Category: Uncategorized

Sending reporters into the newly opened Barclays Center, The Verge explores the intersection of technology and sports, examining the role it plays in shaping contemporary downtown Brooklyn. Aimed toward a lay audience, the video released is intended to sensationalize the Center, through upbeat, fast-paced music and enthusiastic endorsement. It is likely a reassurance to long-time Brooklyn residents who would potentially take issue with the project and its implications in gentrifying trends throughout Brooklyn neighborhoods. Technology is presented as a hallmark of success as well as a facilitator of future success, both for the Center and for Downtown Brooklyn. A clip of Mayor Bloomberg on opening day highlights this point, interjecting shots of giddy reporters and gleaming LED screens with his enthusiastic approval: “Brooklyn has arrived as a center of exciting entertainment, thrilling big-time sports, and thriving commerce.” His comment indicates both the supposed financial improvement of the area as enabled by the Barclays Center as well as attention from the government Brooklyn would now bask in as the pinnacle of entertainment venues.

Source: The Verge. “Inside the Arena of the Future: The Barclays Center.” YouTube. YouTube, 24 Sept. 2012. Web. 19 Apr. 2016.

This article details the success of Ample Hills Creamery, citing the ice-cream shop as a significant source of friendship and community in Prospect Heights.

Source: Shunk, Laura. “Brooklyn Ice Cream Parlor Ample Hills Welcomes a New Season with Big Plans.” The Village Voice. N.p., 26 Mar. 2014. Web. 6 Apr. 2016.

“A Short History Of The Brooklyn Stadium Jay Z Helped Put On the Map” highlights some of the history of the construction on Barclays center. It starts off by discussing the fact that the Nets were moving to Brooklyn and because of that real estate developers saw potential in the area between Atlantic and Flatbush Avenues. It touches on the development of the Atlantic terminal and it’s transition into a major public transportation system, while also addressing the problems that had occurred when the Flatbush Avenue Terminal had opened more than a century before. The article also contains a video featuring Jay Z who talks of his involvement in the opening of Barclays Center. Jay Z served as the Barclays Center’s first opening act in 2012. In the video Jay Z talks about the long process of building the center and his interest in it once he knew that it was going to be in Brooklyn. Jay Z’s involvement shows how important the Barclays Center actually is and how big and important  it was being perceived to the world. Choosing the area was a very strategic move, especially because not only was it going to host the Nets but also an onset of concerts with artists like Rihanna, Kanye West, and Jay Z. The history of the area, not only Barclays is interesting to note on the basis that the area underwent improvements on other structures other than just the center.

Source: Pulliam-Moore, Charles. “A Short History of the Brooklyn Stadium JAY Z Helped Put on the Map.” Fusion. N.p., 15 June 2015. Web. 17 Apr. 2016.

The article “Barclays in Brooklyn: How the Arena Has Changed The Borough,” starts off by addressing the fact that when the construction of the Barclays Center was first announced, the residents of the neighborhood were very against it. They worried about what the structure would do to their neighborhood, fearing that it would affect their quality of life. Prior to the opening of the center the neighborhood contained mostly mom and pop stores and the majority of the area was residential. When the Barclays Center opened its doors, it was evident that the businesses operating in the community would not cater to the new demographic that Barclays would bring. But instead of businesses such as nightclubs opening, what the people on the neighborhood were scared of, more restaurants ventured into the territory. These new shops included upscale fast food joints, specialty shops, and a sports store. This article offers a fascinating view into many of the changes the Barclays Center itself brought into the area. The author remarks the the center has turned Brooklyn into a brand and not only has it has it sparked change in the area immediately surrounding it, but it will continue to transform Brooklyn as a whole as well. To see how the neighborhood of Downtown Brooklyn has not only transformed itself, but also has a hand in the transformation of the borough makes it all the more interesting and meaningful.

Source: Nonko, Emily. “Barclays in Brooklyn: How the Arena Has Changed the Borough – October 29, 2013 – NewYork.com.” EVERYTHING NEW YORK. N.p., 29 Oct. 2013. Web. 19 Apr. 2016.

Written by the people and for the people, Streetsblog NYC covers transportation policy and sustainability in all five boroughs, hoping to foster change by improving safety conditions, funding, and transit accessibility. This particular article examines parking placard abuse in Downtown Brooklyn while inadvertently commenting on tension prompted by gentrification processes in the area. Illegal parking practices endanger bikers riding down Jay Street, David Meyer argues, which will not cease with the implementation of supposedly safer proposed bike lanes. Abuse of parking placards will still run rampant, with government officials working in the courts either inappropriately using their identification to park illegally and without safety of pedestrians or bikers in mind. Meyers claims, “the problem speaks to the inability and unwillingness of the law enforcement establishment to police itself for the public’s benefit.” He thereby outlines a fundamental schism between general residents and employees of Downtown Brooklyn; where the former claim the area for their commercial and fiscal benefit, latter individuals view the land as theirs to inhabit and travel as they wish. Contentions ultimately boil down to a question of urban planning and which demographics a neighborhood should be intended to benefit.

