How close everything is relatively speaking. Every time I go anywhere where it's impossible to get around without a car I want to leave within 3 days.

It's a very diverse place.

For a city of its size and not the primary city in its metro, this city has so much potential to really be its own cosmopolitan city even if we are next to nyc.

This city catches so much flak but I haven't seen too many places do a 180 in terms of development and positive public perception. I can name so many other places in the US that people seem to love but I feel like are complete shit holes and they don't catch the same amount of negativity.

But thats probably the biggest thing I hate about JC and NJ as a whole. People have such a negative attitude about things and just bitch and moan as opposed to actually coming up with solutions to solve the issues.

I find it to be exciting to be living somewhere that is changing so rapidly. Feels like we’re all part of a big moment. I walk around wondering what this place will look like in a year, two, three.

More specifically, we have some of the most neighborly people I’ve met. We’ve made excellent friends in a short period of time. Our kid goes to a school we love.

Diversity is a common thread between our friends and our kid’s classmates.

People around metro NY make a sport of complaining. A bit of the Four Yorkshiremen skit from Monty Python tbh. Haters gonna hate etc. No place is perfect is what I’ve learned.

I love how accessible everything is. Most things are walkable and if they aren’t, easy to get to via light rail or PATH. I love the proximity to Manhattan for work - my commute was cut in half moving here. I love the diversity of the population and the community of people here. Everyone I’ve met has been so lovely. The food! Happy hours here are great, much more chill than being in the city or down the shore.

If there’s one immediate thing I could change and banish off the planet it would be the hell that is the Communipaw/1&9/440 clusterfuck of an intersection.

How about tonnele av/1,9/139? IMO it’s a lot worse

I never go over there so I guess I don’t think about it. I live a block over from 440 so I need to go through that intersection to get literally anywhere. I hate it. Haha.

So funny, I could have written that 15 years ago. Cheers!

Every city has its good and bad. If a person focuses on nothing but the negatives, wherever in the world they are and will be will just all be sour to them. If we focus on our cities positive things we can enjoy it a lot more. Jersey city has shown recently that it has alot of potential for a lot of things and has changed tremendously over the years. We have one of the most diverse cities in the world! And that’s a beautiful thing. It’s definitely not a boring city as there is always something to do. I find the people of our city to be friendly and straight forward people with a warm heart. As well as the don’t mess with us side and we that grew up here can relate and know this😁 I simply believe that if a person is just sour… they can even be on a beautiful island for that matter, and still be sour, if they just want to focus on the negatives. I love my city with its good and it’s bad!😊 So let’s try to love the greatness of our beautiful city instead of bashing it as there are other cities people are more than welcomed to go there if they don’t like Jersey City😊

I'm a Torontonian living in Hoboken and think it's the greatest city ever but will always give JC it's much deserved love. Unpopular opinion, but our side is way better than living in some random Brooklyn or Queens hipster paradise.

Accessibility >

Cleanliness >

Safety >

Views >

Waterfront >

Relaxation >

Feel like a suburb when it's still a big city >

Non Visibility of Crime/Despair >

Community feel >

Local Pride of being the other>

Parking - I’ve gotten way too many tickets in Manhattan. While I do get the occasional one here (and even got towed at one point), the stress that comes with leaving your car is significantly lower here.

Everything

Jersey city is gross absolutley nothing lol. At best theres some aight food

15, 5, 10, 20, 40....

lower income tax

The food, the people, the diversity, the nightlife, the culture. Plenty of stuff to like if you're looking for it.

That’s not an unpopular opinion, but don’t tell anyone that, we’re like, full.

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The food!

Lower income tax and cheaper rent then most of Manhattan

Not so sure if 40 years ago people said it was 'changing rapidly' they meant in a good way, but perhaps.

Potato’s gonna potate

Food

Ok so move lol

I can walk to pretty much everything I need.

Oh i live far far away from there now i just like reminding you all that your city is trash and you should all feel bad

You seem like a happy, well-adjusted individual.

Of course they did. 🤔

Someone who grew up in Jersey City in 1950, saw a vastly different landscape in 1983. Why is that hard to understand?

I love how much cheaper it is compared to manhattan.

No, I don't think that's a slam dunk at all. I've spoken to a lot of old time B&R JC folks, and for most of them the 50s and 60s were the good old days and the 70s were rock bottom. People say in the 80s Hamilton Park was a 'needle park' and few dared enter. Newport wasn't begun until 1986, and they designed the parking deck as a castle wall against the riff raff west of it. It took a lawsuit for them to make entrances through it on Marin. So whether a typical JC resident would say it was changing for the better in 83 seems pretty unlikely.

Not sure why you're talking about a "slam dunk." 🤔

"Changing rapidly," doesn't mean what you seem to think it does.

You just wrote an entire paragraph detailing how "old timers" you talked to, basically said things changed rapidly...as I said.

"Changed for the better," are your words, not mine.

And fyi, more recent DTJC "old timers," don't think the current gentrification that's going on is changed for the better either. Which is to my point. It's an endless cycle of change and people who were there before not liking it.

No one who has lived in DTJC 20 years ago is saying "it's so exciting to be a part of this community that's changing rapidly!" That's talk from a newbie from another state or country, being overcharged for faux luxury housing.

