Vespertine1228
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Reviews
11th Ave
"Gorgeous Park and Safer in Recent Years"
11th Avenue is doing much better ever since the redesign of the Bobby Morris Playfield. Far fewer creepy people hanging around at night, and the park is truly stunning with an arty wading pool/waterfall thing for during the summer. 11th also has the best Value Village in Seattle if you need some new clothes for cheap. The Hugo House is also there, which is a really cool writer’s collective that holds readings and performances for free all the time. Down south, 11th gets more residential with many new condo buildings popping up in the last ten years.
East Union St
"Nice Neighborhood But a Terrible Terrible Place to Drive"
I’m kind of afraid to drive on East Union Street, which is kind of a problem because it connects downtown to Capitol Hill if you’re going through the Virginia Mason Medical Center. It just seems that everyone who drives here is crazy, and the pedestrians are worse. It’s even poorer than the cobblestone side streets it crosses like Summit Avenue because it has more twists and turns. The street is residential and the houses are nice, but I wouldn’t want to live here because of the driving safety issue.
John St
"Difficult to Drive Around But Not Bad"
The east section of John Street is mostly taken up by the Seattle Times building. It’s also where you can find the long-standing 13 Coins, the restaurant famous for its 24/7 operating hours and gigantic portions. Once you head west, John becomes one of the principal sites of the South Lake Union gentrification project. There’s a bunch of nice looking new apartment buildings surrounded by few amenities that are difficult to drive to. Still, living next to Denny Park would be nice, even with the crazy homeless people that sometimes hang out there.
North 55th St
"Great Residential Area with Perks"
Wallingford is strange. You’ll be driving block after block past beautiful old houses and then come along a pocket of restaurants, bars, and shops seemingly out of nowhere. North 55th follows this phenomenon to a t. West of Green Lake, it’s a terrific place to live. East of Green Lake, it’s also a terrific place to live but with amazing Thai food, a nice beer bar, and even vegan donuts of all things. Plus, easy access to the freeway. Why don’t I live here?
East Roy St
"A Slice of Old Capitol Hill"
East Roy Street is one of the few streets that still has Broadway’s old charm. Joe Bar is my favorite coffee place in the city. The tiny upstairs space always makes me feel fancy and they have really cool local artists on display. The Harvard Exit Theatre, a standby for Seattle’s indie film community, is across the street. There’s also a funeral home nearby, so traffic can get complicated on the already winding road. Parking is nearly impossible here as the remaining part of Roy Street is residential, but keep looking and you’ll find somewhere.
Hart St
"Home Depot On One End, But Otherwise Residential and Nice"
Hart Street is almost entirely residential, save for a bodega or two. I find the people here are very friendly, and always like to talk to you as you walk by. At the western end is where the Bed-Stuy Home Depot is, which is very convenient. There’s also a nightclub across the street which often attracts the cops, but nothing serious ever happens.
New York Ave
"I Don't Feel Safe Here"
New York Avenue is where I always start to get a little nervous about how safe I am, even when I just driving through it in my car. Someone spit on my truck once for no reason, and another time a homeless guy tried to do my windows and ended up trying to open the door when I didn’t give him any money. This is an extension of Marcy Avenue below Atlantic Avenue. Some restaurants and shops, mostly Caribbean.
25th St
"Smells Great, No Really"
This is one of my favorite streets in the city. Why? Because there’s a pita bakery here and it smells like fresh baked bread for blocks pretty much all the time. You couldn’t ask for better atmosphere. 25th Street also is the closest subway stop to the west side of Greenwood Cemetery, which is really beautiful to explore if you can get over the fact that it’s full of dead people. It is a little weird to see funeral processions all the time though, especially when it smells like bread.
Johnson St
"Full of People During the Day, Empty at Night"
Cadman Plaza East is probably best known as the place where almost all the buses in Brooklyn begin and end. All the major crosstown lines stem from here, which makes it easy to get to City Hall and all the shops on Court Street. No one really lives here though, and the wide open spaces often attract homeless people at night in addition to the usual Fulton Mall crazies.
Front St
"Gateway to Dumbo"
Front Street is the gateway to Dumbo for people who get lost walking from the A/C stop. It tends to mostly be the backs of buildings, but they’re very nice, newly constructed buildings and the area is safe except for the lack of well marked crosswalks. It’s the only Starbucks in the area as well, which is a perk.
Marcy Ave
"Less Crowded Than Other Avenues"
This is the cross street to where I live. Marcy is a bit quieter than all the other big Bed-Stuy Avenues. For some reason it was never built up commercially as much as its neighbors. It provides the other border for Tompkins Park. Usually during the summer there’s a permanent ice cream truck parked there. More apartment are being built on Marcy by the Myrtle-Willoughby stop on the G, so more people will be moving in soon. A quick road to drive on too.
Tompkins Ave
"A Little Dangerous, But Not Bad"
Tompkins Avenue is the last relatively safe Avenue in Bed-Stuy. Throop gets dangerous and Marcy is fine, but do know that is straddles these two divides. The street gives Tompkins Park its namesake. The beautiful public park is an amazing place to hang around during the summer with an amphitheatre, a dog park, a youth center, picnic areas, and more. The bus runs along Tompkins to Fulton Street.
Monroe St
"YMCA is Only Good Thing Here"
Monroe Street is home to the brand new refurbished Bed-Stuy YMCA. The building is stunning, and a wonderful addition to the health and future prosperity of the community. That said, the rest of the street is kind of a dirty mess. Located halfway between the A/C line and the G line, it’s also difficult to get to, although the bus gets fairly close.
Butler St
"Good Commercial, Questionable Residential"
I question the people being unfriendly, but there’s definitely a lot of them around all the time. There’s a big school on this street and it always seems to be attracting shady teenagers who skulk around all the time. Cobble Hill Cinema is on one end of Baltic. Their movie tickets are only $6.50, which is awesome. There’s also a great Thai fusion restaurant two blocks over for after the movies.
Kosciusko St
rating details
Just now
- Neighborly Spirit
- Clean & Green
- Pest Free
- Peace & Quiet
- Eating Out
- Nightlife
- Parks & Recreation
- Shopping Options
- Gym & Fitness
- Internet Access
- Lack of Traffic
- Cost of Living
- Resale or Rental Value
- Public Transport
- Medical Facilities
"A Nice Quiet Street in Bed-Stuy"
Nestled between the big thoroughfares of De Kalb and Lafayette Avenues, Kosciuszko is a relatively quiet, mostly residential street that runs the length of the northern part of Bed-Stuy. There’s a terrific new café on its West starting point, and the J train is available on the East end. Kosciuszko is sometimes spelled without the z. It is also the site of the gigantic public pool enjoyed by many during the summer.
