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Really the only other neighborhood that can compare from what I've seen (though without the diverse demographics) is maybe a Bay Ridge in Brooklyn or a Pelham Bay in the Bronx... Other than that, it seems as if most of the neighborhoods today have lost that NYC culture that made the city what it was...
What about Astoria or Sunnyside? They're very similar to Ridgewood in that respect, and even though Manhattan families have started moving into Astoria a few years ago, it's still a solid diverse nabe with a lot of character.
From what I see, this area is like a time capsule into the 90s and decades prior where working to working middle class white/hispanic/asian/black folk live together with little to no problems at all. And aside from other neighborhoods that experienced white flight and ended up becoming undesirable areas... while this neighborhood has a strong hispanic population (around 50%), the white folks that live here haven't abandoned the neighborhood due to hispanics or blacks moving in and the diversity and feel of the neighborhood truly takes you back to the type of neighborhood that you just don't see anymore. Unlike other neighborhoods where the small businesses that open up like clothing stores, sneaker shops, pizzerias or other restaurants, are usually opened up hispanic or black folk... over here it's mixed where you'll see a working class second generation or third generation italian family open up a pizza shop (Madison Pizzeria or Bad Boys Pizza on myrtle ave) or a European owned drug store, hair salon, or deli open up in the neighborhood...And for the most part, these places don't cater to a single group but rather an entire neighborhood...
Really the only other neighborhood that can compare from what I've seen (though without the diverse demographics) is maybe a Bay Ridge in Brooklyn or a Pelham Bay in the Bronx... Other than that, it seems as if most of the neighborhoods today have lost that NYC culture that made the city what it was...
These neighborhoods are more prevalent than you think.In The Bx at least.It's not just Pelham Bay.It's also Pelham Parkway,Morris Park,Allerton,Pelham Gardens,Woodlawn,Throg's Neck,City Island,etc.
What about Astoria or Sunnyside? They're very similar to Ridgewood in that respect, and even though Manhattan families have started moving into Astoria a few years ago, it's still a solid diverse nabe with a lot of character.
Astoria and Sunnyside are nothing like Ridgewood... The hipsters have moved to one area, the hispanics and blacks for the most part stay in or near the projects and the more middle class areas are dominated by greeks or italians with a sprinkling of hispanics here and there... In sunnyside it's the same thing with more hispanics... The hispanic areas are run down and lacking of diversity and the hip spots have become the same old generic areas you are starting to see across the city... In terms of astoria and sunnyside a better comparison would be Woodhaven minus the hipsters... The nicer area is dominated by Europeans and other white americans close to the glendale border... The shadier and uglier side is dominated by Hispanics, Asians and Blacks...
In Ridgewood things are way more diverse where in one building whether on fresh pond or cypress in a six family building you can see 2 hispanic families, 1 asian, 1 black, 1 polish, 1 italian... etc. Sure you got your knuckleheads every now and then that cause problems and have problems with different races but these people are in the minority in the neighborhood... Even some of the polish families who when they first moved in had a bit of a standoff-ish attitude have warmed up to the locals... I've even seen 3 different Polish/Black families... When i was saw that I was like ...
Astoria and Sunnyside are nothing like Ridgewood... The hipsters have moved to one area, the hispanics and blacks for the most part stay in or near the projects and the more middle class areas are dominated by greeks or italians with a sprinkling of hispanics here and there... In sunnyside it's the same thing with more hispanics... The hispanic areas are run down and lacking of diversity and the hip spots have become the same old generic areas you are starting to see across the city... In terms of astoria and sunnyside a better comparison would be Woodhaven minus the hipsters... The nicer area is dominated by Europeans and other white americans close to the glendale border... The shadier and uglier side is dominated by Hispanics, Asians and Blacks...
You do realize that Astoria is more then just Ditmars Blvd, right? I wouldn't compare those areas to Woodhaven at all, espeically when both Astoria and Sunnyside are getting better by leaps and bounds and Woodhaven is getting worse. And most of the hispanic families in these areas aren't ghetto.
