Greenpoint, Brooklyn: Life in the burgeoning hipster hotspot, from restaurants to real estate

The gradual gentrification of Greenpoint has allowed for a mix of old and new businesses, locals said.

“You can have a Polish meat market right next to a hip charcuterie pop-up, and it just feels like it all belongs,” observed David Koeppel, 30, who recently moved to the neighborhood.

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Photo Credit: Jeremy Bales

Another major draw to the nabe are its boutiques and art galleries. Quirky vintage shops line Manhattan Avenue, while galleries and studios like Calico on West Street occupy old warehouses.

And due to its waterfront location, Greenpoint boasts enviable views of Manhattan, notably from Transmitter Park (pictured).

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Photo Credit: Jeremy Bales

And while the area’s increasing desirability has its positives, the downside is that real estate prices are rising with its popularity.

“Greenpoint is home to many families that have lived in the neighborhood for three or four generations, and their familiarity with each other gives the neighborhood a small-town feeling,” explained Jeff Mann, publisher of the Greenpoint Gazette newspaper.

However, “the recent huge jumps in property values have made it nearly impossible for many of them to remain in the area,” he said.

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Photo Credit: Jeremy Bales

Natalia Gorska, 30, a lifelong resident, shares his concerns. “It worries me that in a few years, rent prices will drive out the culture as I know it,” she lamented.

Leeman confirmed that real estate prices are steadily rising. “A shortage of inventory has made bidding wars and all-cash deals all too common,” she said.

One-bedroom apartments typically rent for around $2,650, while condos fetch an average of $1,000 per square foot, according to Leeman.

Multifamily homes in the neighborhood sell for around $2.5 million, she added.

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Photo Credit: Jeremy Bales

Young families can also settle in here: With high test scores and parent-satisfaction ratings, Greenpoint public schools are some of the best in the borough.

P.S. 34 Oliver H. Perry, the oldest continually operating elementary school in Brooklyn, is a National Blue Ribbon school, while PS 110 The Monitor School offers a prestigious French and English dual-language program and focuses on education in the arts.

Still, Greenpointers complain of poor subway service and limited park space.

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Photo Credit: Jeremy Bales

Grab a treat at Peter Pan Donut & Pastry Shop, 727 Manhattan Ave.: Get in line for the chocolate-glazed red velvet doughnut at this Polish bakery; peterpan-donuts.com

Visit Transmitter Park, Kent Street at the river: A local greenspace that was once home to the WNYC radio transmission towers, it features a waterfront esplanade with stunning views of Manhattan; nycgovparks.org

Bowl at The Gutter, 200 N. 14th St.: A retro-style bowling alley with eight lanes and 12 craft beers on draft; thegutterbrooklyn.com

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Photo Credit: Jeremy Bales

Ramona, 113 Franklin St.: An expansive, family-owned bar (pictured) that serves innovative cocktails and reimagined classics. ramonabarnyc.com

The Warsaw, 261 Driggs Ave.: Inside the Polish National Home is the Warsaw, a music venue that has hosted everyone from the New Pornographers to Patti Smith; warsawconcerts.com

Torst, 615 Manhattan Ave.: This Scandinavian bar is a favorite on the city’s craft beer circuit. Torst pours 21 obscure brews from all over the world; torstnyc.com

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Photo Credit: Jeremy Bales

The sign along Franklin Street says it all: “Behold Bushwick Inlet! Where’s our park?”

Locals have been fighting for a park along the Greenpoint and Williamsburg waterfront since 2005, when former Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s administration rezoned almost 200 blocks throughout the neighborhoods to allow the construction of residential buildings along the East River.

To offset the development, the community was promised a 28-acre park, which was estimated to cost between $60 million and $90 million. Ten years and nearly $225 million later, only 8.7 acres are finished.

“NYC Parks continues to take substantive steps toward the completion of Bushwick Inlet Park,” Mayor Bill de Blasio’s deputy press secretary Monica Klein said when asked about the status of its construction.

The completed park space is on one of three parcels of land in the area already purchased by the city. The city budget has $50 million set aside for a fourth piece.

In the middle of the park space is an 11-acre CitiStorage site, on the market for $500 million, listed by its owner Norman Brodsky.

A community activist group, Friends of Bushwick Inlet Park, is leading the fight to make sure the CitiStorage site becomes parkland — as opposed to a residential building — should it be purchased.

“For me, it’s a health issue,” said Jans Rasmussen, a 19-year resident of Greenpoint and a lead organizer for FBIP. “There’s lots of research that connects lack of open space to disastrous health outcomes.”

The group is coordinating with its local community board to draft a resolution to prevent the zoning of the CitiStorage lot for residential use. A late-September meeting with the mayor’s office indicated the city favors the resolution.

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Photo Credit: Jeremy Bales

The owner of Greenpoint’s first wood-burning pizzeria, 62-year-old Paulie Gee knows a thing or two about the neighborhood. He opened his eponymous restaurant on Greenpoint Avenue in 2010 and has watched the area go from a Polish haven to a hot neighborhood for hipsters. He’s retired now but still spends most nights at his restaurant, meeting new neighbors and dreaming up delicious pizzas.

Why did you decide to open your business here?

I idolized Roberta’s and wanted to replicate what they did by opening a restaurant in a neighborhood like Bushwick. I wanted to find another neighborhood that Williamsburg was expanding into — and there were a number of bars in Greenpoint, but no restaurants, no wood-burning pizzerias. It was just begging for the place I wanted to open.

What makes this neighborhood unique?

There are people coming here from all over the country and world, and they’re creating this wonderful melting pot within the city. It’s also a little quieter, a little calmer than other areas.

What is one improvement the neighborhood needs?

We’re going to need more parking very soon, and better G-train service. Being in the restaurant business, I have employees who work into the wee hours and for them to get home to Bushwick and beyond, it’s difficult. The train service is just not that good.

What is your favorite memory in Greenpoint?

I think having the ability to serve the community after [Superstorm] Sandy. We were untouched, unlike so many less-fortunate businesses, and every night was like Saturday night. People were coming from lower Manhattan and all over Brooklyn, and we offered a place where they could get away from the madness.

What do you think the neighborhood will be like in 10 years?

It’s going to be extremely desirable to live in because of the variety of businesses that are opening here. Plus, we have the most wonderful views of Manhattan. It’s going to be difficult to find an affordable place to live though.

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Photo Credit: Handout GEORGIA KRAL

Once primarily an industrial zone, Greenpoint is yet another hot Brooklyn neighborhood to live in, and locals say its transformation isn’t finished yet.

While the northern Brooklyn area has always been a haven for Polish-Americans, its population is becoming increasingly diverse. And, as in much of the borough these days, there’s also a sizable hipster faction.

“A lot of former Williamsburgers have fled to Greenpoint in search of calm and quiet,” noted Colleen Leeman, a real estate saleswoman with Citi Habitats.