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I like Midtown. It's convenient & you're in the middle of everywhere and have access to most of the subway lines. It covers a large swath. Herald Square & Times Square is a nightmare but other than that, it's ok. When younger, I thought downtown would be the best place to live but all those name streets and being so un grid like would drive me crazy after awhile. Not to mention that it's more touristy and crowded than other parts of Manhattan.
True. I guess living in Midtown for close to 17 years or so I know the area well & which places to avoid. Whereas I still find myself getting lost sometimes when downtown. Better the devil you know...
I like Midtown. It's convenient & you're in the middle of everywhere and have access to most of the subway lines. It covers a large swath. Herald Square & Times Square is a nightmare but other than that, it's ok. When younger, I thought downtown would be the best place to live but all those name streets and being so un grid like would drive me crazy after awhile. Not to mention that it's more touristy and crowded than other parts of Manhattan.
When the street grid system was developed for Manhattan it was only to apply to 14th Street going north. Lower Manhattan long settled had already developed an organic street pattern that pretty much was just left alone. When changes did occur down there is usually is because of development. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commis...7_Plan_of_1811
True. I guess living in Midtown for close to 17 years or so I know the area well & which places to avoid. Whereas I still find myself getting lost sometimes when downtown. Better the devil you know...
Downtown also varies a lot, parts of it aren't too crowded and others are really bad. Midtown is like that too, but I think a much bigger chunk of midtown is crowded.
Quote:
Originally Posted by BugsyPal
When the street grid system was developed for Manhattan it was only to apply to 14th Street going north. Lower Manhattan long settled had already developed an organic street pattern that pretty much was just left alone. When changes did occur down there is usually is because of development. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commis...7_Plan_of_1811
Then why doesn't 1st street start where 14th st is now?
There actually does seem to be somewhat of a grid from like Canal St to Houston St, though. And from Houston to 14th with the exception of some weird streets in Greenwich Village.
NYC needs to do the same thing. The current housing system is clearly not working. People believe that rising rents and property values in NYC are almost a fact of nature--they are not. Much of that is due to government policies that directly or indirectly restrict the supply of new housing.
A few highlights:
- "in 2014 there were 142,417 housing starts in the city of Tokyo"
- "Japan has a history of strong property rights in land"
- "Tokyo’s steady construction is linked to a still more startling fact. In contrast to the enormous house price booms that have distorted western cities — setting young against old, redistributing wealth to the already wealthy, and denying others the chance to move to where the good jobs are — the cost of property in Japan’s capital has hardly budged."
- "the country eased regulation on urban development"
- "Rising housing prices are not an inevitable consequence of growth and fixed land supply — high and rising housing prices are the result of policy choices to restrict land development."
I see you have NO real solution but would want to emulate a one size fit all policy based on this article. You say get rid of all government involvement in the housing market, i.e., no rent control/stabilization and other housing incentives (tax breaks, loans, subsidies etc) given by local, federal & state governments. Well, at least in the short term I envision chaos in the NYC city housing market because you would have hundreds of thousands of apts deregulated, which would become unaffordable to large swathes of NYC residents.
Also, you seem to undermine the role housing incentives play in spurring development, especially for housing. Just one plank was removed (421a expired in January) and look at the domino effect.
Again, what are your solutions to the problem because it's obvious you don't fully understand the housing market.
Downtown also varies a lot, parts of it aren't too crowded and others are really bad. Midtown is like that too, but I think a much bigger chunk of midtown is crowded.
Then why doesn't 1st street start where 14th st is now?
There actually does seem to be somewhat of a grid from like Canal St to Houston St, though. And from Houston to 14th with the exception of some weird streets in Greenwich Village.
Bugsy just said where changes occurred it was generally due to development.
You say get rid of all government involvement in the housing market, i.e., no rent control/stabilization and other housing incentives (tax breaks, loans, subsidies etc) given by local, federal & state governments.
