History of My Neighborhood: MetroTech
MetroTech was formed in 1992 and is a pedestrian only area. It provides a beautiful common in the middle which creates a peaceful place to relax during the summer months. Its design is rectangle bounded formed by Jay street, Johnson Street, Flatbush Avenue, and Myrtle Avenue. Due to this the north ends of Lawrence and Duffield were also freed from traffic.
There are several businesses located within MetroTech, those include: J.P. Morgan Chase, NYFD Head quarters, Bear Stearns, Keyspan Energy, and NYU-Poly. The Marriott hotel is one of the new additions to the MetroTech area. Also, NYU-Poly is one of MetroTechs founding members.
MetroTechs early history includes a major large-scale development activity in Downtown Brooklyn, this took place in the 1980’s and 1990’s. The MetroTech Center Office Complex stood at the center of it all. MetroTech stands as a symbol of downtown Brooklyn’s rejuvenation.
Polytechnic University’s president George Bugliarello had advanced an idea to create a center for research modeled on the lines of “Silicon Valley.” The city agreed, several years later, that the urban renewal sponsor was going to be Polytechnic University, under the condition that two other tenants had to participate. The two corporations were SCIAC and Brooklyn Union Gas. Being that MetroTech sat on a separate power grid than Manhattan this was key to the success of SCIAC, because if Manhattan ever ran out of power it would not affect Brooklyn’s MetroTech.
For fun and entertainment MetroTech is usually host to art shows and musical performances. During the winter months the city puts up a beautiful Christmas tree in front of the SCIAC building. This gives the workers motivation to work hard until the New Year. It is worth noting that the MetroTech Business Improvement District (BID), a non profit organization, Provides sanitation, marketing, and events programming services to the area.
MetroTech is a beautiful and fun place to live if you are a Poly student. First of all the location is amazing. It is nestled right between both the Manhattan and Brooklyn bridges, which makes it very convenient to get to some of Manhattan’s most popular areas such as, SOHO, and downtown Manhattan. Secondly, MetroTech is a ten minute walk to the promenade. The most beautiful and breathtaking views are hosted here as well as some of the best pizza money can buy. And lastly, being at the center of entertainment, business, and education makes it very appealing. I am thirty feet to all of my class rooms, one hundred yards to the subway station, and living in the same courtyard to about ten very respectable business firms that are potentially going to hire me when I graduate. I am definitely proud and excited to be a part of the MetroTech history that continues to cater to millions of people everyday!
Bibliography
MetroTech Center. Retrieved January 29, 2009, from Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MetroTech_Center
MetroTech Center. Retrieved January 29, 2009, from NationMaster.com:
http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/MetroTech-Center