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Study: Greenpoint Perceived To Be Worst Neighborhood In Brooklyn
By
Ben Yakas
Published Aug 15, 2013
Modified Aug 15, 2013
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By
Ben Yakas
Published Aug 15, 2013
Modified Aug 15, 2013
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If you asked any New Yorker what they thought was the roughest neighborhood in Brooklyn, chances are that Greenpoint would not be on the top of their list—looking at average income or crime rates, Greenpoint is usually one of the lower crime areas of Brooklyn (we'll see how some recent violent incidents change that when the next stats are compiled). And yet, Fast Company reports that a new study utilizing Google Street View found that Greenpoint was perceived to be the worst neighborhood.
The study used a web tool designed by MIT professor César A. Hidalgo that asked users to compare one Google Street View image against another, answering questions such as, “Which place looks more boring?” or “Which place looks wealthier?” Even though East New York had triple the crime rate as Greenpoint, users thought that Greenpoint looked more crime-ridden; even though the median household in East New York makes $34,295 and $58,311 in Greenpoint, users thought Greenpoint appeared to be a poorer neighborhood.
Hidalgo has some ideas why there was such a gap in perception: he theorizes that many of the participants in the study were not from NYC, and that perhaps gentrifiers are purposefully try to maintain the rundown ambiance that first attracted them to the area, even as it became more affluent. He also suggested that gentrification in some specific areas "is a largely internal process, while the built environment remains relatively static (i.e. Bushwick, where rich people now live in old warehouses, but not the Williamsburg waterfront, where giant new condos have sprung up to house a new population)."
Below, check out the full lists of how NYC neighborhood ranked in perception of class and safety.
Tagged
brooklyn
east new york
greenpoint
Survey
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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