Gentrification Comes to the Upper East Side

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This is about my backyard - you can see my building in that first picture. I'm relieved that I'm not going to lose my park view, and I like the rumors about a Whole Foods getting dropped on (or under) the block, but I'm wary. Lexington Ave on the Upper East Side is really a bit of an earlier era. I imagine that it's always going to be limited in development by its former-service-corridor scale, but I wonder what the impact of this project will be beyond my block.

― g@bbneb (gabbneb), Thursday, 2 February 2006 02:11 (eighteen years ago) link

Everybody wants to be a yuppie but nobody wants to be a yuppie.

― Abbadavid Berman (Hurting), Thursday, 2 February 2006 02:15 (eighteen years ago) link

I never go in the donut store, but it seems to feed a lot more cops and taxi drivers than the Dunkin Donuts across the street.

― gabbneb (gabbneb), Thursday, 2 February 2006 02:18 (eighteen years ago) link

hmm that was my subway stop for 2 years. i like that stretch of 86th, it's not like it's abandoned or anything. there's tons of stores, and on weekends it's crazy crowded. and it already has plenty of chains, it's not like that's a new thing: circuit city, best buy, b&n, banana republic. i'm not sure the area really has that much of an identifiable character. it's a little more racially diverse than 10 blocks south, still way whiter than 10 blocks north (which is getting built up too -- when we were looking to move, i looked at a shitty apartment in a gigundo yuppie complex on like 98th street). but yeah, there are still some of those little family businesses that you know won't last much longer. is the great hardware store still there, on lex or 3rd or wherever it was? it seemed in danger of closing.

xpost: i would occasionally grab a donut there on my way home from work, they were good.

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Thursday, 2 February 2006 02:26 (eighteen years ago) link

this is one of my favorite descriptions of that area, by a guy who's lived there for some years i think.

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Thursday, 2 February 2006 02:31 (eighteen years ago) link

right, most of the stores that are getting pushed out aren't much worth keeping (unfortunately the hardware store is months-gone), but this is likely because they knew what was coming. the third-avenue chain stores are a decade old, but hte lex ones are much newer. i have no problem with chains on 86th st, but I'm wondering if this will influence Lexington off the big thru streets.

― gabbneb (gabbneb), Thursday, 2 February 2006 02:32 (eighteen years ago) link

the Lascoff Apothecary

http://www.nycitysnaps.com/Images/SignLascoff.jpg http://www.nycitysnaps.com/Images/SignFootDr.jpg

The Lexington Candy Shop

http://www.portifex.com/DailyBlague/archives/LexCandyShop.JPG
http://www.allmyeye.com/images/pcd/pcd0601/nyc-lex-ave.3.jpg

― gabbneb (gabbneb), Thursday, 2 February 2006 02:33 (eighteen years ago) link

(unfortunately the hardware store is months-gone)

rats. we moved to our new place on 63rd just in time to see a nice little neighborhood hardware store at 63rd and 1st close up shop, victim to rents and home depot. so now if i need a picture hanger and some wire, i have to walk 6 blocks instead of across the street, and fight my way through home depot, argh.

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Thursday, 2 February 2006 02:42 (eighteen years ago) link

thanks for that link, gm. there's a home depot now? did it take over the bed, bath and beyond? at least you have cork and bottle.

― gabbneb (gabbneb), Thursday, 2 February 2006 02:46 (eighteen years ago) link

well the home depot's over by bloomingdale's. bb&b is a frequent entry in our checkbook ledger, tho. the best thing around here is the conran shop. and the food emporium under the bridge is kinda neat. but talk about an area without a lot of personality. unless 12 sushi restaurants in 3 blocks counts as personality.

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Thursday, 2 February 2006 03:51 (eighteen years ago) link

two years pass...

http://web.mac.com/ben.gardner/iWeb/Site/Nabe_files/P1000032.jpg http://web.mac.com/ben.gardner/iWeb/Site/Nabe_files/P1000035.jpg
http://web.mac.com/ben.gardner/iWeb/Site/Nabe_files/P1000011.jpg

― gabbneb, Monday, 5 May 2008 03:38 (sixteen years ago) link

http://web.mac.com/ben.gardner/iWeb/Site/Nabe_files/P1000027.jpg http://web.mac.com/ben.gardner/iWeb/Site/Nabe_files/P1000026.jpg

― gabbneb, Monday, 5 May 2008 03:40 (sixteen years ago) link

http://web.mac.com/ben.gardner/iWeb/Site/Nabe_files/P1000031.jpg http://web.mac.com/ben.gardner/iWeb/Site/Nabe_files/P1000021.jpg

― gabbneb, Monday, 5 May 2008 03:41 (sixteen years ago) link

http://web.mac.com/ben.gardner/iWeb/Site/Nabe_files/P1000034.jpg http://web.mac.com/ben.gardner/iWeb/Site/Nabe_files/P1000033.jpg

― gabbneb, Monday, 5 May 2008 03:43 (sixteen years ago) link

Tiny dogs, Dud or Massive Dud?

