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I lived there for two years, ending last June. I was at Riverside and 136th. I doubt much has changed since then.
I didn't feel unsafe at all, and if you look at the crime statistics, it's on the low end of crime rates for New York City (although a bit higher than average for Manhattan). I heard gun shots a couple times while I was there. Compared to where I live now (South Philadelphia) it's much safer. Like most of Manhattan, the place is crawling with both uniformed and plainclothes police, so there really isn't a whole lot of opportunity for crime.
The neighborhood has just begun the process of gentrification. If I remember correctly, it was 3% white in the 2000 census, and 10% white in the 2010 census. Still, it's a Dominican neighborhood. Many people throw garbage onto the ground without thinking twice about it. The garbage is picked up daily, so it doesn't accumulate (unlike where I live now...). Even if you are a fan of salsa and reggaeton, you might need to wear earplugs to sleep at night; they like to play that stuff loud, at all times of the year, and all hours of the night. The white people who do live in the neighborhood don't really hang out there; they only use it as a place to sleep. I only saw other white people when they were going to or from the subway, or doing laundry.
Speaking of which... some Dominican housewives seemingly like to take their entire 10-person family's laundry for a month to the laundromat and do it at once, hogging all the machines for an hour or more. Easily the most annoying thing about living there.
You won't hear much English being spoken on the street. Your experience might vary from mine, but many people in the neighborhood (who were native English speakers) had trouble understanding my slight Chicago accent. The kids around there like to say "*****" a lot, in a non-racial manner. Not too many black people there, so it felt weird to me. Where I come from, nobody uses that word at all.
In the summer, the Dominicans like to set up tables on the street and on the Broadway Mall (the little park in the median of Broadway) and play dominoes. It was kind of interesting.
The restaurants there are, with some exceptions, limited to fast food and delis. Not too much Dominican food actually, which was alright by me, since I think Dominican food is pretty boring.
There were some definite positives to the neighborhood.
The subway was one block away, and it was pretty reliable. 137th Street is one of the busiest stations on the 1 (and it's just south of an underground rail yard), so they tend to stop there even when they skip other stops due to overcrowding, or when there's maintenence. And oddly enough, despite being a non-white neighborhood, it's not hard to find a taxi going down Broadway. Not as easy as as 30 blocks south, but still.
Fairway Market (a massive grocery store with better selection than anything I've ever seen elsewhere) was 3 blocks south of me. I loved going there. Although there's a steep incline you have to climb on the way back.
Riverbank State Park is right there; it has a year-round indoor swimming pool, skating rink, sports fields, and a nice view of the Hudson River and George Washington Bridge. In the summer they do free theater and concerts.
I paid $600 a month for a bedroom in a 5-bedroom apartment, but there were some issues with the place. $800 sounds about right for a nice room.
All in all, I was sad to leave. I would not mind living there again.
Sounds extremely grim thank God I can afford to pay $1500
Agree on deeken's assessment of the shared bathroom situation...
To answer your specific questions:
-No, you probably won't get shot on your way to/from the place and you're not likely to be mugged in broad daylight. I read the police reports like everyone else but the crime has not been visible in my time here
-Yes, depending on where you live and who your neighbors are, you may want earplugs in the summer. There is a culture on some blocks - especially in the 140's side-streets between Broadway and Amsterdam and near Hamilton Place - of outdoor socializing in the warm months. It can be annoying
As Gee1995 pointed out, some blocks are better than others and there are some problems, but that's the case everywhere in the City. But NooYowkur81 is right, the stigma remains from the '80s.
Whatever is said about a time period prior to about 2009 should be taken with a huge grain of salt. Hamilton Heights is a rapidly changing area - and for the better. There are a few catalysts: Columbia University's northern expansion, the numerous transportation options (1, A, B, C, D trains), the new crowd moving into the area, the success of several new establishments (Chipped Cup, Harlem Public, La Condesa, etc). There's an interesting community forming up here with a mix of students and professors living in the area b/c of the reasonable rent, families who moved up from downtown for the space, professionals looking for more of a neighborhood feel in the City, and long-time residents
For context, I've lived in NYC for 15 years - all but the last 18 months were south of 90th St. Now I live in the 140s west of St Nicholas Ave
I find it odd that in 2013 there are multiple apts which share 1 bathroom. This was common in the old tenements, which was one of the reasons they were torn down. How badly does one need to live in Manhattan that they have to live way uptown AND share a bathroom? I mean really? The benefit of living uptown is that you DONT share a bathroom with other people, let alone apts, and get more space for less money!!!!!!!