Source: Meyer, David. “Who Rules the Roost on Jay Street? Placard Abusers, That’s Who.” Streetsblog. OpenPlans, 23 Mar. 2016. Web. 17 Apr. 2016.

In an article written by Gus Lubin right before the Barclays opened called, “Six Months Till the Opening of the Barclays Center, This Part of Brooklyn Is Still A Wasteland”, the author describes the status of the surrounding neighborhood. He describes the area as trashy, featuring off-brand stores along with many vacancies. But the article also addresses the fact that the neighborhood may undergo a huge change because of the upscale center that is in the process of opening its doors. It predicts the center bringing prestige and identity to an area that has lacked it. It’s interesting to see the state of the neighborhood surrounding the Barclays Center today vs. then. Today the area is perceived to be this trendy area, and after seeing the reverse, it can be assumed that much of this has to do with the construction of the Barclays Center. It evidently has had a large impact on the whole neighborhood as a whole. Looking at the transformation that some of downtown Brooklyn has undergone, it is important to see how factors such as the Barclays Center can cause such a huge change.

Source: Lubin, Gus. “Six Months Till The Opening Of The Barclays Center, This Part Of Brooklyn Is Still A Wasteland.” Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 21 Mar. 2012. Web. 17 Apr. 2016.

Compiled into a Tumblr blog, An Ongoing Photographic Survey of Downtown Brooklyn offers an unbiased look at the development of Downtown Brooklyn over the course of six years. Spanning from 2010-2016, the photographs presented cover a range of characteristics unique to the area, each accompanied by a title and location. Utilizing Tumblr, a medium typically populated by young adult users, allows the photographers to reach a young demographic and offer a nonpolitical viewpoint of the increasingly gentrified area. Snapshots of construction overwhelm the visual discussion, though pedestrians, storefronts, dogs, and glimpses inside buildings make it into the mix as well. Due to the variety of scenes captured for worldwide audiences, it appears as though the photographers sought to present Downtown Brooklyn as authentically as possible, snapping pictures of whatever caught their eye. As presented through the blog, Brooklyn adopts a vibrant character, resistant to change yet wholeheartedly accepting its fate. Removed from political or mass media representation, Brooklyn becomes just like any other neighborhood; the area is no longer held up on a pedestal of gentrification but becomes unique in its own right, independent of the need for change many outsiders impose.  

Source: Gunhouse, Carl,  Jason John Würm, Matthew Schenning, and Maureen Drennan. An Ongoing Photographic Survey of Downtown Brooklyn. 2010. Web. 17 Apr. 2016.

Brooklyn, a borough with a huge population, has less hotels than Rochester. This is because Brooklyn was not always a destination where tourists spent an extended period of time. However, this is beginning to change as major sites like Coney Island and the Barclays Center are becoming more and more popular. Brooklyn is slowly becoming a new, “cool” place to stay when people visit New York. Many new, expensive hotels are being opened all over Brooklyn, and specifically in the Barcays area. The Barclays Center’s 17000 seat arena that housed legendary concerts and is home to the New York Nets is attracting visitors. Other areas of Brooklyn are following suit and are starting to be built up. The Barclays Center has been the beginning of a new side to Brooklyn as other projects in Coney Island and the Bushwick area may begin to take root.

Source: Furst, Jay. “Brooklyn Comeback Makes it a Place to Stay.” McClatchy – Tribune Business News. Dec 21 2013. ProQuest. Web. 18 Apr. 2016

This article details the participation of Park Slope’s Artichoke Bastille Pizza in The New York Pizza Project. The extremely popular food place is considered by some to be one of the few remaining authentic pizzerias in NYC.

Source: Chin, Heather. “Park Slope’s Artichoke Bastille’s And Antonio’s Pizza Among Makers Featured In NY Pizza Project – Park Slope Stoop “Park Slope Stoop”. N.p., 24 Nov. 2015. Web. 8 Apr. 2016.

A group of ninth graders were taken to the Barclays Center for a hockey game between the New York Islanders and the Detroit Red Wings. The purpose of this trip was to learn about the history of the historic area in Brooklyn. The students realized what a central part of Brooklyn the Barclays Center is and how much it symbolizes. After doing research, the students learned that the building the arena there caused a great upheaval in the community there and forced many people to sacrifice their homes. The students created blogs about how the development of Barclays and its sports center shaped not only Brooklyn, but the world. The project brought to light the essence of the Barclay Center. ‘“If there’s one message I want kids to understand, it’s dreaming big and reaching as high up as you can,” Mr. Yormark said in an interview, “and the Barclays Center embodies that.”

Source: Chaban, Matt A. “Barclays Center in Brooklyn Becomes a Classroom.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 01 Feb. 2016. Web. 20 Apr. 2016.