― Z S, Monday, 5 May 2008 03:48 (sixteen years ago) link

I don't know why, it just seems like an asshole move, like wearing sunglasses in a club.

― Z S, Monday, 5 May 2008 03:48 (sixteen years ago) link

http://web.mac.com/ben.gardner/iWeb/Site/Nabe_files/P1000024.jpg http://web.mac.com/ben.gardner/iWeb/Site/Nabe_files/P1000023.jpg

― gabbneb, Monday, 5 May 2008 03:50 (sixteen years ago) link

NO STANDING ANYTIME

WESTSIIIIIIIIIIIIDE ----> IS THE OTHER WAY

PARK CLOSES AT DREAM

i do not know if this thread has a point or not & dont expect gabb to tell me if does

― deeznuts, Monday, 5 May 2008 03:54 (sixteen years ago) link

we just watched the bourne ultimatum which has its big exciting climax on the upper east side (400 block of east 71st street). a secret cia torture-training facility would sorta jazz up the neighborhood i guess.

― tipsy mothra, Monday, 5 May 2008 04:15 (sixteen years ago) link

people who hate small dogs baffle me, what is so terrible about cheerful, curious, trusting little animals who love being alive?

― estela, Monday, 5 May 2008 04:20 (sixteen years ago) link

They grow up?

― Lamp, Monday, 5 May 2008 04:34 (sixteen years ago) link

Rent is surprisingly cheap on the UES. You could probably get a studio there for the price of a curtain-partitioned share in WBRUG/GURNTPONT. Fun times.

― burt_stanton, Monday, 5 May 2008 04:46 (sixteen years ago) link

Seriously? How much is 'surprisingly cheap'? I'm looking for places to live & have been hearing stuff abt how it's cheaper than other areas, etc., but craigslist apt. postings do not seem to bear this out.

― janice, Monday, 5 May 2008 15:21 (sixteen years ago) link

ues isn't "cheap," just not as expensive as you might think for the ues. compared to, i don't know, soho, it's a relative bargain. the downside being that you have to live on the upper east side (which i don't mind). we're planning to move crosstown to the uws later this year, and at least from the rental listings i'm seeing it looks like the prices are pretty comparable. (speaking of which, if anyone happens to know of a 2-br apt. being vacated on the uws in july, let me know...)

― tipsy mothra, Monday, 5 May 2008 15:47 (sixteen years ago) link

why is gabbneb posting pictures of my work? stop stalking me dude.

― bell_labs, Monday, 5 May 2008 15:50 (sixteen years ago) link

and i think burt stanton means that rent is surprisingly cheap in spanish harlem, not the UES.

― bell_labs, Monday, 5 May 2008 15:52 (sixteen years ago) link

well, I mean UES like ... a 6th floor walk-up on 1st Avenue and 92nd Street, where it takes like 15 minutes to walk to the local 6. The places I saw were grungy as hell, though.

― burt_stanton, Monday, 5 May 2008 16:52 (sixteen years ago) link

Is this thread serious?

― Catsupppppppppppppp dude 茄蕃, Monday, 5 May 2008 16:55 (sixteen years ago) link

everything is cheap compared to soho, it's the most expensive nabe in manhattan

― gabbneb, Monday, 5 May 2008 17:01 (sixteen years ago) link

I miss new york.

― G00blar, Monday, 5 May 2008 17:12 (sixteen years ago) link

Springtime!

― G00blar, Monday, 5 May 2008 17:12 (sixteen years ago) link

Raccoon comes to the Upper East Side

― gabbneb, Thursday, 15 May 2008 20:31 (sixteen years ago) link

<3 there are tons of raccoons in central park! last year one broke through the ceiling of the american wing at the met.

― bell_labs, Thursday, 15 May 2008 20:33 (sixteen years ago) link

no Pelicans tho

― gabbneb, Thursday, 15 May 2008 20:34 (sixteen years ago) link

i love raccoons and their creepy little hands

― bell_labs, Thursday, 15 May 2008 20:35 (sixteen years ago) link

three years pass...

Considering what we're paying in East-East Williamsburg now I'm wondering if Yorkville and the East-East UES aren't a better deal by now, especially considering the easy commute for me.

― happiness is the new productivity (Hurting 2), Wednesday, 15 February 2012 16:07 (twelve years ago) link

two years pass...

hopefully moving to upper west side in a few months

― calstars, Sunday, 4 May 2014 17:06 (ten years ago) link

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