Since moving into Williamsburg I've seen a very strong grassroots movement to keep it at a small scale. What makes the place special is that it is low rise, and isn't Manhattan.
But looking at the recent construction going on (you can spot as many as three tall buildings going up from the J line) I think it's only a matter of when (not if) that the Bedford area will change. Of course this isn't the first time that this has happened in NYC, if you want to see the future of the Bedford strip just take a look at Soho, Chelsea, and now the East Village.
But on the flip side I think the action will just move to the east. I live on Keap near Broadway and I still see many empty or sad looking store fronts. My thinking is that Broadway will look like Bedford in another three to five years with trendy clothing shops and upscale eating.
I also went to see some music in Bushwick last weekend, and from what I'm seeing Bushwick is what Williamsburg was ten years ago, and headed up. This isn't all to say that the community shouldn't fight the invasion of Tumpesque towers, but that there is a larger tend underway as Manhattan becomes too expensive for creatives and the middle class.
But looking at the recent construction going on (you can spot as many as three tall buildings going up from the J line) I think it's only a matter of when (not if) that the Bedford area will change. Of course this isn't the first time that this has happened in NYC, if you want to see the future of the Bedford strip just take a look at Soho, Chelsea, and now the East Village.
But on the flip side I think the action will just move to the east. I live on Keap near Broadway and I still see many empty or sad looking store fronts. My thinking is that Broadway will look like Bedford in another three to five years with trendy clothing shops and upscale eating.
I also went to see some music in Bushwick last weekend, and from what I'm seeing Bushwick is what Williamsburg was ten years ago, and headed up. This isn't all to say that the community shouldn't fight the invasion of Tumpesque towers, but that there is a larger tend underway as Manhattan becomes too expensive for creatives and the middle class.