Jackson Heights Residents Find Solace in Their Historic District
By Bella Ramirez and Isabel Cai
JACKSON HEIGHTS — When Daniel Magana, 51, moved to the Bronx in 2000 from Mexico City, he feared for his life.
“There are gangs, shootings… They call you names. I had never seen that before, it was a shock,” Mr. Magana says of the Bronx. He would not go outside after midnight, and tried to stay outside of the Bronx for as long as possible by having a full schedule of all-day activities and spending his after-hours in Central Park.
He also lived in Manhattan briefly, but the rent was prohibitively high.
In 2003, much to his delight, Mr. Magana, with the help of his friends, found a garden apartment in Jackson Heights.
Now a New York City resident for 18 years, Mr. Magana is happy in Queens, he says; he prides himself on his values and family. With a glimmer in his eyes, he speaks about how proud he is of his daughters, naming each of their many accomplishments.
Mr. Magana lives in what has been designated a historic district of Jackson Heights, an area of about 19 square blocks which spans from 76th Street to 88th Street between Roosevelt Avenue and Northern Boulevard. Jackson Heights is already much safer than it used to be, and the historical designation in Mr. Magana’s neighborhood, which has prevented rents from skyrocketing, has made the 19-square-block area a special haven for hundreds of migrant families.
Mr. Magana’s neighborhood was designated a historic district by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1993 to preserve its unique architectural style, with rent control and a safe environment, it seemed meant to be for his family.
A study by the Historic District’s Council shows that the rent is lower in historic districts when compared to non-historic districts and housing subsidies are often offered to the tenants.
Jill Ananyi, 66, another resident on the block, came to New York from California “around the 1970s,” trying to make a living as a translator. After briefly living in Manhattan, where rents at that time averaged $3,200 per month, she moved to Jackson Heights in 1990 upon learning about their more favorable rents.
Mrs. Ananyi has lived in Jackson Heights for 28 years and notices the “drastic differences” the neighborhood evolved through.
“Population waves change, it’s always changing,” Mrs. Ananyi says. “We get the best of everything. There’s a big core of people here. I never knew my mailman before coming to New York, [the] neighborhoods are more tight-knit.”
This explains why Mr. Magana also feels that it is easier to blend in the community. Jackson Heights is housed in Queens, the second largest and most diverse borough in New York. There are 160 languages and dialects spoken in the neighborhood and a single co-op can house people from all around the world.
Kelly Carroll, 31, the director of Advocacy and Community Outreach from the Historic Districts Council, believes that establishing a historic district, can stabilize a neighborhood. The stability allows closer bonds to form between neighbors.
“Down the block, everyone knows me. The supers, the kids, I’ve known them since I was little,” Paula Gutierrez, 18, says.
Ms. Gutierrez has lived in Jackson Heights her entire life. While remarking there will be neighbors that “you don’t like,” she still believes the neighborhood is peaceful.
“Everybody looks out for each other,” Ms. Gutierrez says.
The caring community is what brings people back. Hermes Valencia, 21, visits the neighborhood and his friends despite no longer living in Jackson Heights.
“It’s my area,” Mr. Valencia says. “I feel more comfortable here.”
Mr. Valencia feels comforted by the safety, familiarity, and diversity of the historic district.
“Here in New York City, no one can say ‘I’m a New Yorker.’ For real? No one is from New York because it is the most diverse. You will never hear the same accent on anybody,” Mr. Valencia says.
Another reason for Mr. Magana’s appreciation for the historic district? It’s in Jackson Heights, an area of Queens that has seen a steep decline in crime in the last decades.
“Nobody looks at you through the windows,” says Mr. Magana. “I’ve never heard a shooting, never heard a yelling in all of my 15 years living here.”
According to the NYPD, Jackson Heights had one murder in 2017, 1,818 crimes, and a 77.23 percent decrease in crime over the past 25 years. This is a far cry from 1990, when there was a total of 9,466 crimes and 28 murders in the neighborhood.
With “aesthetics in mind,” the suburb-gone-city community is held close by its residents. Ms. Carroll remarks the value of a neighborhood recognized by the Historic District Council.
“By being a historic district, it has a matter of pride. People in historic districts feel they have an extra level of protection,” Ms. Carroll says.
As a historic district, Jackson Heights became the safe and tight-knit community immigrant families can take pride in. Now, a group of 12 Jackson Heights residents and the Jackson Heights Beautification group wish to expand the bounds of the historic district. In a promotional video posted by the Jackson Heights Beautification Group’s Facebook page on June 4 expanding their intent of expansion, a narrator says “All it takes is a walk through Jackson Heights to notice there is something special.”
