Double-edged sword of being a hip ‘hood: Greenpoint ‘old timers’ are now moving out
75-Year-Old Forced Out, Commits Suicide
Greenpoint is up-and-coming and a prime location for the young, successful and trendy. Real estate advertisements boast of its “culture, commerce and community” with “direct access to Midtown Manhattan, Wall Street, Williamsburg, Long Island City.” They describe it as “New York’s most creative neighborhood for the arts, dining, entertainment and shopping … with its sweeping skyline views of New York City and its rich, original history,” but many are blind to the crippling implications of these changes on local businesses and longtime residents.
Greenpoint, sometimes called Little Poland, has the second-largest Polish immigrant community in the U.S., behind Chicago’s Little Warsaw. Poles settled in Greenpoint at the end of the 19th century, fleeing the Soviet Union and hoping for the economic prosperity promised by the American Dream.
Zofia Goreczny moved to Greenpoint from Poland 30 years ago. She immediately felt at home, she said. Almost everyone spoke Polish. Most of the shops were Polish. The area was rough around the edges but had good schools and a sense of community. Goreczny now manages the Kiszka Nassau Meat Market, an iconic institution that has served the community for nearly four decades.