Gentrification finds its way to an immigrant enclave in New York City
NEW YORK - Down at the water's edge in southwestern Brooklyn, in a refurbished industrial building, lines spilled out the doorways of eateries peddling $7 avocado toast and $12 pulled pork sandwiches.
At the far end of the building, in a room teeming with children, parents wearing baby carriers sipped wine and beer next to floor-to-ceiling windows offering views of the Freedom Tower. A band played bossa nova music and Bob Marley covers.
This is the new face of Industry City, a complex of former manufacturing buildings in the Sunset Park neighborhood. Named after a hilltop park that looks out to the Statue of Liberty, the neighborhood has since the 1800s attracted immigrants with steady blue-collar work on its waterfront and easy access to Manhattan.
Today it remains home to a diverse group, divided loosely into two sections. Along 5th Avenue to the west, bakeries famed for their pastel de elote, taquerias and money transfer businesses cater predominantly to a Dominican, Puerto Rican
