent art school graduates. We have heard Williamsburg is where artists flock to but its a little out of our price range. We recently checked out an apt on Prospect Place between Classon and Franklin. Is that considered Prospect Heights or Crown Heights and is that a safe area? Any suggestions/advice/tips from anyone would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks You
My roomate and I are moving to Brooklyn in the near future and are hoping to get some feedback from this message board. We currently live in Albany and have made a few trips down to do research. We are 2 Caucasian females in our 20s and recent art school graduates. We have heard Williamsburg is where artists flock to but its a little out of our price range. We recently checked out an apt on Prospect Place between Classon and Franklin. Is that considered Prospect Heights or Crown Heights and is that a safe area? Any suggestions/advice/tips from anyone would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks You
Comments
-
Crown Heights.
-
You get more bang for your buck in the South Bronx. Renting or buying on the Grand Concourse is worth considering unless for some bazaar reason you're in love with Brooklyn.
http://www.thebronxrocks.com/
Is this against Brooklynian rules? OK?
-
modsquad wrote: You get more bang for your buck in the South Bronx. Renting or buying on the Grand Concourse is worth considering unless for some bazaar reason you're in love with Brooklyn.
Not against the rules, but I wouldn't recommend it. I can say this, having lived in the Bronx for 4 years, but Brooklyn for most of the rest of my life.
http://www.thebronxrocks.com/
Is this against Brooklynian rules? OK? -
Anywhere east of Washington is usually considered Crown Heights, though some property owners would prefer it otherwise.
Is it safe? This neighborhood is cheap for a reason.
Is it safe enough for you? That's the question.
For me, currently, the answer is yes. I'm on Franklin and Dean, and I have a spacious, remodeled apartment that I couldn't afford in a better part of BK. There's decent transportation in this area and Franklin Ave is getting better services and food options all the time.
If you're really interested in that apartment, I would walk around the hood both at day and night to get a feel for what it's like. -
Brooklyn is no less safe then Albany
-
Good neighborhood and getting better, though, as you can tell from reading these threads, it still has its share of problems with crime. As spndr notes, the border is open to question and a constant topic of "debate" on this board. Park is correct in saying that Albany is no less safe than Brooklyn, but Crown Heights can be rough in the same manner as Arbor Hill in Albany.
-
Unlike Arbor Hill, Crown Heights is far more of an outside neigborhood (folks sitting on stoops, lots of foot traffic, plenty of congregating on corners, etc). If you think that would make you uncomfortable, this is probably not the neighborhood for you.
Bottom line is if you lived in Albany anywhere outside of the SUNY campus you could probably survive here without too much difficulty. If you lived downtown Albany and were comfortable walking the streets at night or after hours, you should be okay here. If you lived in Arbor Hill or over near the Governor's Mansion, you'll fit in. -
We live in Crown Heights and we're about as Caucasian you can get. We bought a house here. We're further east of where you're looking and the crime is probably a little worse. It has improved immensely since we moved in five years ago and seems to be improving every month. If you have some street sense, say hi to people, don't act like a victim, get to know people, you'll do fine.
-
I would try Greenpoint, Park Slope south or even East Williamsburg before Crown Heights. I have been here for 3 years now, and while I don't have too many problems (I'm a young black guy), if I didn't live here with my gf (white girl from Missouri) I wouldn't want her out here alone.
Yea, the neighborhood's getting better, but people around here get mugged on a weekly basis, and for a little more money you get a lot more peace of mind. I live here, don't mind it here, but def. wouldn't recommend it to anyone.
Best bet, take a walk around here during the summer. Hell, take a drive around here during the summer. See if you feel safe + welcome. I doubt you will. Not to say you might not eventually get used to it, but for what you'll be shelling out IMO it's not worth having to "get used to". -
Cool The Kid wrote: I would try Greenpoint, Park Slope south or even East Williamsburg before Crown Heights. I have been here for 3 years now, and while I don't have too many problems (I'm a young black guy), if I didn't live here with my gf (white girl from Missouri) I wouldn't want her out here alone.
Just curious where about do you live, cross streets?
Yea, the neighborhood's getting better, but people around here get mugged on a weekly basis, and for a little more money you get a lot more peace of mind. I live here, don't mind it here, but def. wouldn't recommend it to anyone.
Best bet, take a walk around here during the summer. Hell, take a drive around here during the summer. See if you feel safe + welcome. I doubt you will. Not to say you might not eventually get used to it, but for what you'll be shelling out IMO it's not worth having to "get used to". -
Subject: Re: BROOKLYN BOUND
yvette237 wrote: Hello All!
