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Neighborhood Guides > Hoboken > Character
Character
Modern Hoboken, NJ
Hoboken is considered to be one of the nation's most vibrant "comeback" towns: a city with an illustrious past, a deep but not devastating decline, and an on-going "rejuvenation" that that remains controversial. The definitions of "new-comer" and "old-timer" have faded since Hoboken has had a number of waves of new residents in the last thirty years. It has an increasingly more transient population, the latest being those living in the more anonymous mid-rise buildings along the waterfront and high-rises around 2nd Street Station.
Like Hudson County, in which it's located, Hoboken has remained densely populated and very ethnically diverse. Its compactness, historic street layout, and shortage of on-street parking mean that a car is more of a hindrance than a help, and the city retains a basic pedestrian orientation, making for a lively street-scape. While it has it's share of crime, most consider it a safe place to live. Washington Street, the city's commercial thoroughfare, is in many ways a typical American "Main Street", though some would say that Hoboken's human-scale is reminiscent of smaller European cities. Most churches don't ring their bells anymore, and the formerly common sight of Italian widows be-decked in black is now a rarity, and a few street-cleaners still use a broom and push-cart. Many neighbors wave greetings across the street. "Gate-sales" (a distinctly local version of the tag, garage, or yard sale) can be found on all but the coldest of weekends.
Hoboken has become some-what of a bedroom community, and the "feel" of the street changes over the course of the day. The early morning march to the PATH train or ferries, and the long lines for the Manhattan-bound bus, give way to school children, senior citizens, construction workers (busy on projects abounding in town), cleaning ladies, and baby-strollers (more and more frequently driven by nannies and au pairs). Though most stay on it's some-what isolated campus, some Stevens students come down the hill and join office-workers around City Hall and the Hoboken Terminal taking their lunch hour stroll. The after-school rush kicks-off the evening hum as the commuters trickle, and finally flood, back into town, enjoying "happy hour", order take-out, do some shopping, head to the gym, or simply, home. The town boasts a diverse collection of bars and restaurants and on a warm evenings, many outdoor cafes are packed with locals and visitors alike, though some residents don't appreciate the somewhat "rowdy" atmosphere on weekend nights, when the city is filled "youngish" party-goers and bar-hoppers.
In recent years many independent or "mom and pop" shops have been forced to close. There has been a surge in the number of real-estate agents (who market the real-estate "boom" for the so-called "Gold Coast"), bank branches (the city's only cinema was closed and converted),[10] and mobile phone shops. A few large franchises also have established a presence and new supermarkets have opened, but most residents head to catalogues, "the city" (New York, in local parlance), or the "malls" to do shopping for clothes, housewares, furniture, and appliances.
The formerly powerful Hudson Democratic "Machine" now plays almost no role in local politics though some office-holders also have positions in the county government. Rising property valuations, budget gaps, and "poor-performing" public schools remain important issues. Many think that parking is a "nightmare", even with the construction of some new facilities around town. Strict enforcement of permit and meter regulations are a windfall for the municipal government, but has done little to reduce the time a late-night search for a "spot" can take. (Summer weekends, though, spaces abound, as many residents head to the Jersey Shore, Long Island, upstate or to visit the places they came from). The scarcity of public open spaces has been somewhat mitigated by the re-development of the waterfront and there are proposals for more parks and recreation facilities, but in typical Hoboken-ese, most "will believe it when they see it".
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