Maspeth Profiled in amNY
Maspeth was profiled in amNY on Tuesday, as part of their City Living series. The article is split into a couple narrative elements - basic information and a more interesting interview with local resident Lorraine Sakli (her family has been there for three generations). I certainly learned some things - my original concept of Maspeth was that it was home to the UPS pickup center, a place you are forced to visit when UPS decides they’ve tried to deliver your package enough times and gives up. Anyway, here are a few article highlights for me:
Best quote of the interview part of the article: “People aren’t eating a lot of pork these days, but in this neighborhood they do.”
Most interesting tidbit: “…this is cemetery land. I think we have three Cavalries. That’s why the streets are so narrow. It’s because they used to bring in the bodies on ox carts.” (My understanding from long time Queens residents is that the dead have the best land.)
Most misleading thing: Maspeth claiming Donovan’s Pub and its delicious burgers. It belongs to Woodside, according to multiple sources.
Maspeth is home to “traditional Queens”, with a self-proclaimed, old-fashioned, small-town feel to it. In the words of Lorraine Sakli, “Nobody knows it’s here.” Residents like it that way.
There are no (convenient) subways that travel to Maspeth, and the LIRR bypasses it. The closest subway would be neighboring Middle Village’s Metropolitan M stop. You can take a bus, though. Or drive. The lack of decent subway access is probably a contributor to Maspeth’s relative isolation, and why nobody knows it’s there.
There are lots of one and two family homes in Maspeth, and lots of first time buyers, so that means newcomers. From what I gather from the article, they are mostly white - Irish and German. I’d love to hear from anyone if this is accurate or not. Home prices can reach close to $1 million, but on the average home prices hover around $600K. Rents are pretty low, comparatively speaking - a three bedroom for $1,500 was given an example, which sounds like an excellent NYC price to me.
There are plenty of locally-owned businesses, always a good thing in my book.
Maspeth along with neighboring Middle Village, is also the home to the well-regarded Juniper Valley Park, and according to about.com, it is:
a gem with 55 acres of baseball and soccer fields, a track, a roller-hockey rink, playgrounds, and courts for tennis, handball, and bocce. The track and a few fields are new and some of the best in Queens.
The most contentious aspect of Maspeth has been the controversy surrounding St. Saviour’s church. It’s unclear what is going to happen to the land, though most expect it will be fully flattened and have housing built on it. Regardless of your issue on the use of the land, it’s too bad that all the trees were destroyed. There is a local group that works on the St. Saviour’s issue. And in light of the recent business with Dennis Gallagher, who knows what will happen? Will be interesting to see how things progress there.
Check out the article for more about old-fashioned Maspeth.
Related:
City Living: Maspeth [amNY]
Photos of Maspeth [about.com]
Maspeth on OuterB
November 21st, 2007 at 12:03 pm
My old neighborhood prfiled! Woo hoo.
IMHO, Maspeth/Middle Village/Glendale are some of the most under-appreciated ‘hoods in Queens.
November 21st, 2007 at 12:07 pm
I though of you, kyle, while writing this! I knew you had spent time in Maspeth.
I think the residents like the fact that the area is under-appreciated. It keeps things a certain way. When more and more people find out about a neighborhood, certain things follow, and I think many of the residents would not welcome that.
I’d love to know how Maspeth residents feel about being profiled in amNY.
November 22nd, 2007 at 5:49 am
This writeup is almost as bad as the original profile in AM-NY.
November 22nd, 2007 at 9:01 am
Julie, do you live in Maspeth? Tell us what you think of the area!