Yvette
My roomate and I are moving to Brooklyn in the near future and are hoping to get some feedback from this message board. We currently live in Albany and have made a few trips down to do research. We are 2 Caucasian females in our 20s and recent art school graduates. We have heard Williamsburg is where artists flock to but its a little out of our price range. We recently checked out an apt on Prospect Place between Classon and Franklin. Is that considered Prospect Heights or Crown Heights and is that a safe area? Any suggestions/advice/tips from anyone would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks You
Make the move. A lot of young artists seem to be moving into the neighborhood because of it's affordability and access to Manhattan. Also the obvious proximity to the park etc... Also once the artists move in to a nabe more businesses open and things improve. WIlliamsburg is an example of this. And there are a few galleries and the museum close by too. Good luck. -
I live 1 block from there as a twenty-something white female. i've been here almost 4 years and have had few reasons to feel unsafe. the area has really changed since i moved here and i love it. i would love to buy and stay in the area someday. it's great for museum/park/bbg and the great trains -- where you are looking is on the same block as the S -- meaning you're 5 blocks (or 1 stop on the S) to the 2/3/4/5 (west side and east sides of manhattan) and 9 blocks (or 1 stop on the S) to the C train and 2 stops on the S away from the B and the Q. It's great for getting around for sure.
-
TheBurgerking wrote:
Northern NYA
Just curious where about do you live, cross streets?
And artists aren't moving here cause they want to, it's cause they are priced out of better neighborhoods. If you had the $$$$, why live here over Williamsburg, Park Slope, Brooklyn Heights, etc? I'm here cause my end of the rent is $650, and while it's not ideal for now I can manage. But for someone's first foray into BK I wouldn't recommend it. Look at the threads on the front page- there is a serious problem with crime here. There are alternatives. You might pay a little more, but you will enjoy it much more.
One of my coworkers just got a place in Boerum Hill... 1BR, about the same size as mine, $1700/mo. That's a normal price for a space that big w/o the crime. -
Cool The Kid wrote: [quote=TheBurgerking]
Northern NYA
Just curious where about do you live, cross streets?
And artists aren't moving here cause they want to, it's cause they are priced out of better neighborhoods. If you had the $$$$, why live here over Williamsburg, Park Slope, Brooklyn Heights, etc? I'm here cause my end of the rent is $650, and while it's not ideal for now I can manage. But for someone's first foray into BK I wouldn't recommend it. Look at the threads on the front page- there is a serious problem with crime here. There are alternatives. You might pay a little more, but you will enjoy it much more.
One of my coworkers just got a place in Boerum Hill... 1BR, about the same size as mine, $1700/mo. That's a normal price for a space that big w/o the crime.
Give me a break about crime. Yawn... Hello, it's everywhere. And you missed my point about the artists. Of course they are priced out of WIlliamsburg, thats the point. They are the ones who made Williamsburg what it is today. -
Crown Heights is pretty big. Northern NYA is pretty far from my neck of the woods on Franklin and St. Johns.
-
if you're looking for cheap and safety, move to where i'm located about. like gravesend/bensonhurst dirty cheap! but draw back is so far away from any where.
i wouldn't live here if i had the money LOL. -
BurgerKing's right. I've only been here a year and I've already figured out that you're just as likely to get mugged anywhere in Brooklyn. Professional muggers just go where they know people with money are. It has nothing to do with where the mugger lives, as long as there's a train station nearby. What people mean when they say "crime" is "having to see depressing dealers and junkies on your morning walk to work." And that's all up to you.
-
Cool the Kid -- I don't agree at all. I love where I live -- and if the "Artists" are priced out then the cheaper places become the ACTUAL artist neighborhoods. The East Village was only full of artists because it was cheap - now it's not cheap so it's all NYU kids and rich condo people. As for those saying "i wouldn't live here if i could afford to move" I also don't agree -- I hope to buy nearby. The difference from NYA and Franklin is big though -- the OP mentioned near me not as far into Crown Heights as you are.
-
TheBurgerking wrote: Crown Heights is pretty big. Northern NYA is pretty far from my neck of the woods on Franklin and St. Johns.
And you could say the same thing for Williamsburg. There's a big difference in crime, services and transportation alternative depending on where you are.