You do realize that Astoria is more then just Ditmars Blvd, right? I wouldn't compare those areas to Woodhaven at all, espeically when both Astoria and Sunnyside are getting better by leaps and bounds and Woodhaven is getting worse. And most of the hispanic families in these areas aren't ghetto.
I'm not speaking of a direct comparison... Obviously woodhaven can't compare to these areas at all though I do think your statement about Woodhaven getting worse isn't really true... I would say that it seemed to be getting bad 05-10' especially when the Dominican gangs moved into the neighborhood, but it seems like the Trinitarios have been completely removed from all these areas (even Ridgewood, there nowhere to be found thankfully)... but the last couple of years, Woodhaven doesn't seem to be as bad anymore... Sure it's rundown but so is willets point... I don't really consider Woodhaven aside from certain parts near the jamaica/east ny border to be bad...
when i spoke about the comparisons I simply meant to say that the neighborhoods are segregated like a woodhaven as opposed to Ridgewood which is a very mixed area across the board... Even fresh pond rd. demographics are starting to change... I'm seeing a bunch of new hispanic families move to that area (especially ecuadorians and mexicans), while other areas towards the Brooklyn border have seen first generation european families move in as well...
I'm not speaking of a direct comparison... Obviously woodhaven can't compare to these areas at all though I do think your statement about Woodhaven getting worse isn't really true... I would say that it seemed to be getting bad 05-10' especially when the Dominican gangs moved into the neighborhood, but it seems like the Trinitarios have been completely removed from all these areas (even Ridgewood, there nowhere to be found thankfully)... but the last couple of years, Woodhaven doesn't seem to be as bad anymore... Sure it's rundown but so is willets point... I don't really consider Woodhaven aside from certain parts near the jamaica/east ny border to be bad...
when i spoke about the comparisons I simply meant to say that the neighborhoods are segregated like a woodhaven as opposed to Ridgewood which is a very mixed area across the board... Even fresh pond rd. demographics are starting to change... I'm seeing a bunch of new hispanic families move to that area (especially ecuadorians and mexicans), while other areas towards the Brooklyn border have seen first generation european families move in as well...
Woodhaven is pretty much all hispanics asides from a few remaining whites and some south asians. In Ridgewoods case, the majority of whites live near the Glendale or Middle Village borders and the majority of hispanics live near Bushwick, Williamsburg or Liberty Park. Of course, there are white and hispanics families spread around to a certain extent [I know plenty of Polish families that moved to Seneca near Myrtle a few years ago], but for the most part, Europeans are the majority in Eastern and Northern Ridgewood and hispanics are the majority in South and Western Ridgewood. In Woodhavens case, Hispanics are the majority pretty much everywhere [expect the Forest Park apartments which are overwhelmingly white, I don't know if these are considered Woodhaven or Glendale].
Woodhaven is segregated because of all the white flight that happened there, I definitely agree.
What I ment by my earlier post is that Astoria is also a very diverse nabe but still has somewhat of an old school ethnic European feel to it, only difference is that its Italian and Greek rather then Italian and Polish. Same could also be said with Bensonhurst in Brooklyn [although that area is quickly becoming Chinatown soon].
Woodhaven is pretty much all hispanics asides from a few remaining whites and some south asians. In Ridgewoods case, the majority of whites live near the Glendale or Middle Village borders and the majority of hispanics live near Bushwick, Williamsburg or Liberty Park. Of course, there are white and hispanics families spread around to a certain extent [I know plenty of Polish families that moved to Seneca near Myrtle a few years ago], but for the most part, Europeans are the majority in Eastern and Northern Ridgewood and hispanics are the majority in South and Western Ridgewood. In Woodhavens case, Hispanics are the majority pretty much everywhere [expect the Forest Park apartments which are overwhelmingly white, I don't know if these are considered Woodhaven or Glendale].
Woodhaven is segregated because of all the white flight that happened there, I definitely agree.
