QUEENS VILLAGE
At present I live in Queens Village on 208th street. My neighborhood can be described as a mix of urban and suburban. My family and I recently moved to the eastern part of Queens to escape the busy lifestyle that is Brooklyn. I have been living here approximately 3 years now and have witnessed major changes to my neighborhood. Many factors come into play depending on the area in which you live in. Some of these changes mostly deal with modes of transportation, labeling of streets, community atmosphere, shopping centers and diversity.
First, in my area transportation is nearly non-existent except for the tardy Q2 buses and posh Amtrak trains that run periodically. There aren’t any subways or frequent cabs to use if one mode of transportation isn’t available. The nearest subway which is the, F train, is located on 179th street Hillside Avenue, which according to Google Maps is approximately 11 minutes by car and 20-25 minutes by bus on a good day. This commute time doesn’t consist of the train ride to the city and beyond. As of last winter, my commute to the campus were upwards of an hour and a half. Because of the low modes of transportation combined with distance, my community including myself have mostly turned to private commute.
Second, the Queens borough street grid is very confusing. Many of the streets are labelled exactly like this, 52 Ave followed by 52nd Road, 52 Drive and 52nd Court which makes piloting through neighborhoods a task. It took me nearly 3 years to realize that Avenues go east- west and streets the opposite. Trying navigate to house/ building numbers such as my nearest Home Depot (92-30 168th St, Queens, NY 11433) will leave an outsider lost.
Third, the atmosphere in my area is relatively quiets granted it isn’t a public holiday. There are the usual hooligans that drive past with blaring music, but other than that it is quiet. Throughout the summer many of the kids are home but remain indoors. I am not certain why they do as there is a playground 10 minutes away. Many of the homes in my area are of Ranch, Tudor or Colonial style. I am a big fan of the design of these houses as they seem to complement each other’s design. They bring character to the neighborhood.
Fourth, my neighborhood doesn’t have many big-name name stores in the near distance. There is a corner store 2 minutes away combined with a few local stores. A little higher, 10 minutes away are Walgreens, Domino’s,Dunkin Donuts and the church amass for an entire block. If I wanted to buy something other than what is offered at the local stores I would have to travel to Jamaica Avenue which isn’t that far.
Finally, I live in a very diverse neighborhood which encompasses Caribbean Americans, Guyanese, Hispanic, Indian, and Jamaicans. There are few Jewish neighborhood that I know off but recently they’ve been slowly disappearing. Over the last year, I have also noticed the rise in Asian American residents in my neighborhood. I love diversity as it brings culture and shape to the neighborhood. You get to experience culture at your doorstep may it be Asian, Jamaican or Indian.
In conclusion, Queens Village is a wonderful place to stay if you value quietness, privacy and diversity. However, lack of different public transportation methods make it difficult to commute and along with the far reach of stores such as, Costco or Walmart.
References
[1]“Cities 101: How to Navigate Queens’ Street Grid.” Untapped Cities, 4 Apr. 2014, untappedcities.com/2014/04/03/cities-101-how-to-navigate-queens-street-grid/.