I've lived in Greenpoint, Williamsburg and Boerum Hill. I couldn't afford my apartment in any of those three neighborhoods today. A quick search on Craigslist reveals that the only places comparable in BK are in Bushwick, and that's a whole other deal altogether. -
TheBurgerking wrote:
Crime is everywhere... yes of course. But there is a lot more crime here than Williamsburg or Park Slope or w/e. Over there you might have some muggings + robberies. That's anywhere there are people with money. In Crown Heights you have drugs, murder and swaths of young people w/no work or education. I lived over in the Alma Realty complex for 2 years, and in that time I saw drug raids and stabbings. There was that incident where a carjacker had a shootout with the cops, etc. There is much more crime in CH than other parts of BK, period. We've even had ppl come on here and voice their disdain for "newcomers" and justifications for actions against them. Is that really the sign of a neighborhood you want to live in?
Give me a break about crime. Yawn... Hello, it's everywhere. And you missed my point about the artists. Of course they are priced out of WIlliamsburg, thats the point. They are the ones who made Williamsburg what it is today.
Again for me it's not that bad. I am used to it now. But I can't in good conscience recommend that someone w/no experience in an environment like CH move here. Even if nothing happens to them (odds are in their favor) having to live in constant fear and feeling out of place is just no way to live. For a few hundred bucks more they can do better.
The only place I could recommend around here would be the Alma Realty complex. Even with them you have the potential bed bug problem, and while transportation is excellent, you're still quite a ways from anything local, and you're paying the same rent as someone in Williamsburg for essentially the same apartment. And they are only going to continue to jack up rents as the neighborhood gets more fashionable. You just have to present someone with a realistic impression of the neighborhood. -
Cool The Kid wrote: Again for me it's not that bad. I am used to it now. But I can't in good conscience recommend that someone w/no experience in an environment like CH move here. Even if nothing happens to them (odds are in their favor) having to live in constant fear and feeling out of place is just no way to live. For a few hundred bucks more they can do better.
CH is one of the largest neighborhoods in BK, so your statement over generalizes. In the four years that I've lived at Franklin and Carroll I haven't seen or heard of some crazy amount of crime. I think the exception for my area is President. Even that awful stretch between EP and Union is pretty low key. Maybe it's because the drug dealers keep the muggers in check. -
Ishtar wrote: [quote=Cool The Kid]Again for me it's not that bad. I am used to it now. But I can't in good conscience recommend that someone w/no experience in an environment like CH move here. Even if nothing happens to them (odds are in their favor) having to live in constant fear and feeling out of place is just no way to live. For a few hundred bucks more they can do better.
CH is one of the largest neighborhoods in BK, so your statement over generalizes. In the four years that I've lived at Franklin and Carroll I haven't seen or heard of some crazy amount of crime. I think the exception for my area is President. Even that awful stretch between EP and Union is pretty low key. Maybe it's because the drug dealers keep the muggers in check.
I'm speakin of northwest CH, bound by Washington/Atlantic/EP/Kingston (I know it goes further east, but I don't think anyone who would come on these boards is brave enough to sign a lease on Schenectady). That's the area I lived in and know.
I have no problems with CH; I've met some very good + cool people here. But putting one's self in potentially dangerous situations to save a few bucks just doesn't seem like a good idea -
Cool The Kid wrote: But putting one's self in potentially dangerous situations to save a few bucks just doesn't seem like a good idea
what the hell has happened to you that it is so scary?
seriously - you sound like you've been robbed at gunpoint once a week or something. I have been bothered once living here (and I work - until late at night sometimes - out in your "Scary" part of CH that is closer to Utica than Washington), and while it wasn't my fault, I was not thinking when it happened either.
I feel a lot safer where I live (and, AGAIN, where the OP was talking about moving to) than I do walking to my friends' fancy Williamsburg apartment near the Lorimer L stop or to parties in Bushwick and whatnot. -
Come to the other side of the park... Parkside/Ocean Ave... You can get bigger apartments for cheap and I feel more comfortable here than I would closer to the museum/Eastern parkway. (White girl here). I looked at apartments in both neighborhoods, but this was a better deal for me.
-
xlizellx wrote: [quote=Cool The Kid] But putting one's self in potentially dangerous situations to save a few bucks just doesn't seem like a good idea
what the hell has happened to you that it is so scary?
seriously - you sound like you've been robbed at gunpoint once a week or something. I have been bothered once living here (and I work - until late at night sometimes - out in your "Scary" part of CH that is closer to Utica than Washington), and while it wasn't my fault, I was not thinking when it happened either.
I feel a lot safer where I live (and, AGAIN, where the OP was talking about moving to) than I do walking to my friends' fancy Williamsburg apartment near the Lorimer L stop or to parties in Bushwick and whatnot.
