Asian Americans in NYC On The Move

By John | Tuesday, August 19, 2008 | 2 Comments

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The New York Times published a story last week where it discusses that:

“…THERE are some New York neighborhoods where the population is expected to be heavily Asian-American — say, in Chinatown, or in Flushing, Queens, or in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. Those areas have long been defined by the first-generation immigrants from China and Korea who fill the busy streets lined with ethnic markets and restaurants. But developers and brokers recently have noticed that their children — mostly young professionals — are now at the heart of a subtle demographic shift in Long Island City and downtown Brooklyn, two rapidly changing neighborhoods on their way to gentrification. Asian-Americans account for 15 to 50 percent of the initial sales in some of the new condominiums under construction in those neighborhoods. The numbers are significant because Asians account for only 10 percent of the city’s population.”

I’m not all that surprised that, what I like to term, Young Asian American Professionals (YAAPies?) are looking to move into higher-end gentrified parts of New York City. Asian Americans as an ethnic demographic, especially those who were born-and-raised in New York City, have assimilated fairly well into mainstream society.

American-born Asian Americans apparently have chosen to move to the suburbs on Long Island or New Jersey (with good schools, ethnic restaurants, etc.)… But I guess there is an overall trend (which transcend race) back towards urban living.

I know in California, a lot has been written about Monterey Park in Southern Los Angeles or maybe Cupertino or San Francisco in Northern California, but New York City doesn’t have as great of a concentration of Asian Americans as does California. (As I have commented often, West Coast Asian Americans I think are a lot different than those who were born-and-raised on the East Coast).

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Jeff

The folks who I know that grew up in Chinatowns (New York and San Francisco) moved out when they had a chance. My impression of these Chinatowns is that they are where you start out in the US but move out when you can. These folks live in the suburbs now.

The trend of urban living definitely includes new generations of Asian Americans. My niece and nephew grew up close to me in the Asian American suburbs of San Jose's Berryessa district. My niece now lives in the Presidio in San Francisco, and my nephew lives in a condo in LA's Japantown (they're so grown up now - I feel so old). The desire to be close to work drove their decision.

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