What I ment by my earlier post is that Astoria is also a very diverse nabe but still has somewhat of an old school ethnic European feel to it, only difference is that its Italian and Greek rather then Italian and Polish. Same could also be said with Bensonhurst in Brooklyn [although that area is quickly becoming Chinatown soon].
We'll agree to disagree on Ridgewood... It seems like you have not been to Eastern Ridgewood bordering maspeth/glendale in awhile... There are a ton of new Mexican, Ecuadorian, and to a lesser extent Indian and Black families that have moved around there in recent years... They just opened up a couple new mexican places on Fresh Pond Rd. (Andy's Mexican Deli), The Psychic place (consultas) is a mix of Ecuadorian and Polish... and the other Mexican restaurant that was a breakfast area now has all its signs in Spanish where at one point everything was in English... I also preach in the area and when we look for the spanish speaking families near Fresh Pond Rd. and Forest avenue we have to continue adding houses each time we do a census of a block... The area is far more mixed than other areas...
I also think you mix areas that are actually in Jamaica or Ozone Park for Woodhaven... The latest demographics show the area to still be somehwere around 30-35% white 15-20% asian 45-50% hispanic 5% Black... But as you mentioned, the area is very segregated...
I also agree with your last statement for the most part... I've been to the areas that have that ethnic feel you're talking about but it just seems as if a good chunk of the area is losing that feel to the hipster crowd...
We'll agree to disagree on Ridgewood... It seems like you have not been to Eastern Ridgewood bordering maspeth/glendale in awhile... There are a ton of new Mexican, Ecuadorian, and to a lesser extent Indian and Black families that have moved around there in recent years... They just opened up a couple new mexican places on Fresh Pond Rd. (Andy's Mexican Deli), The Psychic place (consultas) is a mix of Ecuadorian and Polish... and the other Mexican restaurant that was a breakfast area now has all its signs in Spanish where at one point everything was in English... I also preach in the area and when we look for the spanish speaking families near Fresh Pond Rd. and Forest avenue we have to continue adding houses each time we do a census of a block... The area is far more mixed than other areas...
I also think you mix areas that are actually in Jamaica or Ozone Park for Woodhaven... The latest demographics show the area to still be somehwere around 30-35% white 15-20% asian 45-50% hispanic 5% Black... But as you mentioned, the area is very segregated...
I also agree with your last statement for the most part... I've been to the areas that have that ethnic feel you're talking about but it just seems as if a good chunk of the area is losing that feel to the hipster crowd...
I see more Polish then anything in Northern Ridgewood [Fresh Pond Road north of the M train], even more then when I left in 2009. There are new Mexican restaurants south of the M train however.
Woodhaven was 31% white, 43% Hispanic back in 2000. I know for a fact that the white population went down and hispanics increased between 2000-2010 there and I'm sure hispanics are the majority there now. When I looked at the 2010 census, every census track in the area was yellow, whereas back in 2000 there were still a few green ones around Park Lane South. Ozone Park actually has a slightly higher proportion of whites then Woodhaven, but not by a large shot.
As for the hipsters, They don't really have much of a presence in Astoria yet. It seems to be more Manhattan families moving there, and they haven't really sucked the character of the neighborhood. Now LIC on the other hand.....
Woodhaven is pretty much all hispanics asides from a few remaining whites and some south asians. In Ridgewoods case, the majority of whites live near the Glendale or Middle Village borders and the majority of hispanics live near Bushwick, Williamsburg or Liberty Park. Of course, there are white and hispanics families spread around to a certain extent [I know plenty of Polish families that moved to Seneca near Myrtle a few years ago], but for the most part, Europeans are the majority in Eastern and Northern Ridgewood and hispanics are the majority in South and Western Ridgewood. In Woodhavens case, Hispanics are the majority pretty much everywhere [expect the Forest Park apartments which are overwhelmingly white, I don't know if these are considered Woodhaven or Glendale].
Woodhaven is segregated because of all the white flight that happened there, I definitely agree.