That's correct--the government needs to get out of the housing business. It has a disastrous record of intervening into the housing market. I would also get rid of government-sponsored entities such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and get rid of programs such as FHA, where the government (i.e. taxpayer) guarantees peoples' mortgages.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bullandre
Also, you seem to undermine the role housing incentives play in spurring development, especially for housing. Just one plank was removed (421a expired in January) and look at the domino effect.
I oppose tax exemption programs such as 421a, because they are unfair to other taxpayers who do not get these breaks. They indirectly are forced to pay more taxes to make up the difference. The purpose of the tax code should be to raise revenue in a fair and equitable manner to fund the operation of the government. The tax code should not be a tool for politicians to grant favors and pick winners and losers in the economy.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bullandre
Well, at least in the short term I envision chaos in the NYC city housing market because you would have hundreds of thousands of apts deregulated
As pointed out many times, rent regulation could be phased out in a non-disruptive manner.
Compare your 421a influence peddling program with Tokyo's 142,417 housing starts in 2014. NYC had 8,797 housing starts in 2014, just 6% of Tokyo. That is why rent has been stable in Tokyo for 20 years despite a rising population, while NYC rent has skyrocketed in the last 8 years.
I understand that NYC has had this housing system for so long that it is hard to envision anything different. But it does not have to be this way, and rising home/rent prices are NOT inevitable. The only thing that will push down housing costs is to transition to a market system, which will allow supply to increase with the population and demand.
Bugsy just said where changes occurred it was generally due to development.
When certain avenues crossed mid-town or even further down for various reasons (often due to local residents and or developers requests), names were changed.
Columbus Avenue (Ninth Avenue) and Amsterdam Avenue (Tenth Avenue) were renamed to give the UWS some distance (and respectability) from the notorious Tenderloin area slums below what is now Columbus Circle (57th Street area).
Avenue A was cutoff from going further uptown when Stuyvesant Town/Peter Cooper Village was built. It becomes Beekman Place, then Sutton Place and York Avenue and finally Pleasant Avenue, though all the latter avenues are not part of a continuous address number system from lower Avenue A.
If you look at lower Manhattan there is kind of method to the madness. At one time on both the Hudson and East river sides were active ports. The blocks going off the west and east sides down there go mostly up towards the "center" of lower Manhattan (Broadway area). This makes sense as the natural flow of getting goods and persons coming off all those ships/boats would be further inland.
That's correct--the government needs to get out of the housing business. It has a disastrous record of intervening into the housing market. I would also get rid of government-sponsored entities such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and get rid of programs such as FHA, where the government (i.e. taxpayer) guarantees peoples' mortgages.
I oppose tax exemption programs such as 421a, because they are unfair to other taxpayers who do not get these breaks. They indirectly are forced to pay more taxes to make up the difference. The purpose of the tax code should be to raise revenue in a fair and equitable manner to fund the operation of the government. The tax code should not be a tool for politicians to grant favors and pick winners and losers in the economy.
As pointed out many times, rent regulation could be phased out in a non-disruptive manner.
Compare your 421a influence peddling program with Tokyo's 142,417 housing starts in 2014. NYC had 8,797 housing starts in 2014, just 6% of Tokyo. That is why rent has been stable in Tokyo for 20 years despite a rising population, while NYC rent has skyrocketed in the last 8 years.
I understand that NYC has had this housing system for so long that it is hard to envision anything different. But it does not have to be this way, and rising home/rent prices are NOT inevitable. The only thing that will push down housing costs is to transition to a market system, which will allow supply to increase with the population and demand.
The government is not getting out of the housing market, for a variety of reasons. Dream on!
As for Tokyo, you haven't shown if the government there has some other kind of involvement in the housing market. Finding that out would take considerable research and some of that might have to be in Japanese.
You're spouting anti government right wing rhetoric that has NOTHING to do with NYC, and you have no proof that ending rent regulation will push prices down.
You don't really have the background or the education to have this discussion.
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