The East Village pep talk diaries

[El Jardín del Paraíso, East Fifth Street between Avenue C and Avenue D. By Bobby Williams]

We recently posted an email from a longtime East Village resident who was losing faith in the neighborhood. We asked for people to submit comments on the things that they like about the East Village. We'll periodically post some of the comments, like this one.

Steph said...
Early morning walks.
Marble Cemetery — open hours are magical
International Bar
Tile Bar
Coal Yard
Chillmaster
Community gardens — can't express how much I love walking around on a summer weekend going into the gardens.
Summer weekends — w/o college kids and everyone being out of town makes me renew my love with the hood.
Hell's Angels
The sense of community and the diversity of people — it's still here. It's still better than all of Manhattan and don't even mention Brooklyn.

Read all the comments here.

The East Village pep talk diaries

Last Tuesday, we posted an email from a longtime East Village resident who was losing faith in the neighborhood. We asked for people to submit comments on the things that they like about the East Village. So far we're at 62 comments. Like this one:

Anonymous said...
I also highly recommend early-morning Sunday walks! Far east 14th, with storekeepers hosing the sidewalks. It's very peaceful. More to love:

St. Mark's Church in the Bowery

Chico murals and Jim the Mosaic Man

Trash & Vaudeville

East Village Books (St. Marks b/t 1st/A)

We'll periodically post some of the comments. Read all the comments here.

An East Village pep talk

Here's a recent email from a longtime resident who may be losing the East Village faith:

"The neighborhood has really been getting me down lately and I was wondering if you would ever post a pep talk, pointing out its good points. I'm not enjoying much about the East Village lately, but I can't leave because my apartment is rent-stabilized. Three high rises have been built within 50 feet of me within the last dozen years and God forbid I have to walk my dog on a Friday or Saturday night. The sidewalks are so clogged with drunken frat guys I can barely get through. I've also been mugged in the last few years so I don't necessarily think it's safer, either."

Thought we might make this a group exercise. Given what has closed of late, and what might be closing... Anyway, we sometimes talk about the stuff around here that we don't like ... how about sharing the things that you do like? Things that make the neighborhood the special place that it is.

And we're not approving any comments in which someone attacks a person's choice for things that they like. Unless it concerns Frogurt. Or cargo shorts.