Business Case Study: Greenpoint, Brooklyn
Greenpoint
Greenpoint, Brooklyn is a culturally vibrant neighborhood full of a wide range of retail shops, restaurants, bars & venues, banks, and other services. It is largely occupied by people of Polish descent (43.6% according to the 2000 Census) and of Hispanic descent (19.2%.) The median income is $33,578, significantly lower than the corresponding national average of $41,994. Even with the median income in Greenpoint being almost $10,000 less than the national average, it has many of the same difficult characteristics shared by most New York City neighborhoods - namely higher-than-average housing prices, overcrowded schools, higher utility prices, high local taxes, and lack of high paying jobs- all of which create a much higher total cost of living than most cities in the United States.
A very low proportion of Greenpoint residents own their homes. …show more content…
In 2005, the City Council passed a plan for the re-zoning and development of much of the Greenpoint and Williamsburg waterfront, as well a large block of the upland area. The plan is known as the Greenpoint-Williamsburg Land Use and Waterfront Plan. The plan focuses on changing zoning regulations along the northern Brooklyn waterfront and some of the upland areas, mostly to allow for large residential buildings to be built. Many residents of the community were worried about the waterfront development buildings being built very high, and pushed for regulations limiting the number of stories a building was allowed to have. There were also concerns about new condominium & rental developments being geared only toward those with high incomes, and not toward those with average Greenpoint & Williamsburg incomes (Williamsburg has an even lower median income than Greenpoint, $23,567.) An attempt was made to strike a compromise between the community and the development groups, to solve both of these problems in one fell
Greenpoint, Brooklyn is a culturally vibrant neighborhood full of a wide range of retail shops, restaurants, bars & venues, banks, and other services. It is largely occupied by people of Polish descent (43.6% according to the 2000 Census) and of Hispanic descent (19.2%.) The median income is $33,578, significantly lower than the corresponding national average of $41,994. Even with the median income in Greenpoint being almost $10,000 less than the national average, it has many of the same difficult characteristics shared by most New York City neighborhoods - namely higher-than-average housing prices, overcrowded schools, higher utility prices, high local taxes, and lack of high paying jobs- all of which create a much higher total cost of living than most cities in the United States.
A very low proportion of Greenpoint residents own their homes. …show more content…
In 2005, the City Council passed a plan for the re-zoning and development of much of the Greenpoint and Williamsburg waterfront, as well a large block of the upland area. The plan is known as the Greenpoint-Williamsburg Land Use and Waterfront Plan. The plan focuses on changing zoning regulations along the northern Brooklyn waterfront and some of the upland areas, mostly to allow for large residential buildings to be built. Many residents of the community were worried about the waterfront development buildings being built very high, and pushed for regulations limiting the number of stories a building was allowed to have. There were also concerns about new condominium & rental developments being geared only toward those with high incomes, and not toward those with average Greenpoint & Williamsburg incomes (Williamsburg has an even lower median income than Greenpoint, $23,567.) An attempt was made to strike a compromise between the community and the development groups, to solve both of these problems in one fell