Roosevelt Island (New York, York: apartments, school, to live)

[luvlee]

Anybody know anything about Roosevelt Island?

Is there a lot of crime/gangs

I have been looking at apartments over there just wondering what ya'll think of it.

[KB4]

It's not a very cheerful or interesting place but I don't think you need to worry about crime/gangs. Though I have never lived there, I know some families with kids who stay there and one of the reasons is because they feel that it's a place where you can let your kids play outside and not worry about them. (They send their kids to school in Manhattan because the school there is not very good) Rents are slightly cheaper than Manhattan and there are some rent-controlled buildings but it takes a couple of years on the waiting list to get in. Getting there is a bit of a hassle, I'm not very fond of the tram thing and I've heard that the train is so crowded in the morning it's very difficult to get on.

[Henna]

I also find it to be an exceptionally depressing place. I would much rather live in Queens than Roosevelt Island, and I suspect the rents are cheaper in Queens but honestly I've never checked rents on RI since it seems like such a depressing place. When I was there last about a year ago I seriously think I saw only 2 restaurants on the entire island, and I think one of them was pizza and the other Chinese.

Of course there are probably more than 2 restaurants but I hope you get the gist of what I'm saying. There seemed to also be large numbers of large abandoned-looking buildings that might have been psychiatric hospitals.

Howerer, that said, if you've been there and like it, then I guess you won't have the same problems with it that I would have.

[ontheroad]

Well, I lived (in the past tense) on Roosevelt Island for about 10 years (moved in '89) but I didn't find it dull; never found anything wrong with either end of the Island; yup lots of children, and families, but an equal number of singles when I lived there.

And I had a great view of the River, a terrace, a free parking garage and peace! And the cost of apartments then was about 70% of what I would have had to pay in Manhattan.

[SeventhFloor]

i went there 1nce it looks weird (in a cool kind of way). definitely one of the different areas of nyc. it did look gloomy over there, but maybe cause i went on a cloudy day lol. i noticed that the island can seem isolated at times to me when walking along the river.

is the address Roosevelt Island, NY 10044 or New York, NY 10044?

[Henna]

I agree that it is fun for a visit. I went on a first date (blind date) with someone there. We met at the tram station. I had spent many hours on the phone with this guy so I felt I knew him pretty well but in retrospect it was one of the more dangerous things I have done in my NYC dating life as we chose to go to one of the most abandoned points in the whole city (is it considered Manhattan?). It was spooky and odd and really fun. We walked around the island and then walked over the bridge to Queens and found an N or W train in Astoria to get home.

I still wouldn't want to live there. But it works for some.

[kdiggz]

I've heard parts of it are haunted.
Answers About Haunted New York - City Room - Metro - New York Times Blog

Anyone have anymore info on that? I find that really interesting and plan on taking a trip there this weekend to check it out for myself.

[Henna]

Forgotten NY has a really great site roosevelt

[ontheroad]

You can use both. I believe I used NY NY 10044--less to write or type.

Originally Posted by SeventhFloor

i went there 1nce it looks weird (in a cool kind of way). definitely one of the different areas of nyc. it did look gloomy over there, but maybe cause i went on a cloudy day lol. i noticed that the island can seem isolated at times to me when walking along the river.

is the address Roosevelt Island, NY 10044 or New York, NY 10044?