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Williamsburg and Greenpoint are Brooklyn’s whine regions

The Brooklyn Paper

Williamsburg and Greenpoint residents are the biggest complainers in the borough, new statistics show — and the data has locals wondering who is doing all the whining.

Residents filed a whopping 8,900 complaints through 311 since July, according to Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications statistics — 500 more reports than the next-whiniest neighborhood, Canarsie; 3,000 more complaints than supposedly whiny Park Slope, and almost three times as many grumbles as hustling, bustling Coney Island.

Who’s to blame for all the whining? Let the finger-pointing begin!

“The people who are complaining are the suburbanites who just moved here and aren’t ready to actually live in the city,” said Josh Nelkin, an engineer who has lived in Greenpoint for the past two and a half years. “It’s those kids whose parents are paying their rent — they’re the whiners, not the longtime residents.”

Forget the kids — it’s the Yuppies who are to blame, others said.

“With all of the condos going up, I bet it’s the people that move here from Manhattan that are complaining so much,” said John Moore, who was recently evicted from his loft in the artist-friendly building at 475 Kent Ave.

Michelle Azagury, a Williamsburg resident for the past three years, agreed.

“I’ve noticed a whole new sort of people moving in — maybe they’re the ones complaining because they’re trying to clean up Williamsburg,” Azagury said.

Others argue that you can’t blame just the young artists or the slightly older professionals — you have to blame them both.

“The hipsters and the Yuppies that live here think they’re privileged,” said musician Evan Sobel. “They think they’re entitled to things, so they whine and whine.”

And whine and whine they did. Over the past eight months, Williamsburg and Greenpoint residents called the city to complain about everything from unleashed dogs and disorderly youth to illegal fireworks and public urination, but the biggest grievance in the neighborhood is noise, with residents filing 4,178 complaints — an average of 16.4 per day.

The most annoying noises in the neighborhood come from the residents themselves, with North Brooklynites calling the city 1,555 times to complain about residential noise.

“I certainly complained about noise when I lived there,” said Samson Young, 28, who recently moved from Williamsburg to the quieter pastures of Park Slope. “People here throw parties that are very noisy.”

When Williamsburg and Greenpoint residents aren’t whining about their neighbors being noisy, they’re complaining about the racket on the street, filing 961 complaints about street and sidewalk noise.

 ”The bars here are open until like 4 am, so those people who just bought into $700,000 ground-floor condos might have something to complain about when everyone gets out,” said real-estate broker John Curry, 26.

But it’s not just the late-night revelers that keep residents from sleeping — it’s also the early morning jackhammers that wake them up. Indeed, the North Brooklyn construction boom is not only visible, but audible, causing residents to phone in 1,072 commercial noise complaints.

  “I don’t mind the noise from the parties, but I do mind the noise from construction,” said Amanda Merten, a Parsons School of Design student who called 311 this year to complain about heat in her building. “The construction wakes me up in the morning.”

Williamsburg and Greenpoint residents called the city 758 times to report problems with streets and sidewalks, 530 times to complain about traffic and illegal parking, 491 times to whine about blocked driveways, 426 times to request graffiti removal, and 270 times to raise their grievances about damaged, dangling or missing street signs.

Despite the fact that residents filed an astounding one-and-a-half complaints per hour, some members of the community say the complaints are justified.

Especially when it’s their complaint.

“It’s not whining,” said Stephanie Monseu, a circus owner who called 311 to report broken streetlights and crimes on her block. “There are legitimate concerns about the rents that are paid to live in this neighborhood and the lack of city services that are provided here.”

The Complainers

O, 311, 311 on the wall, which is the whiniest neighborhood of all? The latest figures from the Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications show that Williamsburgers and Greenpointers complained the most, phoning (or web-bing) in 8,900 complaints since July, 2007 — about 500 more complaints than the second-most annoyed neighborhood, Canarsie/Flatlands. Here’s what ticks off North Brooklynites the most:

Noise: 4,178

Lost property: 651

Street and sidewalk condition: 758

Traffic and illegal parking: 530

Blocked driveways: 491

Graffiti: 26

Grand total: 8,900

Reader Feedback

Tom Christoffel from Front Royal, Virginia says:
I have a name for this behavior. It is noted as well in my region - the Northern Shenandoah Valley - a rural/small town area which is getting the overflow from the Northern Virginia/Washington, D.C. metro area. I call it: "suburban latt
March 15, 2008, 6:45 pm
Spyro Poulos from Williamsburg says:
BARC ANIMAL SHELTER IN WILLIAMSBURG, BROOKLYN CALLS ON LOCAL BANDS FOR ASSISTANCE!

For Immediate Release:

One Stepper Production Presents: DOGS OF BROOKLYN!
BARC Animal Shelter in Williamsburg Brooklyn is calling on the areas local musicians to take the stage in a one night benefit/fund raiser to raise both revenue and awareness to it’s years of service within the Williamsburg Community!

August 7th at Supreme Trading
213 N 8th St Williamsburg Brooklyn
Between Driggs and Roebling Ave.
Phone: 718 599 4224
Doors open at 7:00
$7.00 cover

About the participants:

BARC: BARC’s mission is to provide safe haven for homeless animals and find permanent, loving homes for these animals. The animals in our care receive quality food, shelter, and medical attention. We meet the needs of homeless animals through the assistance of dedicated volunteers; revenues generated from the success of our pet supply business, and from private donations. To donate contact - www.barcshelter.org.

One Stepper: Stepper Productions has produced theater and film in Australia and has produced live music events at New York venues such as K&M Bar, CBGB’s, Legion and Arlene’s Grocery for very worthwhile causes. One Stepper is dedicated to Creating, Producing and supporting the many facets of arts, performance, talent and local awareness.
One Stepper Productions:
andreamersits@yahoo.com

Supreme Trading: A SALON FOR A NEW AND EMERGING DESIGN AND FASHION! Supreme Trading is a 7500 square foot collection of spaces located in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, featuring various cultural events revolving around the focus of local art and design. Supreme Trading features approximately 2500 square feet as a bar and lounge operating 7 days a week. Various events and parties as well as resident DJs are hosted in these spaces. This space contains a billiard parlor, sitting rooms for small private parties, and a smoking garden. The remaining 4000 square feet are divided between two large project rooms for galleries. These rooms host innovative art installations and events focused on new and emerging design, art, music and culture.

The Bands:

The Nasties: The Nasties play loud and with attitude. Piloted by the vocals of Roger Nastie, the group sounds like MC5 meets and the Stooges after they partied with the Runaways, always regaling in piss and vinegar while maintaining song writing and melody. http://www.myspace.com/rogernastie

Lady Magma: 3 chicks 2 guys, Lady Magma is a local Brooklyn regular that emotes Tina Turner, Peaches and Portishead in their triangulation of R&B, punk and indie rock. Their song Halcyon Days of Art School Saivet
July 21, 2008, 4:25 pm

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