Maybe if they asked this question in 1970 regarding the LES I would understand, but Hamilton Heights in 2013? Come on!
I find it odd that in 2013 there are multiple apts which share 1 bathroom. This was common in the old tenements, which was one of the reasons they were torn down. How badly does one need to live in Manhattan that they have to live way uptown AND share a bathroom? I mean really? The benefit of living uptown is that you DONT share a bathroom with other people, let alone apts, and get more space for less money!!!!!!!
Maybe if they asked this question in 1970 regarding the LES I would understand, but Hamilton Heights in 2013? Come on!
Maybe if they asked this question in 1970 regarding the LES I would understand, but Hamilton Heights in 2013? Come on!
I know people who own townhouse/brownstone buildings, set up a bit like old-style rooming houses, and they rent rooms like that. Hamilton Heights has many, often rented by City College students. It it common enough, like it was on the LES in the 1970s. I know a few people there who rented rooms and in the end, years later, bought the building and live there now.
Some places here have renovated to create a bunch of studios, with bathrooms, but I think some people imagine one day living there as a family.
If you lived on 44th and 10th in the 90's you can deal with Hamilton Heights right now. The Blocks on Hamilton Place near CCNY are fairly quiet. I have been taking private yoga lessons for years now, on 138th between Hamilton Place and Bway with an Indian Yogi that has lived there for over a decade.
The apts are pretty large so as long as the apt and bathroom are clean you should be fine. Many people have rented rooms in apts and shared a bath with no problems. It is not ideal, but can be spacious and clean.
Some one mentioned some new restaurants, bars, and internet cafe's which are located between 148th and 150th on Bway. There are even more restaurants nearer to you on Amsterdam Ave.
There was a murder recently on Hamilton Place but the parties knew each other and it was personal. Take the necessary NYC precautions and you should be fine.
If you lived on 44th and 10th in the 90's you can deal with Hamilton Heights right now. The Blocks on Hamilton Place near CCNY are fairly quiet. I have been taking private yoga lessons for years now, on 138th between Hamilton Place and Bway with an Indian Yogi that has lived there for over a decade.
The apts are pretty large so as long as the apt and bathroom are clean you should be fine. Many people have rented rooms in apts and shared a bath with no problems. It is not ideal, but can be spacious and clean.
Some one mentioned some new restaurants, bars, and internet cafe's which are located between 148th and 150th on Bway. There are even more restaurants nearer to you on Amsterdam Ave.
There was a murder recently on Hamilton Place but the parties knew each other and it was personal. Take the necessary NYC precautions and you should be fine.
DAS is that the murder that happened around 140, 141st and Ham Place? I saw on Univision they found the person in their apartment tied up with a bag on their head.
DAS is that the murder that happened around 140, 141st and Ham Place? I saw on Univision they found the person in their apartment tied up with a bag on their head.
Yeah I remember reading about that; it's right down the block from me, but since it wasn't a random act and the parties knew each other, then it doesn't really concern me.
FWIW, my car got hit while parked on the street here the other day. Surprisingly the woman actually left a note and her insurance handled it. Not only that, but she called me back a few days later to make sure everything was being taken care of.
The posts exactly sum up this whole area. There are great people, but there are also people who would rob and kill someone.
If you happen to encounter type two, it is a bad area !
If not, it is a good area.
It is important to keep in mind that, around here, you have all sorts of anti-socials such as those who killed that man. This is a fact. It has nothing at all to do with the oft-mentioned "personal comfort level."
Not sure why people would live in Hamilton heights when for the same money you could live somewhere a lot more peaceful in Queens
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