I must confess, I was a bit apprehensive at the very thought of venturing outside my comfort zone and discovering areas in my neighborhood. Strange as it may seem, I have lived in this area for almost a year and I still have not fully explored the community. That being said, I am extremely grateful for this exercise because it not only forced me to locate the historical significance of my neighborhood, but also helped me to practice my descriptive and public speaking skills. I live in the East Flatbush neighborhood. Which is a diverse residential area sprinkled with a lot of the commercial world on the outskirts. 

Among the various attractions on the neighborhood, I found the historical landmark of the Albermarle and Kenmore Terraces to be the most endearing. It’s an area that can be easily overlooked in the midst of our everyday lives running from one destination to the next, barely noticing each other. I am guilty of failing to notice this landmark even though I have walked past it severally. This majestic historical neighborhood is like a little drop of history in a modernized community. Set in a colonial housing style from the early 1900’s, the whole area is so quaint and peaceful in direct opposition to the surrounding apartment buildings. I have been back to this area twice since I discovered it during this project.  

Before embarking on this assignment, I had no idea where to find anything in this neighborhood other that the train station, my workplace and the nearest grocery store. I am immensely happy this project afforded me the chance to look up and around me, take in the scenery and try to describe it in ways others can understand. Now I find myself trying to guess what year a building was constructed depending on the type of materials that it is made out of, the surrounding buildings in the area and so on. I am not an architecture student. In fact, I was feeling out of my element being the only student with legal studies as my major in this class. But after doing this assignment, I am more comfortable with the semester ahead. 

I moved to Staten Island a little over a year ago. I basically don’t know much about my neighborhood and it was really difficult for me to get accommodated in it. For this assignment; during my neighborhood analysis, I felt like my neighborhood was a strange place.  I thought I would explore new places that were considered landmarks, but unfortunately Graniteville Staten Island doesn’t have historical landmarks, and relatively no gathering places. But what did catch my eye are the demographics.

In Graniteville, the majority of the people there are Italian and Greek and they have been there all their lives.  In 1899, there was a new cemetery in the neighborhood, Baron Hirsch Cemetery. It was established for the Jewish Greek and Italian immigrants. Since then the neighborhood stayed with the same settings.  Also in my neighborhood, there is Forest Ave; which is a shopping area. But the demographics there are completely different then where I live. Up on Forest Ave, there are Hispanics, Arabs, and African American. According to Address Report Analysis there have been 0 demolitions in the past year in Graniteville and 0 new buildings in the neighborhood; which is a lot more different than we can saw for Brooklyn.

Doing this project allowed me to learn more about my area than what I knew before. This allowed me to be more observant of my surroundings and gave me knowledge that I didn’t know before. The project showed me new websites that I never knew existed. Using these websites, it helped me expand my knowledge as to what other features each site have and what areas looked like back in the day. This exercise allowed me to express my neighborhood and to show people what it is like around my area. It also allowed me to learn about other parts of NYC from my classmates. Seeing the different areas that I would’ve never gone to, gave me a small information about the history of the area and what the demographic is like in the specific neighborhood. 

I feel like this exercise allowed me to get a little bit more comfortable in what we are going to do for this semester. It helped find certain things that I should’ve paid attention to more. It also gave me the confidence that I need to talk into a phone and record my surroundings without letting strangers bother me. This exercise was a good way to get out of my comfort zone.

Updated presentation: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1OxwE5NlG9Q1EtgJ7ViQUeI-Zfh_IAYN-6U3LsVeOMuA/edit?usp=sharing

In doing this neighborhood analysis project it has definitely opened my eyes to being more observant to my surroundings, and also really being attentive to what’s going on in my neighborhood. With this project, I was able to learn how to 1.Create voice memos while analyzing my neighborhood, 2.Observing historical documents and buildings, 3.Using 3-D maps to find and display my neighborhood. All of these three things are the most important things that stuck with me in doing this project.

In doing the voice memos through which I observed my surroundings and recorded my observations, I found that the very first few times that I did the voice memos I was very shy I felt that I wasn’t making sense in them. But as I continued making more voice memos, I realized that I was forcing myself to make these memos I wasn’t letting it flow naturally. When I did just let my words flow naturally with what I was seeing, I found that the voice memo came out much better. Now, in the future I feel that I will be able to create voice memo analysis’ with ease.

Another important thing that I found was extremely helpful in this project is the observations of historical documents and buildings. It was my first time using the NYPL’s database to find historical documents. I was able to find that in 1963, there was an extension added to the NYPL Out of my own curiosity, I went to the library to examine the changes that were made, and I found that the library has changed immensely in terms of structure. Prior to this project I would’ve probably never even known how old the NYPL was, nor would I even care to check. But after doing this project, it has opened up my mind to curiosity. Wherever I go im thinking to myself, “Could this neighborhood also contain a historic artifact”?

Lastly, in creating maps using different sites such as Oasis, and Google Maps/Earth, it actually helped educate me in being able to use these maps to find locations which is knowledge I didn’t really have before. Oasis was completely new to me, and I found it amazing how it allowed for me to look at the different business and industries and housing that were in my neighborhood. I also found it interesting how it allowed for me to find the different historical areas around my neighborhood. Google maps gave me names of places that I didn’t even know had that name. This project has definitely opened my eyes to what it really means to analyze and observe my surroundings, and then record my observations in a way that would be clear and understandable to others. 

