Living near Yankee Stadium?

March 10, 2009 8:49 PM

Anyone have any experiences with or impressions of the neighborhood immediately around Yankee Stadium? I'm considering living there and commuting to midtown Manhattan. I know it's cheap--what are the other pros and cons?
posted by shivohum to grab bag (7 comments total)

Cons: the commute sucks. In the absolute best case, perfect, walk-up-as-the-train-pulls-in scenario you can take the D or the 4 to midtown and it'll take you 30 minutes. So schedule an hour. I used to commute from Harlem to midtown every day and it was boring and sucked, no matter what I did, what I listened to, what I read. YMMV.
posted by Optimus Chyme at 10:37 PM on March 10

The only experiences I have are on game days, FWIW (and I have plenty of those). Unless you're a rabid fan, the nabe is going to SUCK on game days - you're not going to want to be there and especially not down on the street, which will be host to a couple tons of garbage and the endless drunken fans creating it. It is a loud, hot mess - but that said it is pretty well policed and the trains run more frequently.

Its probably pretty tame and quiet the rest of the days out of the year.
posted by allkindsoftime at 11:33 PM on March 10

I live in this neighborhood. Off the top of my head:

PROS
Transportation:
-4 train runs with great frequency, even when it's running local or during Yankee games. It still doesn't suck during games. And I'm a Mets fan. Most NYC trains get very crowded at some point. It never bothers me, but from Midtown it's only 6 stops, so I don't worry about standing.
-During the work week, commute is fast!, but must be well timed. Going downtown after YS, the 4+5 train merge past 149th St and that is the longest part of my commute.
-On weekends, 4 train is fast (again, when running normally). This past wkend, I took the 4 train to the last stop in Bklyn, and it took only 40 minutes.
-Access to B+D for the West Side access
-Two nearby buses crossover into Washington Heights (if ever needed)

Local Attractions:
-Bronx Museum
-Courthouse
-TWO Yankee Stadiums (lol)
-Concourse Plaza movie theater

Amenities:
-Nice children's/walking/running park on the Concourse
-Nearby track near Yankee Stadium for public use
-24 hour McDonald's
-24 hour diner
-2 Zip Car pick up areas
-Being able to hear the crowd cheer during games (it's not LOUD, but as a baseball fan I def. hear it, if that makes sense)

Buildings/Neighborhoods:
-Nice buildings. Most, if not all, have some sort of doorman or really attentive super.
-Very safe neighborhoods. At times, there will be people begging for money, but that's closer to the train station (161st) and it's really only one mean woman.
The neighborhood is quiet enough. I could be immune to the sounds of sirens, but I'm sure I don't hear them often.

**IN BETWEEN (because YMMV): During the game, everything is crowded. McDonald's, the diner, the train, the bars. No one is overly obnoxious, tho.**


Cons-
-Not enough legitimate stores - Pharmacies are spread out and not convenient, supermarket quality is if-fy. My closest supermarket keeps all their "desirable" products up front. It took 4 trips for me to get that hand soap and toothpaste were stored behind Register 5.
-No parking - if you have a car, parking is extremely difficult. Forget it during the games. There is, however, a nice garage that offered monthly rates during the off-season. I don't know if this will change, because this garage is even closer to the new stadium, and they have price-jacked in the past.

I tried to be objective, but what kinds of things do you want to get out of your neighborhood? Bars, lots of restaurants, access to a gym, community groups, schools?
posted by alice ayres at 6:39 AM on March 11

Wonderful. Great info so far, though sadly contradictory. One of you says the commute sucks, the other says it's great. One that game days suck, the other that it's great. Heh.

I tried to be objective, but what kinds of things do you want to get out of your neighborhood?

Mostly the kinds of things you mentioned. Commute time to midtown Manhattan and easy access to the Villages, and Williamsburg are huge. Decent food nearby would also be important. Any info on that?

Oh, and, how hard is it to get a gypsy cab off the street? What's the fare to Manhattan like?
posted by shivohum at 7:36 AM on March 11

One that game days suck, the other that it's great.

Well actually I guess that's an exaggeration. Alice, you just said it wasn't that bad.
posted by shivohum at 7:37 AM on March 11

I think it's a YMMV thing. I don't mind Yankee game days at all, but I guess growing up in Flatbush where it's always busy makes me super-immune to any game-day hoopla. I think you, too, will learn how to ignore.

As far as the commute, the 4 train really does excel compared to other lines in terms of frequency of trains. When I took the 4 train into Manhattan from Brooklyn, that was the worst commute of my life (trains so packed that you had to let 2 and 3 trains pass and when you could get on, sketchy men would rub up against you). I have never had to wait for another train because of crowding commuting from Yankee Stadium.

It is very easy to get a gypsy cab. In fact, there are ALWAYS gypsy cabs by the 161st station and 24hr McD's. Also, walking up to the concourse has always proven very successful.

Fares to Manhattan vary. My recent trips: to Chelsea ($20), to Penn Station ($35), to 42nd St/Grand Central ($30), to Brooklyn ($50). I usu don't cab it to the Village, so I am not sure of the price.

For getting to W'burg, catching the L at Union Square/14th St is a fast trip (20-30 min, depending).

Foodwise, ahem, there are plenty of cheap Spanish restaurants, Chinese fast food, and West Indian places, but not a lot of sit down/eat-in/date restaurants. I usually get into the city if I'm going out to dinner.

For laundry, I do drop-off, and I have 3 places to choose from in a 1 block radius. Same deal for cleaners.
posted by alice ayres at 9:19 AM on March 11

Wonderful - this is great info. Thanks!
posted by shivohum at 7:07 PM on March 11