All information below is supplied by Dr. Eichenbaum, and you should contact him directly for more details and full descriptions.
- Updated - June 3, 2009
Heart of Flushing, Saturday, June 6, 2-4 p.m.
I'm pinch-hitting for MAS leader Francis Morrone on this tour which initiates a series of walks that explore places settled during Dutch colonial New Netherlands.The route in central Flushing, (where I have lived for 31 years) will encompass the 17th century of geography and history of the Dutch West India Company town of Vlissingen with special emphasis on the Flushing Remonstrance and its consequences for today. >Sponsored by the Municipal Art Society. Meets at the SE corner of Main St. and Roosevelt Ave. (#7 to Main St.) Fees $15/$10 (nonmem/mem)
Renaissance in Newtown Creek Sunday, June 7, 10:am-noon
The environment of Newtown Creek, at the geographic center of NYC, suffered from merciless abuse and neglect for more than a century but recent years have brought imp rovements. In Greenpoint on the Brooklyn side we'll view the striking NYC DEP Wastewater Improvement Plant ("Digester Eggs") and walk along its adjacent George Trakas-designed Nature Trail. (What? a nature trail on Newtown Creek?) Then we'll cross the Pulaski Bridge to Long Island City, ending at a nexus of contemporary artists' daylight working environments and exhibition space. Sponsored by the Municipal Art Society Meets at the NE corner of Green point & Manhattan Aves (McDonalds) (G to Greenpoint Ave) and ends at Court Square, LIC (E,G,7) Fees $15/$10 (nonmem/mem)
Historical Jamaica Saturdays, June 13 and July 11 1:30-3:30pm
One of the earliest settlements in NYC, Jamaica boasts centuries old homes, churches and cemeteries. Focusing on Jamaica Ave at the foot of the glacial moraine, we'll dwell on its strategic location and make some interior visits including the meticulously restored Valencia theater. A jazz concert concludes the event. Meet at King Manor museum front lawn, Jamaica Ave between 150-153 St. (E,J Jamaica Center, LIRR Jamaica station); Sponsored by Jamaica Center BID. Tours are free (and rain or shine). RSVP is required. 718-566-2422 or info@jamaicacenter.org
Changing Cultures of Queens: A Walking Anthology
A series of educational walking tours in June and July 2009.
Monday and Wednesday evenings @ 6pm We move by 6:15.
Instructor: Dr. Jack Eichenbaum, urban geographer
Since the end of the Second World War, three waves of cultural change impacted Queens. First, residents from older neighborhoods in Manhattan, the Bronx and Brooklyn came to enjoy automobile access and newer housing removed from deterioration and demographic change. After the 1965 change in immigration laws, Queens became a magnet for the diversity of new Americans and today half of the population is foreign-born. In recent years, domestic newcomers and the creative community sought the lower density and lower rents of the borough.
Queens' neighborhoods are unique mixes of these processes and previous history played out on varied topography. Learn to understand and appreciate these cityscapes by joining a group of walkers for an evening. Enjoy stimulating outdoor environments and make new friends.
Each walk begins at 6pm at the designated location, near a subway station, and ends about two hours and two miles later in a neighborhood where you can eat (as you choose) in a variety of interesting restaurants. Tuition: $15 each walk. ($10 CUNY students with ID, immigrants with "Green Card," foreign visitors with passport or visa.)
June 15 Flushing's Koreatown
June 17 Long Island City: Hunters Point
June 22 #7 Sunnyside to Jackson Heights
June South Richmond Hill
June 29 Flushing's Chinatown
July 1 #7 Jackson Heights to Sunnyside
July 6 Long Island City to Old Astoria
July 8 Corona to Forest Hills
July 13 Beyond Central Jamaica - NEW
July 15 Flushing's Main Street - NEW
July 20 Astoria
July 22 Woodside Ave - NEW
About Jack Eichenbaum
Your tour leader, Jack Eichenbaum, holds a Ph.D in urban geography and teaches courses at CUNY (Queens, Hunter). "My expertise lies in historical geography and ethnic and technological change. I have been riding the #7 for more than 50 years and focus on what the #7 train has done to and for the surrounding neighborhoods since it opened in 1914. A decade ago, the #7 was designated a "National Millennium Trail" for its pioneering role in transporting people in what is probably the most demographically diverse cityscape in the world."
- More Info? Custom tours? Contact jaconet@aol.com or 718-961-8406.
