Explain the appeal of "grittiness"? (maintenance, place to live)
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Thank you! I’ve been here before. Found this place by accident while walking around aimlessly with a friend day-drinking and forgot where it was exactly.
It’s at the end of a graffiti-filled alley and it’s beautiful.
Nothing gives the feeling of grittiness like fire escapes.
So true! Especially if there's man dressed in boxers and a tank top, sitting quietly on the metal steps, smoking a cigarette. People on the street below simply tune him out. That's gotta be as gritty as it gets.
Last edited by MillennialUrbanist; 11-14-2017 at 08:58 AM..
That is so cool to me! I would love to live in that area, but I can't afford it.
Agreed, and I wonder how many of those people hating a few pages back would actually be able to afford it too.
Quote:
Originally Posted by r small
Nothing gives the feeling of grittiness like fire escapes.
YES! I love fire escapes. I’ve always wanted to have one, but I never have. Those things are basically balconies for people that can’t afford balconies (which are usually crazy money in NYC). So many fun times were had on my friends old fire escape in LES that one Summer. Great place to have a smoke sesh, a few beers, and just hang out and watch all the people go by on the street.
Agreed, and I wonder how many of those people hating a few pages back would actually be able to afford it too.
YES! I love fire escapes. I’ve always wanted to have one, but I never have. Those things are basically balconies for people that can’t afford balconies (which are usually crazy money in NYC). So many fun times were had on my friends old fire escape in LES that one Summer. Great place to have a smoke sesh, a few beers, and just hang out and watch all the people go by on the street.
Its hard to describe the reason some people may like a gritty neighborhood. Perhaps it is because a gritty neighborhood may seem more "real" in a way or the local people may seem nicer and have less of a superiority complex that sometimes comes with wealth and education.
That's part of it.
Another part is a feeling of "old" and "classic" that is waning each and every year all over the US. Gentrification can be done anywhere. It is not difficult to have a Starbucks, Panda Express, Banana Republic and an Athleta store be added to your street and survive. Corporate stores are anywhere and everywhere. What is difficult? Having a bodega, local deli, boutique shoe store, and a sausage shop, thrive for 50-60 years. So when they do, there is a feeling of wonderment and respect. Where people still have accents but make no mistake know your language and can talk politics, sports, and food with anyone.
Those kinds of places only exist in long-tenured locales where things have gotten older and "grittier". Gritty areas also sometimes go bad. Economy can tank and force the entrepreneurs to flee the area, leaving a bad element to swoop in and do things some people in gritty areas do. So "grit" by itself doesn't define good or bad, but it brings the possibility of authentic people, food, conversation, and history that you can't get from gleaming glass buildings, pristine public spaces, etc.
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