The Gentrification of Alphabet City

[JogBird]

so this is the real aftermath of RENT

[IzzyIsou]

And how about all the Puerto Ricans from the LES that would gang up on young artists and people just living in those neighborhoods and beat them up. I had several friends ganged up on and they've would up in the hospital. Any person who has lived in NYC for a while knows the truth.

[SHAOLINISLAND35]

damn i thought i was safe from the midwest and hipsters out here on staten island but, no they are kicking out residents for these kids that move here because they think its cool so they can have a tough story for there friends back home, fuckk that shit nothing we can do but i can tell you they arent very good at fighting lol i had a few run ins with these fake new yorkers, alot of bark no bite!

[IzzyIsou]

@SHAOLINISLAND35 @SHAOLINISLAND35 Firstly, they come here because they have ambition and this is NYC and they can grow and be themselves. Why would you want to beat these people up? Maybe its that same behavior that is the reason why people rather live in neighborhoods with them instead of violent, uneducated negative POS like you. Shaolin - get the fuck outta here!

[SHAOLINISLAND35]

@IzzyIsou blow me bitch fuck you and your new new york im down for the dealin!

[IzzyIsou]

@SHAOLINISLAND35 You've never been down in your life. fuck outta here, old loser.

[genefury75]

i know right newyork we lost a little bit of our swag.

[leakycauldron1]

We need a real life Paul Kersey (Death Wish) to clean out all the trash and gang scum. I'd like to see somebody come in with a pump action back in 74 and fly some effin heads out there. Pimps, low-lifes and scumbags are not the "real" new york, unless you think that roaches make a "real" kitchen. And yes, it is too bad that decent working people get pushed out of their neighborhoods by gentrification.

[jgc1077]

Forcing out the old residents is WHY the crime is down.

[najalolnaja]

Yes, its cute to have restaurants and bars to come in, but the kind of patronage are these hipsters, that are fickle and change their minds every 6 months. The neighborhood with a culture that has sustained for 50 years becomes ruined. These hipsters will find a new cool place to go, once the corporate stores come in. By then, the rent is way to high for the families, and the rich will move in displacing anyone left.

[evileyez504]

gentrification is a double edge sword..it turns a neighborhood nice, and less crime oriented but drives the residents out but you can't have both

[donmacauley]

place was a drug supermarket in the 70's ... was an absolute zoo...

[JunkBomba]

I miss the days when lower Manhattan was mostly working class families when you could walk down the street and run into all of your buddies. When everyone looked out for each other. Before the yuppie fucks moved in and ruined it.

[jgc1077]

@JunkBomba RIght, before the yuppies turned New York from a crime-ridden shithole back into a great city.

[913861]

All the neighborhoods are so close together, but so far apart. 

[zigra69]

Kind of sucks that the people of Losaida drove away the drug dealers just to have the yuppies move in and replace them.

Anyway, no matter what happens, I don't think those projects on ave D are getting gentrified.

[RichieEastside]

So let's see...first it was the indians, they got pushed out the Dutch, then the Dutch got pushed out the by the Irish, then the Irish got pushed out by the Puerto Ricans, now the Puerto Ricans are being pushed out by the Irish's grandkids. This is just what happens over time, places change. Nothing anybody can really do about it.

[Nappitude21]

wow..the government can spill out 1 + million dollar homes...but cant fix the fucking community...wow..i cant wait when this fucking city goes down

[NYOLSKOOL]

anyone remember movie `alphabet city` w/ vincent spano (who was grew up on broome st )..i think around 84 or 85. i thought that movie was a joke. but at least u were able to make a movie about abc. now ity would be a remake of `animal house`..pick ya poison

[ndogg20]

@3:29 ''...drunken frat boy types try to start fights....''.Damn man ,some little suburban punk starts shit and you DIDN'T give him good ol'NYC ass kickin ? And where are the local hoods ,why isnt anyone kickin there faces in ? I fucken hate these prep school runts actin up .Back in the CBGB days we used to stomp em into the ground.

[paulbattnj]

As someone who grew up on Avenue A, and lived there from 1969 to 1991, I like very much the improvements of the neighborhood and would love to live there again, but I just can't afford it, unless I rent a bedroom in someone's apartment. It's a shame...

[CoolWhippedNegro]

@paulbattnj

finally a comment from a real new yorker

[klined]

Sex and the City helped ruin NYC because so many of those types moved in and wanted to change NY.

[kitsunefoxfyre]

I saw white people jogging through the projects yesterday. Looks like they are finally brave enough to come onto Avenue D.

[BabyGirlGoddess]

2:53

I'm not from New York, but people like that honestly piss me off.

[stupidshitx]

I really hate all these stupid NYU students coming from other states into our neighborhoods. Alphabet City is so gentrified because of you guys. Little do you know, squatters are sleeping on your buildings roofs, doing dope deals on ever block, you guys are stepping on dirty needles everyday. Thats one thing that wont change about the east village.