Goodness lol who hurt you

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I think you've lost the thread here, you seem a little confused. First you contradicted me now you're agreeing with what I said that 40 years ago they would not have thought it was changing for the better.

FWIW, I've been here a quarter century and have not seen change for the worse.

I too love knowing that the crime/despair is there but not being able to actually see it. That way I don’t feel bad about not trying to help.

I'm not confused at all. You are confused at the fact that 1 comment made in response to another specific comment is in response to THAT specific comment and does not necessarily represent the spirit of the entire thread. You are also, as previously stated, confused with misinterpreting what was actually said instead by imposing what you thought was meant. You also seem to be confused about the experience of all "old timers." 🤷‍♂️

The history. downtowns beautiful 100+ year old brown stones. liberty state park. Diversity. The peace ☮️ .

I like the fact that you can pretty much do whatever and the police are NEVER interested in engaging. For instance--You can hit someone with your car and it can get caught on video and you can not go to jail or court for years. Long enough to actually leave the country, get plastic surgery, and forge a new identity. What's not to love? Oh, And we love the dog parks and the poop bags. Wish we had a Pet Smart and a Banfield though. The nearest one is Seacaucus.

I mean... Its close to hoboken,. Now that pace is a hoot :p

I’m from Jersey (Perth Amboy) but lived in Brooklyn (Clinton Hill) at the start of the pandemic. We moved to the Heights soon after for space (we lived in a apartment building with 25+ units) and more living area. We loved how close we were to parks, restaurants, and NYC. I appreciated how much space we got for the money (3br 1 1/2 bath and office for 2900). My wife and I both work from home so it was nice to take our daughter to the park or grab a bite to eat during the day. Also our neighbors were pretty chill, everyone was welcoming and pleasant for the most part. We moved last fall because we wanted to buy and now we’re about to close on our first home, here in JC. A lot of people give shit to areas outside of the heights and downtown but there are gems throughout this city. It reminds me of the out of towners that would move to our building in Brooklyn. They would complain about things embedded in the DNA of the city (noise and locals were at the top of the list.) as if things were expected to change because it isn’t like the place they came from. I love the city. Do the taxes suck? Yes, but do I want to live in central or south Jersey? Hell no. Do I wish the powers at be directed more resources to areas other than the heights and downtown? Absolutely. But this area fits our family lifestyle so we’re willing to deal with the shenanigans.

lmaooo

Mostly local governments are corrupt but clandestine about it. We’re corrupt and it’s right in your face. I love that about JC.

I love that I have NYC in my front yard, and suburbia in my back yard. It's the best of everything in my opinion.

Good parks, good food, relatively quiet, walkable, diverse, Manhattan is easily accessible, relatively easy access to trains and airports.

Which cities do you think are loved but are actually shit holes?

Everything, the public transit here is fucking top notch. The location is stellar. Easy to get inland OR to NYC.

Lobster Garage! And Smorgasbar!

Nyc, LA, Orlando, SF, Houston, Austin, Paris off the top of my head

Wow I can see some of those but NYC, SF and Paris are surprising.

Hoboken being the “greatest city ever” is just sad. It is not.

It’s comments like these that make me feel lucky to not be like the people that leave them.

Everyone wears Rose colored glasses when it comes to NYC

Nah I’m fully aware of its issues but if you’re into urbanism it’s far and away the best city for it in the country. What don’t you like about it?

I don't know if this will make sense, and maybe it sounds cliche, but while we live in a city, it can also often feel like a not-so-little village or smaller/closer knit type of community.

I know this is specifically a downtown area aspect, but I love how close the waterfront area is for me personally, and how well it is maintained for the most part. I love walking or biking along the waterfront in the spring/summer/fall -- even into the hours beyond sunset - or even super early in the morning!

I think people here don't really like urbanism. They like gentrification that results in Whole Foods and more amenities. Like if JC could be Park Slope.

I love how vibrant the city's creative energy is. There are new restaurants popping up left and right, gallery spaces, nightlife events, and so much of it is locally-driven by people who are invested in making JC a more interesting and colorful place.

It feels like BK did ~15 years ago when things were just beginning to pop off over there.

You’re a little behind. The arts scene is a shell of what it was 10-15 years ago unfortunately. It’s only going to get smaller as more artists get priced out or just give up and pay the same rent in NYC :/

There are less and less galleries and local artists as poorly planned development continues to price them out. Best you’re going to get is a mural slapped on some new construction to convince people they live in a up and coming arts district.

They like the idea of being a person who lives in a city (“my family back in Ohio think I’m CrAzY for living here!”) while they complain that there’s too many homeless people and the Whole Foods can’t open fast enough.

Still, it feels like there's an energized enough community there making cool things happen, if you look for it. Gotta go out of downtown, maybe.

I’m very familiar with the JC arts scene and have been involved for the past decade. Trust me- it’s fading compared to what it once was.

🤷‍♀️ sad

At least the other sectors I mentioned are doing well

Most diverse city in the world

In 45 minutes you can be in Times Square or be on a farm

It has the sense of community you get in a small city (ie. you see a lot of the same faces if, say, your kids are the same age; I've met our councilperson numerous times; you can bike anywhere in town easiliy enough), but you still have access to everything NYC has to offer.