Christian Butron – Community Board 1

The Community Board 1 area comprising the neighborhoods of Williamsburg and Greenpoint are home to a very diverse population. The majority of the population is non-Hispanic White, but a significant minority population resides there as well. Recently, the area has been undergoing gentrification. The neighborhoods’ reputation as a rough and crime-laden area has been usurped by the hip and modern look cultivated by the many artists that reside there. As a result, there has been a “flood” of new rich inhabitants willing to pay top dollar for an apartment in the area as well as increasing tourism. Many consider this reverse in outlook a revival of the once-deteriorating neighborhoods. Others, mostly long-time inhabitants, consider this a tragedy. Old residents, many of which have been living in the area for several generations, are being priced out. The very artists who helped “revive” the neighborhoods are also moving out since ironically the very reason they lived there was for the area’s low rents. There has always been racial and social tension in the area, the original source being crime. Now the source of tension is gentrification. Not every Community Board 1 resident is against gentrification. Many residents see the old industrial complexes of old Williamsburg and Greenpoint as outdated and in dire need of an update; they see the residents who oppose the recent changes as zealots who oppose improvement. They enjoy the support of the city government who see the neighborhoods as a great place to attract more wealth. The new, wealthy residents and the government are the pressure from above. The old, lower-income residents are the pressure from below. Whether or not these two groups can compromise relies mostly on the trust both groups place on the government and the government’s ability to meet the needs of both groups. The views of each side are not completely irreconcilable, there is room for compromise. The government is capable of modernizing and maintaining the neighborhoods while providing adequate affordable housing. Unfortunately, broken promises have destroyed the trust that residents had for the governments. The government’s complete disregard for the Community Board 1’s views in regards to rezoning have certainly reinforced the distrust of government. Certainly, the community boards in their current states have little influence over the future of their communities.