Comments on: The Making Of K-Town: Inside New York’s Real Estate Hype Machine

By: zachary

zachary — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:46:12 +0000

Windsor Terrace was never Flatbush. Flatbush was once its own town named for the relatively flat area south of what is now Prospect Park. Windsor Terrace slopes down to reach Kensington. And Cortelyou Rd is in Flatbush-Ditmas Park, not Midwood. Midwood doesnt’ start until Avenue H or so. And if you’ve really walked through Kensington, you’d see that its a charming place, not that dirty (compared with some other hoods). It definitely doesn’t have hipster amenities though. But Ocean Parkway is a lovely stretch, the buildings are classy. I never got any stares when I was walking around. Coney Island Ave is a depressing place though. Too many auto-repair shops, too wide a road, needs some street trees.

By: jasonmarcussmithIII

jasonmarcussmithIII — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 01:48:26 +0000

Great article. I hope this writer can do more stuff for the Exile.

The wonderful thing about the media is they have to pay their bills while at the same time being fashionably Marxist. Making a suckers’ pitch for leftie, trendy urban rubes is an ingenious way to keep the leftie hipness while whoring for the real estate advertising accounts. Very cool!

By: Scott in WI

Scott in WI — Sun, 31 May 2009 08:50:16 +0000

@Jeffrey Knight

Funny that an English Ph.D. by your name only shows up in a google search in reference to this article. Let me guess, Jeffrey Knight is your nom de plume? Fucking idiot.

By: KensingtonResident

KensingtonResident — Sun, 24 May 2009 13:21:05 +0000

This piece and the conversation is one of the most racist things I’ve read. Inadvertently, it extends the racism already present in the real estate marketing it claims to criticize.

The piece is correct in identifying the real estate conspiracy to market to whites — and thus remove what makes the community as strong a place as it is. However, in doing so it accepts the real estate industry’s logic, and worse, makes the racism against anyone with an intact immigrant culture

Ancient dialects?! wtf! thanks for the linguistic analysis, and thanks for making explicit the unspoken racist undertones of the real estate discussions. And all you posters on the relative merits of Chinese Koreans, Jews etc… I can only say wow.

By: twentyeight

twentyeight — Fri, 22 May 2009 21:39:44 +0000

I’ve never quite understood the demographic that owns non-rental properties in NYC. But then again I am from the working-class South, where we don’t have trust fund brats, or, at least, you don’t know them. Million dollar 30′ X 100′ lots in Greenpoint on top of the biggest inhabited oil spill of all time? $500,000 600′ sq. houses? I’d like to know where the fuck these “artists” get their money from, because most “artists” I know are either broke or work full-time not doing art.

By: jules

jules — Thu, 21 May 2009 02:33:50 +0000

I’ve lived in Midwood since high school and haven’t heard the name Kensington until it was bandied about in the press. The name makes an impression and doesn’t fit at all with the neighborhood.

But it is true that the neighborhood is getting yupier. There are a couple Park Slopish cafes on Cortelou Rd., an organic store on Church Ave., and at least two galleries including the Kris Waldherer one off of Foster Ave and E16th.

One didn’t have this type of places, only bodegas and the like, 15 years ago.

The press may be blowing things out of proportion for the sake of the new story. And perhaps these stories are self-fulfilling prophecies to a degree. But they are not entirely empty of substance.

By: Hellserch

Hellserch — Wed, 20 May 2009 01:48:15 +0000

Whilst agreeing with the obvious anger bleeding all over this piece of journalism, I take exception to the snide comments about the Bangla.Here to in the UK,we have the same kinetic lies masquerading about property.I live in Hackney,generally acknowledge as ‘not good’ that hasn’t stopped them verbally dressing up parts of it like it was the real Kensington (West that is).Worried about islamic prayers,then don’t live in your own bloody city mate.

By: Martin Thorpe

Martin Thorpe — Tue, 19 May 2009 09:25:30 +0000

Great bit of writing. Sadly a rarity this side of the Atlantic. As for the criticism that its racist, etc., come on! Go and live in the 3rd World like I have and then judge what constitutes racism. Anyway, that’s just a side issue; the core of the piece is that real estate boosters are continuing to massage the market in NY, USA and in my backyard the UK. There hasn’t been any real market realignment over here, which any meaningful economic planning would require (2 bedroom flat in Edinburgh, Scotland upwards of $300,000!!!) The reason, simply that taxpayers money is being recycled inorder to shore-up the whole rotten financial edifice, because the alternative is that people might realise how profoundly they’ve been shafted and get out on the streets and lynch some of these scoundrels. Instead like children we’ve been read a goodnight storytale and given a glass of warm milk. The truth isn’t just out there….its right in front of your nose!

By: ehswan

ehswan — Tue, 19 May 2009 01:14:31 +0000

Well I’ll tell youall about the NEXT BIG THING. Me and Mom bought a house in central Ky on a quarter acre lot, 1200sq ft with detached 2 car garrage in walking distance to every thing one could need for $30,000. On top of that,seriously friendly neighbors and no property taxes. Yes. I know, for you on the coasts
this sounds COMPLETLEY FREAKING IMPOSSIBLE and yet it is true. Not only that but the land we are on has 24 inches of fine top soil and is well watered. Consider central Ky. We will wecome you!

By: aleke

aleke — Sun, 17 May 2009 23:08:26 +0000

OH FORSOOTH! ACADEMIA WITH SUCH REACTIONARIES IN-IT! WITH THE WRATH OF CAPITAL, WITH THE SPEED OF DAEMON! ME THINKS MEIN OWN TINY EDITION OF OED WILL DISPELLEN THE MISTERIE:

Jeffrey
n. 1a. “Dahmer, American Brute, killed many Scum,” 1b. “Knight, White Fagot Knight of The Capital Variété, esp. Insubstantial Controbutions to Ecstatic Truth, Internet Cretin”