Category: Uncategorized (Page 7 of 9)

Everything is constantly changing in this world, but many people don’t realize it. Recently, the project of neighborhood analysis lets me pay attention to my neighborhood. During the process of my research, I have different perspective of place, building and history to more understand about my neighborhood.

I am living near Sunset Park area, in Brooklyn almost eight years. Before I did my research, I already know there are many commercial stores near my house. One of the avenues that Chinese people activate, and the Latinos most activate in other one of avenues. But when I walked outside to do my voice memo, I discovered there are more stores and restaurants around my house then before. More people move into my neighborhood. I feel like my neighborhood has become another China Town in New York City. Except the resident houses, stores and restaurants, there are also clinics, churches, playgrounds and transportations. It is convenient for people’s life by living here. I discovered after the new entrance of train opened, some people changed their circulation in their life too. However, I feel the environment of my neighborhood is getting worse.

I also found out some historical that I didn’t know before. I researched the historical picture of some buildings online, and then tried to walk to the site to compare the past and today. Some of them didn’t have a lot change between 20’s and 21’s. Some of them changed by material, or the new building is next to them. I also saw there are many churches concentrate on 4^th avenue, kind like a place of concentration of different religions.

The neighborhood changed could affect the way that people live. Like I didn’t consider Sunset Park is my neighborhood because I didn’t go over there a lot. I might go there few years ago, but just rarely. And more stores and restaurants make more people main activate between 62 street and 50 street.

Over two weeks period of the assignment of studying my neighborhood.  I have learned 2 things that changed the way i’m thinking and it will impact the way i view project as whole in the future.

First of all , before the assignment, i never thought that video memo would be so effective as i become more aware of my surrounding and  pay attention to the details of the building. As i recording the video and talking as i recording, i saw the changes and the interaction between people. People would stop in the middle of the street and chat for few minutes with their friends.  On that moment, i realized that i didn’t know my neighborhood well as i thought.

Second, as i talk to the elderly around my neighborhood. I notice that if you live in an environment that does not require  you to speak foreign language, you can still be happy and live wealthy like the way you live in your home country.  The most frequently question that i asked the elderly is how happy are you living in the foreign country that you’re not familiar with and the majorities of them answer very happy . I was shocked because i wasn’t expecting to get such positive answer.

The assignment of Neighborhood Analysis gives me the chance to look deeper into my neighborhood.  I discovered many details and history about the neighborhood, which I never thought of before this assignment. When I moved to the neighborhood I was eleven years old, and it been almost ten years since I moved to the neighborhood. The neighborhood I live at; it is the Sunnyside neighborhood. It is located in Staten island, New York. The reason that lead my parent chose the neighborhood was because its parking convenience and it was much bigger than my old house in Brooklyn.

When I first arrived to the neighborhood, I was afraid to go any other streets because there was barely anyone on the streets. I always knew about the park four blocks behind my house, but I never walk into the park. When I recently walk into this park I was surprised about how big the park was, it was named The Clove Lake Park. There was also an ice skating rink at the park, which was open to public. I learned that it is the World War II Veterans Memorial Ice Skating Rink, it is very meaningful and historical.

The park also had few basketball field and a full sized baseball field, there was also a restaurant by the lake. As I stay in the park for observation, there was a lot of activities going on. It brings the neighborhood many opportunities outdoor activities, there was also military practice going at the park. There were military helicopters landing at the baseball field and certain practice was going on. Behind the lake, there was mini mountain for hiking and 3 different lakes inside the park. The park was 200 acres; it was surprisingly big.

Discovering my neighborhood and the histories is very interesting to have researched. I have learned that there are underlying histories that we are unaware of until we do research. There are different dynamics that may be ignored on a daily basis as we go about our daily life and routines. I have reflected how my neighborhood was when I first moved into it twenty years ago to how it is today and parts of it has changed dramatically and other parts stayed relatively similar to how it was.

I discovered a clock tower in my neighborhood that has been built in the early 1800’s which was very fascinating to me and amazing that a structure of hundreds of years still stands today. I also realized that my neighborhood has updated train stations compared to other neighborhoods and it was rebuilt in 2015 which was very recent. Looking into my neighborhood in more detail has allowed me to become more aware of the different dynamics as I am going about my routines. I have been paying more attention to the amounts of people in my neighborhood, the traffic flows, the different stores and businesses around that are very convenient, the travel from one useful area to another, etc.

I am very comfortable in my neighborhood as I have been residing here for the past 20 years which is majority of my life. I have noticed that the crime rates went up and it has made me become more cautious of where I am going and to be more aware. There are so many different ways to observe a neighborhood and I am glad to have done this assignment because it has taught me a lot about my neighborhood and how it has evolved over time. I think it is a great lesson and it is good to be aware of what places used to be and the struggles and successes of it becoming what it is today.

We live in a fast paced world not realizing the changes around us. When we have so little time for anything, we don’t even stop for a second to read what is says on a monument.  We all say we care about the world but we can’t be bothered to know what makes our neighborhood the place it is today.

Recently I did a project analyzing my neighborhood and it made me aware that there is more to my neighborhood than its streets. I had to do research to understand the architecture of the buildings and the history of the town I live in. Doing so gave me a totally different perspective of the places I walk by every day.

During my research, I used a combination of resources. I started mapping the key features of my town. With the help of Google Maps and Google Earth, I was able to get a clear bird’s eye view of my town. This made it easy to see the boundaries of my neighborhood. Now it is obvious to me that what I consider my neighborhood boundary is different than what really it is. This is determined by so many factors, such as places I go for shopping and streets where I take public transportation.

I continued my research by walking around the neighborhood to see different landmarks, observe different gathering spots and find historic monuments. This part of my research was very enjoyable. Now I know why these places are important and what they mean to the people who lived here generation after generation.

Lastly, I did a voice memo while recording my surroundings on camera. I was on one of the busiest streets when I did the recording.  This was very informative to see what the neighborhood looks like.

I learned a lot about my neighborhood after completing my research. This was a great experience. Now I feel more connected to where I live. Also doing this project taught me how to be a better observer and will help me on my future research projects.

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.