Ugly Streets of New York

I think all of the streets in Gowanus qualify! It's a shame, since the neighborhood's location lends itself to some (somewhat tainted by IKEA) views of the Statue of Liberty. But just about all of the streets in Gowanus are just so industrial and dirty.

Haha! I like to think that New York City's charm gives every street its own unique and special brand of beauty...

@ajadeidealist Naw, I agree with the Municipal Arts Society, that stretch of 35th is just...deficient. And being in Manhattan doesn't make up for it. I agree about Gowanus too, though a few of the streets manage to be kinda industrial-charming. Not all, though.

@NeverSleeps @Uraniumfish Indeed, Gowanus is lacking in aesthetics. Especially that stretch of Hamilton Ave under the BQE. Why is it always raining down there? My car always emerges covered in dirty BQE acid rain.

@Uraniumfish: I agree with you. However, have you seen the Bronx. I live there for three years and let me tell you, some streets are downright ugly.

@Uraniumfish I admit that Gowanus offers an interesting perspective on the Statue of Liberty, which can be seen through rusty fences and in between huge commercial tankers and steam pipes.

@BroadwayBK I once Googled "Why is it always raining under the BQE?" but found no sufficient answer. I've actually walked under there, so I can say that being in a car is the preferable way to chug down Hamilton.

@everyone Brownsville offers a really ugly take on Brooklyn. I guess any neighborhood where people tend to be poor is usually not the prettiest.

@Everyone perhaps we should now conduct a survey on the prettiest streets in NYC?..

This isn't so much about aesthetics, but I thought it was an interesting read: http://www.thelmagazine.com/gyrobase/the-50-best-blocks-in-brooklyn/Content?oid=1792395&storyPage=4

Great:

"Best Block for Urban Detrital Discoveries (by day), Lynchian Encounters with the Unheimlich (by evening), and Profound Malaise Bordering on Fear (by night)
Meserole between Bushwick Ave and Morgan Ave
This one wrote itself."

@Uraniumfish LOL .

@Uraniumfish So you're not coming to visit me anytime soon....?

Ah, BroadwayBK! There was a time when I was such a snob that I shunned Brooklyn altogether. As we know, I have come to love a good many neighborhoods in Brooklyn, and have lived there happily and with some aplomb. However, my magnanimity hasn't extended quite as far as Bushwick just yet...

@Uraniumfish If you can believe it, I used to shun Brooklyn myself. Ah, those were the days in my tiny tiny tiny LES apt.

@NeverSleeps I think the BQE just has a really crappy drainage system that likes to rain down its filthy water at unexpected times. Driving under it, I've seen what looks like torrential rain coming down when there wasn't a cloud in the sky.

All of north Brooklyn is heinously ugly! Those abandoned condo buildings at the waterfront definitely don't help either.

@JenMac Is it still that bad? know of a pompous friend who bought a penthouse (!) in one of those buildings by the waterfront.

Having spent time in London, I can definitely say that New York look even more gorgeous to me now! Something about the London architectural style really doesn't click for me - I find it oppressive and disenchanting...

@ajadedidealist I can relate, some years ago my husband's cousin got an offer to move to London with Barclay's bank. She lives in Princeton and when she went over for her look see trip she was most disappointed at how 'old' everything was in London. She ultimately opted out of the assignment for financial reasons and is still happily residing in the US.

@Ajadedidealist: Isn't it true there is always fog in London, especially at night?

Haaa... I just watched in episode of Mad Men - post-British buyout of Sterling Cooper - in which they talk about how there is actually no fog in London. Apparently what Dickens was referring to was all the soot in the air from all the burning coal of the era: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pea_soup_fog

@JenMac Agree about Northside Brooklyn - but I wouldn't call those condos "abandoned," as it seems like most of them have never known what it's like to have a tenant.

NeverSleeps: Every time I watch a movie or TV show and the location is London, the area seems to be full of fog. I asked someone who visited NY not too long ago, and he told me there is fog in London, but mostly at night.

Um, no. Sorry but you and your "someone who visited NY" are incorrect. I've been there personally and fog in London is rare in modern times. Sorry. Hollywood lied to you. But obviously you are going to believe whatever you have decided is correct no matter how many facts, historical articles, or quotes from actual, nonfictional people who live there I spew at you.

It does live up to its reputation for rain, in any case.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g186338-s208/London:United-Kingdom:Weather.And.When.To.Go.html

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/2542315.stm

http://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090127233338AAUNJ4C

I like this forum where one guy says "I think you have been watching too many Sherlock Holmes films": http://www.funtrivia.com/askft/Question31059.html

And this Times article from 1889: http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=F70D12F93F5E1A738DDDA00A94DA415B8984F0D3

Jeez.

@ajadedidealist I lived in London for a little while as well and I actually loved it. It's much shorter than New York, so it's hard for me to understand why London is the more oppressive city! Looming skyscrapers fit that description more for me! Not that I don't love the architecture here as well. One thing I did not love about the London skyline? That Great Gherkin. Such an atrocity!

@NeverSleeps: Are you calling someone, who lived in London for more than 30 years, a liar? I don't think so. Plus, he did tell me that fog occurs more often at certain times a year, than at other times. Perhaps the time you were there, the time for the fog not to show was active.

@hhusted Yes, if that person exists, then they lied to you. Obviously you didn't read what Trip Advisor has to say on the subject, which is this: "Contrary to the popular historical image, fog is a rare occurance, sometimes seen early on winter mornings but usually dispersed by the time people get to work. Any fog that does appear is usually high in the air and not at ground level, so the only thing it will affect is your view from the London Eye."

You are the one who asked if it were true that there is always fog in London and now you are suddenly an expert on the topic, which I find pretty strange. All I did was answer the question that you posed. Sorry it wasn't the answer you wanted. But it's the correct one.

@hhusted as someone who has lived off and on in London ( I have been there 16 times since 2003) , I can tell you that yes you do experience foggy conditions at Heathrow sometimes during the winter but in South London where my family home is I have yet to experience fog.

I'm gonna go ahead and say that all of the streets in the 30's around 7th Ave can take a dirtnap. My school is right there so I'm pretty well versed on how gross that area is.

I'd say one of the foggiest areas of all time is in California. We used to have "Foggy Day Schedule" in school. If it was too foggy in the morning for the school buses, we wouldn't start school until 11 am.

@NeverSleeps and Uptowngirl: I know I asked the question. I was just busting your chops. Actually, the guy that told me that was made up. I never spoke to anyone about London. I just wanted to see if you would stick to your story. Thanks for sharing your knowledge about London. It was very helpful.

8th Avenue is pretty grotty as well....
As for London, it's not foggy really - just smoky/gross because of cars, smog, et. al. I think the short height is oppressive; without tall buildings, people are sort of shoved/smushed into a much smaller space...it gets cramped!

@Ajadedidealist: Thanks for sharing.

@Everybody: I don't know about you, but with the snow on the ground, and a lot of it is black looking, it seems to make most streets look ugly. Do you agree?

@hhusted many people who live in the tropics who have never seen snow imagine NYC's streets to be filled with white powder when it snows they have no idea how grotty and slushy the snow filled streets of NYC can get.