[PUNKSTERdarien]

cops and yuppies out (A) PUNX & ANARCHIST IN.

[DasoMonster]

Hey Darren,

Good stuff... It's Daso. Thanks for including the clip of my band in this piece. Please contact me via email when you can at Dasoline@aol.com. Peace my dude.

[Fladavenue]

Kinda somber...... Upbeat sound and dance moves video BOOTIE COOLER by

Shuggie Otis.

[MrUncomfortableTruth]

The l.e.s. was WHITE for many decades before the first puerto rican moved in the area in the 1950's. Irish, italian and Jewish. The spics were so so dirty and violent that the whites had to move out. Now things are getting back to the way it should always have been. Everyone wants to move to NYC because it's the place to be. If you were a landlord you would want the most money you could get. Yuppies are corny and annoying, but i will take them over dirty junkie spics any day...

[sunbeem18]

@MrUncomfortableTruth Can we say racist….

Who the hell do you think you are? I don’t care who was there first, but there is no reason to be an asshole. How about this, how about you grow the fuck up and take your white supremacist ass to hell where your kind belong. He he  see all better

[MrUncomfortableTruth]

@sunbeem18 sorry if the truth offends you sister sunbeem Jenkins.

[12streetjee]

@MrUncomfortableTruth .....read your history shitface....that crap was there when we got here , left over by lowlifes like you....P.S. The Irish, Italian and Jews were not considered white by the WASPs.

[Boricualoco2]

@MrUncomfortableTruth you are probably a kike or guinea on anti-depressants. Those so called whites were here because, remember you ignorant shit head, your genocidal kind forced the natives out. So, history continues to repeat itself. I would love for you to identify yourself and make your comments known to the true inhabitants of the Lower East Side community whom remain strong and vigilant through this gentrification. You are the scum of the earth and human being is not in your category

[thefightbeginswithu]

who the fuck would want to live down past ave A

[PikSokolit]

Man those annoying yuppies look so out of place here, theyre like aliens to a native new yorker. Take their asses back to Ohio !

[roughcoat09]

guns, violence, and drug users, what a nice thing to reminisce about.

[sifer1htu]

the les isnt the les anymore all of these rich yuppy white people are getting rid of old time residents of the lower east side that have been living here before they were even born its just not right

[jerms246]

wanna know how to get these fuckers out of the neighborhood? start a race riot

[Timessquare100]

im a NATIVE NEW YORKER, born in harlem, raised in washington heights, spent my 20s in Queens now i live in Brooklyn. And i hate the fact that my city has turned into a pussyfied plastic freakin soul-less museum. Everybody you meet is from somewhere else. I wish you all would go back to where ever you came from

[funkateer17]

@Timessquare100 Isn't that what the whites used to say to the non-whites, decades ago?

[Timessquare100]

im a NATIVE NEW YORKER, born in Harlem, raised in Washington Heights, spent my 20s in Queens now i live in Brooklyn. And its really sad to see my city turn into some type of freakin pussyfied plastic museum. Everybody you meet is from somewhere else, i wish u all would go back to whereever you came from!!!

[godfatherNYC]

A= alright

B= borderline

C= crazy

D= dead

[m015094]

The rent will increase to the amount that the market will bear. It''s called capitalism.

[DuttyL]

I was just there, I don't like the yuppies or college students either. I would walk around at around 4am when there were no yuppies out and take in the charm of the neighborhood that way. I'm not a native, but I love the flavor of old skool NYC. Hope it returns...

[GimmeKitty]

Fuck gentrification!

I hate it.

The soul is lost!!! Man, this city ain't got soul anymore.

[ProgressiveAction10]

gentrifiers = people with jobs who raise their children and make positive contributions to society.

[skymunro]

back in the day

A= Assault

B= Battery

C= Coma

D= Death...the further east you got, the more hood it was...the 80- mid 90's....

[GimmeKitty]

And, I miss that :) I miss it.

[skymunro]

couldnt agree more, im with you.

[altonadigger]

02:49 shes so beautiful

[eliqueiros3]

These ny videos are so sad. I used to live there and damn, I never knew so many rich people living in one city in my life. It was strange.

[johnbourbon]

you want yuppies out of your neighborhood? start stabbing them!! i guarantee you theyll stop coming!

just please stop fucking crying about your boo-hoo hood.

[haitianzoezoe]

your right

[MondoBeno]

The area is full of NYU students whose parents are paying their rent.

There were always a lot of bars in the area. But they were dive bars. The sleazy spots were forced out by Giuliani.

I own property in my apartment, and I can assure you, there's no gentrification and no hipsters here. Me and my neighbors have careers.

[skymunro]

haha...you're a fool...that statement alone speaks volumes, it epitomizes the arrogance of you people....YOU ARE THE GENTRIFICATION!!!