My neighborhood analysis project was a very good experience. I’ve obtained some insightful knowledge of my neighborhoods’ history.  At first , I wasn’t sure what to expect but moving forward my interest grew in learning more  about the history of Mott Haven.  In doing this research project I’ve learned that my area was originally called Port Morris.  This name was derived from  its location, a port area for boats traveling via the Willis Ave Bridge that is actually a Swing Bridge widely used back in the early twentieth century to connect The Bronx and Manhattten . I like the fact that when I walk pass the  Clock Tower building in my neighborhood  that back in the day there were a bunch of grand and string pianos being built inside it. As well as, being able to know why certain bright yellow brick buildings  in my neighborhood stand out from the others because yellow bricks were a high commodity for building back in the early century.  I think it’s pretty cool having this information .

I believe that a neighborhoods history is a very important facet that’s a part of a much larger whole.  The past can always be used as an important blueprint for the future.Having completed my analysis research project results in me being more observation, objective, and inquisitive.  As I sat across the street from the Clock Tower Building and observed my surroundings with the  Third Ave Bridge to the right of me, cars on the Bruckner heading to cross the Bridge, the smell of good food coming from the Clock Bar lounge,  and seeing the people coming and going. I smiled at the thought of me always being so busy with my daily routines, that it hit me I was in the moment right there, being still,connecting with my neighborhood, and I was enjoying it.

I share about my research knowledge when it comes up for example, I was conveying to my 9 year old grandson Carlyle recently about a monument we walked by in my neighborhood,a statue that I’d never given much thought about before.  This is the impact of what my research project has done for me.  It has allowed me more knowledge from a clear,analytical and observant perspective coming from another place and time.  The silent voices coming from the things that were here before me.  The rich history of my neighborhood.

The neighborhood analysis presentation was a little different from the other presentation I have done before. This one included voice memos, at first I did not like the idea of doing voice memos because most of the times I don’t even know what to say and I don’t want people to look at me like I’m crazy, it was really uncomfortable me, but after I saw all the other presentation form the others students I saw why it was important to have it. The voice memos help the audience to feel like they are in that specific place and have a better view of the place, but I still don’t like them because the make me feel uncomfortable. This assignment also help me to know more about my neighborhood more. I was able to know the history of it, how it was created, land use, etc. Overall the neighborhood analysis presentation help me to improve my presentation skills with the help of voice memos, get to know my neighborhood more and learned how to map places using different tools like NYC Oasis.

Reflection on Neighborhood Analysis Assignment 

Doing this assignment was very different and uncomfortable for me, especially doing the recordings. I was a bit skeptic of how outsiders would think or react to me while I was making my observation videos. I live in a neighborhood that has been branded as a place of high crime rates and drug dealership. I recently moved to this area sometime last year and so I am somewhat new to the location. Due to the reputation of this neighborhood, I always stayed in the perimeters of my house, when running errands or I have resorted to staying inside. I must admit, the neighborhood is not as crime filled as it is portrayed, people are always outside hanging out and there are usually police patrolling. This makes it a bit more comfortable and gives a feeling of safety. 

After completing this assignment, I am now more aware of the major changes this neighborhood has been facing and how much it is growing. Knowing where it has evolved from makes me hopeful in seeing even more positive changes in a couple of years to come. The land usage itself has not changed as much as the communities or the people living in the area. This neighborhood has always been filled with many project buildings and brownstone homes. In recent times it has been undergoing gentrification and so both middle and high – class individuals and families are rapidly moving in. As a result, majority of crime and drug dealings have decreased, police patrolling is a number one priority as well as most of these low – income residents are no longer able to afford living in these areas. 

In addition to these project buildings and brownstone homes, there are now luxury apartment buildings and fine dining restaurant and lounges being placed around the neighborhood. The main area by Myrtle and Broadway, where the train station and supermarket are located, has a variety of commercial buildings. From my map analysis, it shows this area to be commercially filled even in the year 1996. There is also a church that I discovered near my laundromat, before this assignment I never noticed it. The church is called St John the Baptist Church. This church has been there since the year 1900. 

I decided to use this church as my historic building as I found it somewhat interesting, especially because it seemed somewhat hidden. There are so many other buildings beside and across from it, as well as trees. Thankfully after zooming in on my map location I was able to take a walk and make a video clip of this area. This church was an addition to a college building there in 1888, named St. Johns College. The church was known as the most beautiful church in Brooklyn. However, due to my neighborhood having the status of one of the largest ghettos in the country, of course, the glamorous exterior of the building got vandalized over the years. 

This historic building now has boards over some of the windows, where used to be pastel painted glass windows and the perimeters wall has wires on the top as well. I can only assume, when the crime rate was higher people would trample through the church yard, also toss things through the windows. Some of the windows that are still visual have holes in them. This part of my research somewhat saddened me, to see how the neighborhood people destroyed such a beautiful and sacred structure. All the housing projects back in 1970s brought a lot of violence due to the poverty of these residents. It took twenty years for this sacred place to be complete only for it to be tarnished by its neighbors. 

The regentrification in this area is so extreme that even the college building beside the church is now an apartment building, there is also a restaurant that used to be a church a couple blocks away too. This neighborhood has become so diverse as well, there is an Ihop, Chipotle, Starbucks and much more in walking distance of my neighborhood as well. The change is real and drastic. Being a young independent female, I am however very happy about this change as it benefits my safety and daily convenience.