Patrone_Karla_LibraryReport1_2017

“My Brooklyn” by Kelly Anderson was a very educational documentary. The film maker walked us through her life journey living in Brooklyn. She moved there at a young age after college searching for an affordable neighborhood in the bustling city of New York. She spoke of her experience moving through various neighborhoods in Brooklyn until she bought her own apartment. While she settled down she noticed the changes in her area. The demographics were changing and the affordability of apartments were also changing. Throughout the documentary she showed some changes that were occurring and would go around asking people their opinion of what was happening to downtown Brooklyn. Some loved the upcoming changes and some opposed it. The most controversial part of the documentary was the Fulton mall strip. The street is well known for its stores and catering to the people of Brooklyn. As the years went by many businesses were declining because shoppers were either shopping elsewhere or purchasing items online. Developers saw an opportunity to go into an area and change the zoning to add traffic to the area of downtown Brooklyn. They proposed a zoning change and a developmental plan that will attract developers into Brooklyn. In the initial plan they stated that the new high rises going up in the area would be used for office space only. I find it funny that as the design development phases were happening they changed their plans and most buildings became residential. By changing the zoning developers have the freedom to add what they want to the neighborhood. Many community members were opposed to the high rises because those in the neighborhood would not be able to afford the apartments. They also opposed it because the rich history of the popular Fulton mall strip was in the process of being destroyed. The neighborhood was becoming gentrified and was not going to benefit the existing community. Many other topics were brought up during the documentary but my opinion on it is that for a neighborhood to succeed and evolve change must happen. Its unfortunate that many businesses were shut down but they should’ve been educated enough to know that things like that occur and sometimes you get the short end of the stick.

On September 14, 2017 during our class we had guest speaker Joseph Alexiou join the class to speak to us about the Gowanus Canal. He began his lecture by explaining his history with the site. He got introduced to Gowanus when he was searching for a neighborhood to live in. When he came across Gowanus and moved in he started researching his neighborhood. As time went on he became more intrigued about the history of the canal and its origin. Questions came up like ,’ Is this a safe area to be in?” “What was the purpose of the canal?” and others. Doing further investigation he learned much information about the Gowanus Canal that he shared with the class. He spoke about the origin of the canal and its primary use. In the older days the canal was very prominent and an essential part of Brooklyn.

The Gowanus canal was a means of transport for many goods that were being carried up and down the canal at all hours. The industrial industry in New York City especially Brooklyn was booming. Brooklyn was a wealthy city and the canal aided the cities prestige. It became a place where many business and manufactures wanted to go because of the high reputation it had. When factories moved into the area their waste began being dumped into the canal. At that time bad thoughts did not come across because they were not thinking of the future. They were thinking of the canal in that moment and how it would convenience them.

One of the initial blueprints of the canal was created with two paths in order to create a stream in the canal strong enough to flush out all unwanted materials and build up at the bottom. That plan was expensive and those in charge of building the canal chose a different option, a cheaper one. If the canal was created how a successful plan was designed the site today would not be a superfund. A superfund site is a location that is highly polluted that the federal government needs to step in and take care of the issue. They find those responsible of causing the pollution and make them invest into the site to clean it up. The main culprit to the pollution of the Gowanus canal is the city of New York. When the site was suggested as a superfund the New York officials tried their best to oppose it. They did not want the site to be labeled as a superfund because it would be bad for their future real estate business. Also they knew that they were the primary party responsible for the pollution of the Gowanus because they had much time to fix the problem but they did not. With the protest and outburst of the community the site became a superfund and will take years to get cleaned up. By the community sticking together that shows that the public has a voice and they will be heard.

An issue that the Gowanus canal has is the sewer lines. The sewer is connected in one large tube that when it rains gets over flooded and sewer dumps into the canal. That was foreseen when the sewer was initially designed by someone who proposed a design to fix the issue. Again money plays an important role in decisions and the repair of the sewer and new additions were denied.The city instead of creating new developments should go back and make additions to the sewer of Brooklyn to aid the Gowanus canal. The canal went from a striving canal that hosted fish and oysters to a superfund site that is highly toxic. It is an example of people worrying about the wrong things in a city. When Joseph Alexiou was speaking of the Gowanus canal his passion for the subject interested me in both the area and his book. I will acquire the book to learn more information about the Gowanus canal.

Patrone_Karla_2017_01_Gowanus

My name is Karla Patrone, I am an Architecture Technology major at NYCCT. I live in the Bronx on 167 street in a six story building , across the street is an elementary school and to the left of my building there is a large park. Because I live in such proximity to the Yankee stadium during the games of events there is a lot of traffic in my area because those going to the game they park their cars around my house and walk to the stadium from there. I would say my neighborhood is urban, there are other residential buildings on my street and a small deli. Many families with young children live in my neighborhood so they take advantage of the park being so close. My neighborhood is noisy with the train running above ground behind my building to the kids getting out of school, also all the music coming from the BBQ’s in the park especially during the Spring and Summer time. There are stores in my area , restaurants, fast food places ,supermarkets , barber shops , laundromats, Delis , 99cent stores , a furniture store and they recently opened a gym. Transportation is important in my neighborhood I have the 4 train on my same street and one city bus. Then the B and D train are a 3-5 minute walk to Grand Concourse as well as two more city buses. Another option I have is walk to 161st street to take the D or B train if I have time to spare and I don’t want to walk up the hill.

I live on the fourth floor in such proximity to the trains that at night time or early morning I hear the train announcements from my bedroom. One of the prices you pay for living in the city is the noise that comes included. I wouldn’t say my neighborhood is changing because there are no new developments going up it was just the new gym and that structure only goes up two stories so it blends in with the area.  The tallest buildings are apartment buildings that only go up six stories in my immediate neighborhood. I have lived in the Bronx for majority of my life. My family and I moved into our current apartment in 2009. We have seen the neighborhood grow and prosper. When we first moved the crime rate was bad and it was a dangerous place to live with many gangs and members of various groups. Throughout the years security and police were present to improve the quality of life. Their presence was essential to have those gang members either moved away or get arrested. Currently my neighborhood is safe and those living in it can walk in peace at all hours. Living in the Bronx has taught me the importance of family and community. It has also shown me that with the right tools an area can improve for the better for all those living in it. There are many resources out there that can aid a struggling area, information of those resources should be advertised more in my opinion so that struggling neighborhoods get the aid they need.