[MondoBeno]

I'm so sorry you feel that way. Sometimes I think about people that can't find happiness in (what you call) "gentrification" and I say TOO BAD!

I like it this way. Since I was a boy it was my DREAM to be part of the capitalist crew, and now I AM!

Not only that, I survived the economic meltdown, not only with my wealth intact, but with PROFIT!

Maybe I'll buy up some property in the East Village.

[skymunro]

And where are you from originaly, If you don't mind me asking? If you are use to the plastic facade of corperations then I can see why you wouldn't appreciate the mom and pop store that did it better on a corner than a starbucks every 3 blocks. However it wasn't like that here nor was it suppose to be. The fabric and element of the city was torn. People like you moved here to exploit, while destroying the very appeal that had you entranced to begin with.

[skymunro]

You already have!! who knows where the lines between ABC, LES and the east villege are anymore, its all NYU...And this video is also wrong in a certain degree. It was called alphabet city when it was mostly jewish immigrants during the turn of the last century.

[thegrap1]

fuckin' ruined neighborhood.. I'm tired of mutherfuckers from the midwest who move into ABC city and williamburg, and call themselves new yorkers.

[CoolWhippedNegro]

@thegrap1

whould you rather be worried when you walk outsidehaving your throat cut for your sneakers?

[CentreStageFilms]

@thegrap1 where did you move from?

[IzzyIsou]

"Loisada" was a piece of shit, full of violent Ricans. Fuck them. You fuck up others and your neighborhood and then you cry about some other people coming in and making the neighborhood better.

[paolosilv]

NY U will end up buying all the property, don't ya think?

[paolosilv]

"How to ruin a Neighb"

[rayswag]

dis may sound weird but i dnt like living in a completely safe place bcuz i like d excitment nd da drama idk like i used 2 live in a bad area nd i was fine but now im in da suburbs nd its boring as hell

[boycescouts]

I've been in the east village for almost 20 years. I could barely afford it then. Now I can easily afford it...even without rent stabilization. Money aside. These people that are moving in are fucking rude! I liked it better when there were crack heads, at least they said good morning! And since when does NYC pride it's self on being so fucking safe?! You can get a truffle oil infused panini faster than you can get a slice. Fuck that! YUPPIES ARE BORING!!!

[baltosteve]

Interesting. I just heard today that the East Village currently has the highest vacancy rate in Manhattan. I guess the rent increases couldn't be sustained. Now rents are lowering accross the board which will probably just mean even more students.

[MondoBeno]

What are they complaining about?

The area was crime ridden from the 1950's to 1990's. In the 1950's, you couldn't go out at night in that neighborhood. With the crack epidemic, it looked like it couldn't be worse.

All these long-time residents who complain about higher rents have missed an opportunity. They could've bought property down there when it was cheap. By the 1980's there were many landlords looking to dump their rent-controlled buildings or burn them for the insurance.

[alexharvey]

I'm pretty sure the term Alphabet City pre-dates Loisaida.

[johnbourbon]

you show that gentrification in the lower east side has been a normal process with historical foundations for generations and generations.

so why is the current gentrification so problematic? isn't it just the latest wave, participating in an historically normal, healthy process?

i sense the real issue here is classism.

[mooneepondskid]

Any city that has over 5 million people in it is ALWAYS overpriced. Even Tokyo,which is the most well managed large city in the world is overpriced. By trying to fit so many people into a relatively small piece of land you cant avoid increasing the cost of real estate. This isn't a problem that is unique to New York...because in London its even worse. The difference there is that the government provides better social services.

[Izakokomarixyz]

PROBLEM: GENTRIFICATION

SOLUTION: CRIME

i  think

[happybirthday2me333]

unfortunatly, your right.

[dieterlino]

I agree, let's chop these yuppies up and sell smack to primary school kids to drive them back up north. but then they'll just move to harlem and we'll have to shoot'em up there. it's sad but it's inevitable the poor will get pushed to the outskirts of cities by rising prices.

[ParkSlopeYuppyToilet]

No, crime is not the solution. The yuppie hipsters were getting jumped left and right a few summers ago in Crown Heights and that didn't chase them out--matter of fact, even more came. The only thing that will stop these scumbag yuppies from streaming in is when the city becomes no longer trendy.

[alvanson]

I think homicides will drive them out without a doubt....but who is got the balls to do it is the question.....

[alvanson]

i can't wait to read something like this in the news.....

[courtneyrao]

New, not Hew oops.

[courtneyrao]

2:09 is an example of the problem. Trying to make New York conform to what non-Hew Yorkers think it should be is killing the city. It seems to me like everyone seems to think that NYC is all standards, black patent leather shoes and martinis. Anyone who's spent real time there knows that isn't what NYC is about. ALL ARE WELCOME in New York.

[darrenjlevy]

I agree, all should be welcome in New York. It's unfortunate that rent has forced good people and businesses out.