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Kinda gut-wrenching if you’ve grown to love NYC the way I have in recent years. (My MFO image is taken from a 737 departing O’Hare in route to NYC Laguardia in August 2019.) The hustle, the bustle, the crowds and the wonderful theater. Even the loud, confusing, clunky old subway. It all draws you in.
Opinion Piece (This piece appeared in The Wall Street Journal 2/27/21.)
Which old New York--1950s New York, 1960s New York, 1970s New York, 80s, 90s,00s, 10s? As someone with my own history with the city, I would say as one of the world's great ones, it is foreover undergoing change--always has, always will be. Before the pandemic I came back to visit, and my wife said "I miss New York," and I replied, "This is not New York any more" because it wasn't the one I remembered. But then if New York is change, it is.
@LewisBraham. Appreciate your perspective. It did not escape me that the editors chose to include a 1952 photo in the piece.
A couple thoughts ...
- Businesses have evolved during the pandemic much farther in the direction of “work from home” than might have otherwise transpired over such a brief period. As a consequence, a lot of office space in NYC may go unused or lease for lower rent than had been planned, thereby causing adverse ripple effects on tax revenues as well as on the employees needed to maintain those buildings.
- Noonan’s mention of “social distancing” at venues like theaters is scary from a financial perspective. All but the newest employ knee-busting cramped seating. That’s unfortunate for the attendees (though in a curious way it promotes social interaction). It’s also part of the business model. Sure, you can restrict those venues to 50% capacity. But will enough people pay twice the price for seats? An “average” seat on Broadway now now runs around $80-$125. (Anything really good goes for twice as much.) I fear doubling those prices for social distancing might prove more tortuous for the theaters’ bottom line (and survivability) than do those knee-crunching seats for the audience.
Yes, we're looking at much the same sort of thing here in SF. Hopefully because we are a much smaller city it may not be quite as difficult to transition to whatever is coming next.
Yeah, people like Noonan seem to have a fondness for the 1950s many others do not. Not that pre-2020 New York didn't have its drawbacks. I remember speaking to a friend a few years ago who told me a two bedroom apartment in Manhattan cost $4,000 a month. I would be surprised if the social distancing on Broadway is a permanent thing, but the Great White Way priced out many citizens and many New Yorkers ages ago. Working from home is a real and permanent trend the virus accelerated. If that drives out some of the Wall Street set who seem to think of New York as a burden they have to put up with, it wouldn't bother me much. Maybe apartments will cease being $4,000 a month. Some sort of balance is necessary between luxury and affordability, which New York rarely seems to have. In the 1970s it was affordable, but hardly luxurious. By 2019 it became a playground for the wealthiest and the young who don't mind living three or four in a shoe box. It lost some of its character in my view.
Not a Noonan fan. Better in print than oratorically however.
Re the importance of tourism to the modern NYC economy (2019):
- “Tourists are responsible for 24 percent of all credit card sales at New York City restaurants and drinking places.”
- “The city added 142,000 jobs at “restaurants and drinking places” since 2000.”
- “Tourists account for 18 percent of all Visa transactions at retail stores in the city.”
- (Tourists) account for an even higher share of sales at the department stores (48 percent), electronic stores (35 percent), and sporting goods stores (23 percent).”
- “Tourism was key to the 71,000 jobs created in the retail sector since 2000.”
- “The city’s museums and historical sites have added 4,500 jobs in the past 15 years—an 86 percent increase—and the growth in tourists has been a key factor.
- “Tourists have been fueling the growth in attendance at cultural institutions. Tourists now comprise 73 percent of visitors to the Museum of Modern Art, 70 percent of visitors to the Whitney Museum of American Art, and 60 percent of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s visitors.”
- “The city is now home to nearly as many hotel jobs, which pay $62,000 per year on average, as jobs in manufacturing, which pay an average of $58,000.
- Tax Revenue (personal experience) The hotel tax in NYC is very high - well above 10%. I’m not sure how that’s divided up between state and city, but it’s a lot of revenue.
- “Tourists have been fueling the growth in attendance at cultural institutions. Tourists now comprise 73 percent of visitors to the Museum of Modern Art, 70 percent of visitors to the Whitney Museum of American Art, and 60 percent of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s visitors.”
That is one of the main reason our family enjoy traveling and learning new culture experience. Don't forget the large Canadian cities are also wonderful to visit.
Change is inevitable. The urban centers will survive albeit differently than many will remember or approve.
Always liked this song from the 70's about NYC.
and so it goes,
peace and wear the damn mask,
rono
NYC has changed multiple times over the decades. The city will come back, but it will be different than before. I haven't heard this song in a very long time - what a blast from the past!
...All but forgot that Cashman and West song. Cashman wrote and sang, "Talking Baseball..." Noonan's piece was well-written, if sad to see, at the same time.
Comments
A couple thoughts ...
- Businesses have evolved during the pandemic much farther in the direction of “work from home” than might have otherwise transpired over such a brief period. As a consequence, a lot of office space in NYC may go unused or lease for lower rent than had been planned, thereby causing adverse ripple effects on tax revenues as well as on the employees needed to maintain those buildings.
- Noonan’s mention of “social distancing” at venues like theaters is scary from a financial perspective. All but the newest employ knee-busting cramped seating. That’s unfortunate for the attendees (though in a curious way it promotes social interaction). It’s also part of the business model. Sure, you can restrict those venues to 50% capacity. But will enough people pay twice the price for seats? An “average” seat on Broadway now now runs around $80-$125. (Anything really good goes for twice as much.) I fear doubling those prices for social distancing might prove more tortuous for the theaters’ bottom line (and survivability) than do those knee-crunching seats for the audience.
Re the importance of tourism to the modern NYC economy (2019):
- “Tourists are responsible for 24 percent of all credit card sales at New York City restaurants and drinking places.”
- “The city added 142,000 jobs at “restaurants and drinking places” since 2000.”
- “Tourists account for 18 percent of all Visa transactions at retail stores in the city.”
- (Tourists) account for an even higher share of sales at the department stores (48 percent), electronic stores (35 percent), and sporting goods stores (23 percent).”
- “Tourism was key to the 71,000 jobs created in the retail sector since 2000.”
- “The city’s museums and historical sites have added 4,500 jobs in the past 15 years—an 86 percent increase—and the growth in tourists has been a key factor.
- “Tourists have been fueling the growth in attendance at cultural institutions. Tourists now comprise 73 percent of visitors to the Museum of Modern Art, 70 percent of visitors to the Whitney Museum of American Art, and 60 percent of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s visitors.”
- “The city is now home to nearly as many hotel jobs, which pay $62,000 per year on average, as jobs in manufacturing, which pay an average of $58,000.
- Tax Revenue (personal experience) The hotel tax in NYC is very high - well above 10%. I’m not sure how that’s divided up between state and city, but it’s a lot of revenue.
Referenced Report
Change is inevitable. The urban centers will survive albeit differently than many will remember or approve.
Always liked this song from the 70's about NYC.
and so it goes,
peace and wear the damn mask,
rono
That whole thing is magnificent. Thanks for posting. Lots of great music came out of the 70s for sure.
NYC has changed multiple times over the decades.
The city will come back, but it will be different than before.
I haven't heard this song in a very long time - what a blast from the past!