I haven't been the victim of anything but theft, but I've seen a lot, and know a lot of white people who have been antagonized (or worse). Just this past Friday my gf was "barked at" by a group of teenage girls.
I mean usually the stuff's generally harmless, but really there's no reason to subject one's self to that when there are equally priced much safer alternative neighborhoods. I don't mind it here- in fact I am almost taking a liking to it- but for 2 white chicks w/no prior NY experience? No way. -
White women beware. Those scary and aggressive blacks are out to get you. :shock: The chicks are barking at you today. The men will be accosting you by tomorrow.
-
I've lived in Crown Heights for over a year now (Nostrand Ave and Eastern Pkwy), and have not experienced any problems. I drive a pretty decent car and walk the neighborhood regularly day and night, and I can't say that I have ever felt unsafe. Also, over the course of the last 6 months, I have noticed the makeup of people getting on and off the subway to be more and more diverse. In fact, I would say that at least 50% of straphangers that exit at the Nostrand Ave stop or President St . stop are nonblack. So have no fear. The best thing to do is to come with a friend at a relatively late hour and see how you feel. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. I do agree that Crown Heights is a large nabby, and others may have a completely different experience just 3 blocks away from me. With that said, this is New York, so definitely express caution wherever you are.
-
trinilawboy wrote: In fact, I would say that at least 50% of straphangers that exit at the Nostrand Ave stop or President St . stop are nonblack.
50% is a stretch unless the colors of the passengers somehow drastically change between Franklin Ave, where I get on and off, and those stops. -
Ishtar wrote: [quote=trinilawboy]In fact, I would say that at least 50% of straphangers that exit at the Nostrand Ave stop or President St . stop are nonblack.
50% is a stretch unless the colors of the passengers somehow drastically change between Franklin Ave, where I get on and off, and those stops.
When I first moved here, I could tell people visiting that when they were the only white people left on the train (After Atlantic Ave on the 4) that they knew to get off at my stop (Franklin). Such is not the case anymore at all. I wouldn't say 50%, but it's very different from a few years ago. More importantly to me, the number of "professionals" (black, white, asian, hispanic, etc) I see on the train in the mornings and in the late afternoons when I come home has increased A LOT. -
Err.. guys? all Cool the Kid is saying is there are easier ways to transition yourself into Brooklyn, if you're from elsewhere and can afford the long train commute and/or rent uptick, than Crown Heights. Kind of makes sense. He's not saying people are dumb to live here, just that you have to know what you're doing. Me, I subletted in Ditmas Park for a few months before moving here, which was perfect for getting used to the uh, drug presence. For kids moving here from Albany? Why not tell them it's a little sketchy, since what they're probably hearing from all their "in-the-loop" friends up there is that Crown Heights is "totally blowing up", totally irresponsibly on their friend's part. Hope that makes sense. In any case, "Brooklyn Bound", here's my two cents: go neighborhood shopping on craigslist by subletting. Figure out what you like, what you want, how far you're willing to be from the city, etc.
That said, we have the best bar in Brooklyn, hands down.
Howdy, Stranger!
Categories
- 40K All Categories
- 27.1K Neighborhoods
- 5.1K Crown Heights/Prospect Lefferts Gardens
- 7.1K Prospect Heights
- 2.3K Fort Greene, Clinton Hill, Bed-Stuy
- 8K Park Slope
- 549 Williamsburg, Greenpoint, Bushwick
- 442 Flatbush/Midwood/Ditmas Park
- 657 BoCoCa (Boerum Hill, Cobble Hill, Carroll Gardens)
- 151 Red Hook
- 104 Gowanus
- 304 Bay Ridge/Bensonhurst
- 130 Coney Island, Brighton Beach, Sheepshead Bay
- 270 Brooklyn Heights, DUMBO and Downtown
- 598 Windsor Terrace / Kensington
- 673 Greenwood Heights and Sunset Park
- 749 Brooklyn and Beyond
- 6.3K Stuff
- 86 Brooklyn Back When
- 1.2K Brooklyn Pets
- 257 Brooklyn Kids
- 241 Brooklyn Eats
- 51 Brooklyn Booze
- 3.6K The Lounge / Random Stuff
- 611 Brooklyn Politics
- 122 Brooklyn Sports and Fitness
- 111 Brooklyn Photos
- 339 Site Issues
- 8 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- 6.2K Listings
- 1.1K APARTMENTS and REAL ESTATE
- 1.3K Sales Openings Events
- 2.3K The Classifieds