1. HISTORY

Alphabet City is far from a city as it is located within the East Village area and is also in the southeastern corner of NYC. Nevertheless, the name of “Alphabet City” came from the fact that it encompasses Avenues A, B, C and D which also happen to be the only avenues in Manhattan to have single letter names. As for Losaida in Alphabet City, it is translated in Spanish as “Lower East Side” as well as dubbed for the substantial amount of Puerto Ricans in the area. After exploring the history of Alphabet City, I then wished take a look and observe Alphabet City firsthand. But before breaking through the realm of Alphabet City, I wandered through flanks of bars, restaurants, delis and hipster shops that gave me a better sense of a cultural hub of a diverse group of people on the outskirts of the area as well. Thus, going towards Tompkins Square Park, graffitti, violated buildings, tree stumps and overall a changing landscape began to emerge. But with a changing landscape, there surely must be a history of change. And in fact, there was. In regard to Tompkins Square Park’s location, it is where my journey intruding upon the lands of Alphabet City had just begun. In particular, Tompkins Square Park was originally a “Tent City” where many homeless people, drug users, vagrants and young people called “skinheads” went to live in literally tents. As for time, in 1988 this “Tent City” existed and characterized what gentrification had done to some of the people in the area: forcing them out of their homes and to sleep on the streets, or in this case- sleeping in the park. Nonetheless, where tensions escalated between the people and the authorities  was during the Tompkins Square Park Riot of 1988, August, where fights over the curfew culiminated into a brawl between the police and protestors. Present day, however, we have Tompkins Square Park which at face value is more peaceful than it was in the past and is “much better,” as former Mayor Ed Koch notes. And there is evidence of this as not only are there a diverse group of people but there is also a “Banshell” for concerts and music, playgrounds, grass where people lie down and relax, just to name a few. Although this superficially was so, I could not ignore the outliers: the couple of homeless people smacked on the ground, sleeping away their woes. This is just a snapshot of my area’s history, and there will surely be more to talk about the authorities as I go on referencing to an apparent vigilance geared towards crime and the thing that is relevant to the authorities (police): surveillance cameras.

2. ENVIRONMENT- SECURITY 

Above is a map of all the surveillance cameras in the East Village area that I recieved from the Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space. During my visit to the Museum, I was fascinated by the history of the building, which use to be a “squatter house” for homeless people. Going back to the lines of the Tompkins Square Park Riot, I attempted to find a connection between the police and the neighborhood, if any. Then I realized that the history of crime in NYC was ugly throughout the 1970s. And in fact, Tompkins Square Park was closed down by the city in 1991 because of the drug use and attendant crime prevalent in the area. Likely, the grafitti and comments on the new buildings, high rises and apartments propping all over the Alphabet City area reflect this. Luckily, the drop in crime in the past 40 years is “nothing short of miraculous,” says Greg Olear of The Cooperator. Going to see Tompkins Square Park in person, one can also sense how stable it is, as I felt safe walking and talking with others in the park. Although I did not get an account of crime and contention other than the Police Riots in the past, I think we can draw assumptions from the acronym of ABCD Avenues of Alphabet City. Apparently, Avenue A was “alright,” Avenue B was “bad,” Avenue C was “crazy” and finally, Avenue D was “death.” Even if this was back in history, the comments made by the people I spoke with at The Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space characterize a possible looming issue of Security & Privacy, and even crime, which all still need to be probed further.

3. ENVIRONMENTAL- GENTRIFICATION

Alphabet City was one of many neighborhoods in NYC influenced by gentrification ever since the late 90s. This may be one of the indirect factors of homelessness and we may even say the Tompkins Square Park Riots as protestors included those who either had been affected or wanted to say something about gentrification, as well as other issues. During my visit to The Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space I spoke with three people who said that the museum building itself used to be an abandoned building for squatters. While discussing about the neighborhood, the people I spoke to at the museum said that the city tried to take back the apartments but eventually had to give them up for $1 after “giving up.” Also, after asking me whether I majored in Finance or not at Baruch, I drifted away from the question. For, subsequently, they noted their remarks on Mayor Bloomberg who they argued did more for the rich of the city than for the city itself. I received similar comments from people who worked at Tompkins Sqaure Park while visiting. But as for my observations, I saw buildings scattered throughout the neighborhood with a distinct quality, reflecting the apartment buildings that may have been renovated in the area. Signs of previously abandoned storefronts showcase the contrast between the slump of previously vacant storefronts in the area to the revitalization of vibrants bars and restuarants where the noise of people always seems to be a buzz, echoing into the air. The “Bost No Pills” writing above made me think about how the issue of gentrification and the indigneous population experience including homelessness, drug abuse, crime and poverty, overlap. (Note: it usually should be “Post No Bills” as an indication that construction is occurring.)

4. PUBLIC HEALTH- CON EDISON POWER PLANT

Before walking into the ConEdison Power Plant, eye opening changes must be noted. For example, walking through Tompkins Square Park, I noticed that there was not a major waste issue. In fact, there was a nice adjustment from regular garbage cans to more robust ones, like the one above. But as for other recent issues there would be a rat infestation problem on the Lower East Side. The picture above of three rats pinned to a pole can be seen as an act of protest, especially considering how giant the rats pinned are. As for the power plant, back in 2002 there were complaints of how the plant was fuming waste emissions into the neighborhood that could be detrimental to public health. An agreement was reached but in 2008, there were more complaints of how regulations were not tough enough on ConEdison’s capping of harmful emissions coming from the facility. Elementary school professors noted a rise in kids having asthma and accused ConEdison as a possible culprit in 2008. Recently however ConEdison has been dealing with a large number of gas theft or illegal gas connections as well as a gas explosion in East Village Buildings back in March. Although the number of such cases aresmall relative to the overall population who don’t have such cases, ConEdison wishes to ensure ongoing safety for the public in their wish to serve a public need which must come before profit.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alphabet_City,_Manhattan

http://cooperator.com/article/state-of-surveillance

https://blog.yournewroommate.com/whats-great-about-getting-an-alphabet-city-new-york-rental/

http://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/16/nyregion/con-ed-agrees-to-pay-for-cleaner-air-near-power-plant.html

http://gothamist.com/2015/08/31/decorative_rat_king_spotted.php

http://thevillager.com/villger_293/concernsonconed.html