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Gentrification

Backroom Broadsides. Sponsored by Riverview Neighborhood Association. Hosted by Fox & Crow. (Courtesy of Perfume Professor)

A Neighborhood Crowd: Backroom Broadsides

The New Year started right. My neighborhood association invited me to read from Left Bank of the Hudson at its monthly open-mic and author series, Backroom Broadsides, on January 2, 2018. The event took place in the atmospheric parlour of the Fox & Crow, a favorite local pub and a popular spot for live music…

View of the Mississippi River from the Mill City Museum.

A Stop in the Twin Cities

For the final travel date of my book tour, I visited Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota. Magers & Quinn Booksellers invited me to introduce Left Bank of the Hudson to the literary and creative communities of the Twin Cities on November 2, 2017.

Charles Chamot Gallery

Back in Jersey City: JCAST 2017

On Sunday, October 15, 2017, I was honored to participate in 111 1st Street: A Community of Artists, an exhibit featuring the artists of the former 111 1st Street–the subject of Left Bank of the Hudson. Elaine Hansen, a 111 alumnus herself, organized the show as part of the 2017 Jersey City Art & Studio…

Pitts 1

My Book Tour: The First Week

This past Saturday, I returned home after a week on the road promoting Left Bank of the Hudson. I started in my native region with events in Olean and Buffalo, New York and then headed to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Everyone whom I met expressed genuine interest in the topics of cities, gentrification, artists, and historic preservation.…

Terrence McDonald and I discuss my book and talk with Jersey City readers.

WORD: My First Jersey City Crowd

On Saturday, October 7, 2017, WORD Bookstore hosted the Jersey City launch for Left Bank of the Hudson. Terrence McDonald, a talented and sharp journalist from the Jersey Journal, joined me for a lively and fun conversation. This marked my first discussion with my (adopted) hometown crowd. Jersey City did not disappoint. A terrific afternoon…

That's my book! In a bookstore! (Courtesy of Perfume Professor)

Book Culture: My Book Tour Begins

On October 3, 2017, Left Bank of the Hudson: Jersey City and the Artists of 111 1st Street, my first book, was published. Officially, I became an author. Book Culture, a great Manhattan bookstore and a dangerous place for any book lover, hosted the New York release party. I read a passage from my book,…

Left Bank of the Hudson: A Short Reflection

My first book, Left Bank of the Hudson: Jersey City and the Artists of 111 1st Street, will be released by Fordham University Press on October 3, 2017. Next week.

Just your average afternoon in JS1. If you had your finer on the pulse of innovation, you would understand.

A Walk Through Journal Square (or Journal Squared)

While walking through the Journal Square section of Jersey City on a pleasant Sunday afternoon, I stopped and snapped a few pictures of the advertisements for the recently opened and the planned high-rise developments in the neighborhood.

(Courtesy of Talking Points Memo).

Gentrifier: A Book Review

A trio of academics attempt an engaging and instructive experiment with their recently published book, Gentrifier (University of Toronto Press, 2017). Through their own lives, John Joe Schlichtman, Jason Patch, and Marc Lamont Hill explore and challenge the ideas and parameters of gentrification. Although the suburbs are anything but dead, an increasing number of Americans…

Vacant storefronts on Bleecker Street, New York, New York (Courtesy of New York State Senator Bard Hoylyman).

A Wrinkle in the Narrative: Gentrification & Small Businesses

In a few weeks on October 3, 2017, my first book, Left Bank of the Hudson: Jersey City and the Artists of 111 1st Street, will be published by Fordham University Press. To prepare for that and my accompanying book tour, I’ve been focusing on gentrification: reading about it, thinking about it, and talking about…