NYC: Suburban shoppers flock to ethnic enclaves

[Jularc]

;) Maybe Miketoronto would like this one story...


Suburban shoppers flock to ethnic enclaves


http://www.therealdeal.net//breaking_news/2007/11/13/images/12714.jpg
Shops in downtown Flushing


November 13, 2007

Suburban shoppers with immigrant parents or grandparents are boosting the city's economy by visiting ethnic retail centers at a growing rate, according to a report published by the Center for an Urban Future, a think tank.

Downtown Flushing, Washington Heights, Richmond Hill, Brighton Beach, Midwood and Astoria are all popular ethnic centers. While the number of businesses citywide increased 9.6 percent from 1994 to 2004, the report highlighted several areas that grew faster: Flushing, up 54.6 percent; Sunset Park, up 47.3 percent; Sheepshead Bay-Brighton Beach, up 33.7 percent; and Washington Heights, up 17.8 percent.

The Flushing Business Improvement District's executive director estimated that as many as half of the weekend customers at downtown Flushing's retail strips are from outside the neighborhood, and come from as far as Connecticut, New Jersey and even Massachusetts.

Traffic from the suburbs has strained many of these neighborhoods' roads, said the report, which called on the city to improve parking and public transportation.

Job growth also outpaced the citywide rate in several ethnic enclaves. Between 1994 and 2004, employment citywide climbed 6.9 percent. Over that period, employment increased 33.6 percent in Washington Heights, 27.9 percent in Jackson Heights, 23.2 percent in Sunset Park and 13.3 percent in Sheepshead Bay-Brighton Beach.


Copyright © 2003-2007 The Real Deal.

[dimondpark]

;) Maybe Miketoronto would like this one story...


Suburban shoppers flock to ethnic enclaves


http://www.therealdeal.net//breaking_news/2007/11/13/images/12714.jpg
Shops in downtown Flushing


November 13, 2007

Suburban shoppers with immigrant parents or grandparents are boosting the city's economy by visiting ethnic retail centers at a growing rate, according to a report published by the Center for an Urban Future, a think tank.

Downtown Flushing, Washington Heights, Richmond Hill, Brighton Beach, Midwood and Astoria are all popular ethnic centers. While the number of businesses citywide increased 9.6 percent from 1994 to 2004, the report highlighted several areas that grew faster: Flushing, up 54.6 percent; Sunset Park, up 47.3 percent; Sheepshead Bay-Brighton Beach, up 33.7 percent; and Washington Heights, up 17.8 percent.

The Flushing Business Improvement District's executive director estimated that as many as half of the weekend customers at downtown Flushing's retail strips are from outside the neighborhood, and come from as far as Connecticut, New Jersey and even Massachusetts.

Traffic from the suburbs has strained many of these neighborhoods' roads, said the report, which called on the city to improve parking and public transportation.

Job growth also outpaced the citywide rate in several ethnic enclaves. Between 1994 and 2004, employment citywide climbed 6.9 percent. Over that period, employment increased 33.6 percent in Washington Heights, 27.9 percent in Jackson Heights, 23.2 percent in Sunset Park and 13.3 percent in Sheepshead Bay-Brighton Beach.


Copyright © 2003-2007 The Real Deal.

Does NYC suburban areas with ethnic strip malls like we here do in California...entire retail thoroughfares in Suburbia dedicated to asian or hispanic goods?

[bryson662001]

I can't imagine that business in downtown Flushing is up 54%. When I lived there in the 1980's it was already bursting at the seems. The sidewalks were so crowded that pedestrians got pushed into the street which isn't as dangerous as it sounds since traffic hardly moved.

[Crawford]

Does NYC suburban areas with ethnic strip malls like we here do in California...entire retail thoroughfares in Suburbia dedicated to asian or hispanic goods?

Yeah, we have ethnoburbs too, though I would say that (in comparison to LA, SF, Toronto, Van, etc.) we have most of our ethnic concentrations in a more urban format.

The region's biggest ethnic enclaves, with some exceptions, tend to be in older, walkable neighborhoods in the Five Boroughs and in some older suburbs.

Probably the two biggest suburban-style greater NYC ethnoburbs:

1. The Korean community in Bergen County, NJ (directly across from Manhattan).

Palisiades Park and a few adjacent communities have the highest proportion of Koreans (by municipality) in the country and the second largest Korean community in the country after Koreatown in LA. This area is more of an urban/suburban hybrid. It's fairly dense and walkable, but also has some of those LA-style two-floor strip malls and the like. There are some high rise condos u/c, and the area is growing more Manhattan-like, but there is still some older sprawl.

2. The South Asian Community in and around Edison, NJ.

This is more classic suburbia turned into an Indian/Pakistani community. It's the largest South Asian Community in North America. You can see some of the retail from the Northeast Corridor NJTransit/Amtrak line, right before you arrive at Metropark (coming from Manhattan).

[dimondpark]

Yeah, we have ethnoburbs too, though I would say that (in comparison to LA, SF, Toronto, Van, etc.) we have most of our ethnic concentrations in a more urban format.

The region's biggest ethnic enclaves, with some exceptions, tend to be in older, walkable neighborhoods in the Five Boroughs and in some older suburbs.

Probably the two biggest suburban-style greater NYC ethnoburbs:

1. The Korean community in Bergen County, NJ (directly across from Manhattan).

Palisiades Park and a few adjacent communities have the highest proportion of Koreans (by municipality) in the country and the second largest Korean community in the country after Koreatown in LA. This area is more of an urban/suburban hybrid. It's fairly dense and walkable, but also has some of those LA-style two-floor strip malls and the like. There are some high rise condos u/c, and the area is growing more Manhattan-like, but there is still some older sprawl.

2. The South Asian Community in and around Edison, NJ.

This is more classic suburbia turned into an Indian/Pakistani community. It's the largest South Asian Community in North America. You can see some of the retail from the Northeast Corridor NJTransit/Amtrak line, right before you arrive at Metropark (coming from Manhattan).

Interesting stuff. Thanks:tup:

[arbeiter]

There are some Jamaican/West Indian suburban enclaves too, in Long Island and Westchester. And Rockland County is pretty ethnically Jewish.

[Crawford]

There are some Jamaican/West Indian suburban enclaves too, in Long Island and Westchester. And Rockland County is pretty ethnically Jewish.

Yeah, I forgot about those. Southern Nassau County (Long Island) has West Indian ethnoburbs, and in Westchester County (NY) you have Brazilians in Mount Vernon and South Americans in Port Chester.

Rockland County (NY) has large suburban Orthodox and Hasidic communities. You have the same Orthodox and Hasidic communities in Teaneck, Deal and Lakewood, NJ. You also have growing Orthodox Jewish communities replacing secular Jews in Southern Nassau County (Long Island), particularly in the Five Towns area and in West Hempstead.

In the affluent towns of northern Nassau County, Asians are now a majority in some public schools, but not yet overall. Depending on the town, they could be Chinese, Indian or Korean. I think the southern portion of Great Neck (of Great Gatsby fame), for example, is now heavily Asian, while the northern part is mostly Jewish. Indians live further south, by the Long Island Expressway.

There's also some town in Bergen County, NJ that has the largest Filipino community on the East Coast. They have a Filipino mayor and basically control the town. I forgot the name. Anyone?

[Canasian]

^^^^
Orange County NY, with Kiryas Joel is also a 100% Hasidic Village.