Neighborhood
Quiet luxury near the epicenter of happening
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On May 11, 2005, the New York City Council passed a large-scale rezoning of the North Side Brooklyn waterfront. Since then Williamsburg has evolved from a mostly industrial warehouse neighborhood into an enclave of vintage boutiques, trendy foodie eats, and high-end luxury apartments. The rezoning represented a dramatic shift of scale in the ongoing process of gentrification in the area since the early 1990s. The waterfront neighborhoods, once characterized by active manufacturing and other light industry interspersed with smaller residential buildings, were rezoned primarily for residential use. Alongside the construction of new luxury residential buildings, many warehouses were converted into residential loft buildings. Among the first was the Smith-Gray Building, a turn-of-the-century structure recognizable by its blue cast-iron facade. The conversion of the former Gretsch music instrument factory, located at 60 Broadway, garnered significant attention and controversy in the New York press primarily because it heralded the arrival in Williamsburg of Tribeca-style lofts and attracted, as residents and investors, a number of celebrities. |
More and more residents are flocking to Brooklyn's waterfront, new census data show. While the feds found only a tiny increase in Brooklyn's population overall, blocks along the waterfront from Williamsburg down to DUMBO saw big spikes, with some spots doubling or tripling in population since 2000. Following the trend investors and developers flooded the area offering high-end luxury apartments, with prices that surpassed Harlem and that are often exceeding some of the areas in Lower and Mid Manhattan. Perfectly located only one subway stop from Manhattan, Williamsburg offers a unique feel of “Old City” that perfectly blended with new developments which follow the needs and requirements of the new tenants. There is a saying that goes around: You are where you live and If you are cool, you live in Williamsburg.” |