What I ment by my earlier post is that Astoria is also a very diverse nabe but still has somewhat of an old school ethnic European feel to it, only difference is that its Italian and Greek rather then Italian and Polish. Same could also be said with Bensonhurst in Brooklyn [although that area is quickly becoming Chinatown soon].
The Mitchell-Lama Towers on Union Turnpike and Woodhaven Blvd are definitely Glendale. Or, do you mean the co-ops further down Blvd. across from carousel? (They're Woodhaven...)
I see more Polish then anything in Northern Ridgewood [Fresh Pond Road north of the M train], even more then when I left in 2009. There are new Mexican restaurants south of the M train however.
Woodhaven was 31% white, 43% Hispanic back in 2000. I know for a fact that the white population went down and hispanics increased between 2000-2010 there and I'm sure hispanics are the majority there now. When I looked at the 2010 census, every census track in the area was yellow, whereas back in 2000 there were still a few green ones around Park Lane South. Ozone Park actually has a slightly higher proportion of whites then Woodhaven, but not by a large shot.
As for the hipsters, They don't really have much of a presence in Astoria yet. It seems to be more Manhattan families moving there, and they haven't really sucked the character of the neighborhood. Now LIC on the other hand.....
Wes responded to your comment about Woodhaven but regarding the comment in bold I do agree with you that originally there were more hispanics in Fresh Pond Rd. from about (2000-2008)... then a boatload of Polish came pouring in from Greenpoint as well as the mainland and changed the entire character of Fresh Pond Rd. turning it from a mainly Italian/Romanian/Polish/Hispanic store dominated avenue to about a 35-40% Polish store/business dominated area with sprinkles of other European/Asian/and random hispanic businesses thrown in...
That being said, the last year especially has seen a sharp increase in the hispanic population mainly from Fresh Pond Rd. and Gates down to Myrtle Ave... The biggest blocks you see the changes are between woodbine and 67th avenue and from 71st avenue down to Myrtle on Fresh Pond Rd. which is about 1 or 2 blocks...
Alot of mexican families have moved into those six family buildings and the new mexican deli that just opened up is always filled with customers that are relatively new to the neighborhood... A friend of mine lives in 71-21 Fresh Pond Rd. and when he first moved there (his family of 5 is Mexican) they were the second hispanic family in the building... This was 3 years ago... Fast forward to today, only the LL is not hispanic... Same goes for a number of other buildings near there...
Also, if we're talking about businesses alone and not demographics I do agree that there are probably more Polish stores now on Fresh Pond Rd. than back in 09'... That being said, the last of those strictly Polish spots was the music CD spot called Music Planet I believe... It opened up about a year and a half ago... Since then four new hispanic places have opened in the last two years on Fresh Pond Rd. alone... Junior's Wine and Liquor... Radioshack between 67th and 68th avenue is owned by hispanics and they have spanish music blasting out of that spot constantly during the weekends... The "Consultas/Wrozka" Psychic spot in between 67th avenue and Catalpa... And Andy's Mexican Deli between 71st avenue and Myrtle ave.
My final point about this, is that one thing i've noticed recently is that a number of Polish stores are either merging with other stores or going out of business altogether... In the last year Polish Floral Gallery, Ambrozia, Cherry Deli, and some spot on 60th lane that had a long polish name that was a deli have closed down and merged with other indian/chinese stores along Metropolian, Forest and woodward avenues... Examples of this are (Kemoo Deli on Forest ave. indian... Woodward ave Deli (chinese)...and King Star I and II was originally polish but now have been bought out by Indian owners) I'm always looking around the neighborhood observing the changes and seeing what's going on and from what I can tell, the biggest increases in the neighborhood in no specific order are Mexicans, South Asians, Italians, Puerto Ricans, and a small amount of hipsters/artists typically along the Ridgewood/Bushwick/Williamsburg/Maspeth borders... While the number of Polish people in the neighborhood is probably the largest of all European groups, I don't think there numbers are as strong now as they were 1-2 years ago...
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