Williamsburg, a neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York, has arguably gone through more transformations than any other neighborhood in the United States in the past 100 years. Williamsburg, a former industrial district of New York City, morphed into a center for the arts and alternative culture in the 1990s as SoHo and other neighborhoods for artists became more commercialized. Due to rezoning changes in 2005, Williamsburg underwent rapid development (and gentrification) in the late 2000s, eventually becoming the corporate hipster paradise it is today. This video traces the history of urban development in Williamsburg and explores the consequences of rezoning efforts.

Directed and Edited by Harrison Trautschold Brown
Produced by: Harrison Trautschold Brown, Luke Simboli
Writing: Harrison Trautschold Brown, Luke Simboli, Dylan Springer
Cinematography: Luke Simboli, Harrison Trautschold Brown
Animations: Harrison Trautschold Brown
Thumbnail: Garrett Dahn

Note: At 3:10, I state that signs are written in Hebrew, but they are actually written in Yiddish, a language that uses the Hebrew script. An earlier version of this video referred to the lowincome units included in new private developments as “public housing”. The correct term for these units is "affordable housing", "public housing" refers to units owned by the government. I edited out the use of the word “public” in that section so the audio may be slightly choppy.

Timestamps
00:00 Introduction
01:22 Origins, founding, mergers with Brooklyn
03:35 PostWWII Era
05:08 Late 80s and 90s Bohemia
07:57 Zoning changes
10:25 Late 2000s gentrification
12:34 What's next for Williamsburg?