^^^ I guess it depends what you count as western Queens. If you include Jackson Heights and are thinking primarily of that, then I agree that eastern Hudson can't hold a candle to that (very few places in the US outside BX/BK/QNS can!). But I guess when I think of western Queens, I think more of LIC+Astoria as being more typical, and Manhattan-level densities are not really more common there than in eastern Hudson. Certainly the densities in Hudson County almost never exceed 110k/sq mi, but even in western Queens (excluding Jackson Heights) this is exceptionally rare. And the 110k threshhold seems a bit arbitrarily chosen-I noticed that if you set the threshhold to 100k, eastern Hudson has more block groups in that category than LIC/Astoria do.
If I had to refine my point, I'd say that Hudson is very heterogeneous, and the east Hudson neighborhoods you highlighted have levels of density and vibrancy that are at or above the average for Brooklyn/western Queens (with the caveat that there are certainly Bk/Qns neighborhoods that are even denser and more vibrant). It's hard to make generalizations about these counties when they're so huge and varied. Maybe that's why city vs city comparisons are frowned upon here?
I think neighborhood-level comparisons are much more informative...West New York is more vibrant than Bay Ridge or Sheepshead Bay or Windsor Terrace in Brooklyn, but much less so than Downtown Brooklyn or Sunset Park.
Anyway, I forgot to say that this is an epic and amazing photo series, thanks for sharing!
Quote:
There's still so much left to explore in Hudson County (haven't made it to Bayonne with my camera yet, I've gone without), and beyond in Jersey.
|
I think you really hit almost all of the most interesting neighborhoods.
Bayonne has pretty much just a single corridor of interest (Broadway), plus the industrial waterfront. Probably more efficient to get around on a bike when you're out that far.
Bergen/Lafayette has many pretty row houses, but also many vacant lots, and there are spots you should avoid unless you know your way around (Monticello Ave and anywhere south of Communipaw). The area south of Montgomery, north of Communipaw, and east of Lincoln Park has lots of stately 1920s and 1930s mid-rise apartment buildings as well as graceful Victorian mansions and row houses. The eastern end of Communipaw near Lafayette Park is reasonably safe and has some fine rowhouses too, but again, lots of abandoned properties. This is another trip that's probably ideal for biking rather than walking.
Farther afield in Essex County, there's the Ironbound, which has a lot of cultural interest, but lots of fugly wood-frame/vinyl architecture, and downtown Newark, which has good architectural bones but has a long way to go. So much potential there but so many parking lots and modernist travesties.