UPPER WEST SIDE — Though she admits the neighborhood has "lost its edginess" and "funkiness" as a place known for cheap rents and artists, Linda Alexander has loved the Upper West Side "in all its iterations" for close to four decades.
Despite numerous changes throughout the years, she said what has remained is the feeling locals get living in the neighborhood. "We have always been a community," she said. "This is a community neighborhood. Not all neighborhoods are like that."
Alexander, a former singer, teacher and reporter, now owns her own public-relations firm, Alexander Marketing.
She brings the perspective of a small business owner to her role on the local Community Board 7, on which she's served for the past 14 years.
Here, Alexander digs into some controversial local issues — like a proposed new bike lane and the American Museum of Natural History's expansion — discusses how she makes decisions on the board and why if you've got a complaint, you've got to show up.
The longtime local also talked about the restaurant she visits weekly — if not nightly — and shared some of her favorites.
Emily: How long have you lived on the Upper West Side and why? What brought you there in the first place?
Linda: I moved to the Upper West Side in 1977. I was working at Manhattan State Psychiatric Center as a music therapist, but I was a musician. The Upper West Side was where it was really cheap. I had a whole bunch of friends there, and it's where musicians, and actors, and writers kind of congregated. It was very different. It was very edgy. It was pretty dangerous on some blocks. Amsterdam Avenue, you never walk down except to go to McAleer's. It was not convenient to Wards Island, but it was convenient to see my friends. We had a virtual dorm there.
Gale Brewer lived across the street, and she was my great buddy. We helped plant trees on West 82nd Street where we lived at the time. It was a real kumbaya neighborhood for musicians, for actors, for writers. It was fun.
Emily: Are a lot of those people still there? I know Gale is.
Linda: Gale is. Some of them are. No, most of them my old buddies moved out. A lot of us moved into different ... I'm no longer a musician, obviously. This building where we're at, 1650 Broadway, I got my first song published here in 1977. This is where Carole King's office and studio was. It's still a music building and acting building.
Emily: You're surrounded by Broadway.
Linda: It just feels good. People moved on because their lives changed. They moved to the suburbs. They got married. They stopped being musicians. Not that many of my crowd got priced out because most of us had rent-regulated apartments. They moved of their own volition.
Emily: Got it.
Linda: They bought places. They moved to the East Side. I don't know.
Emily: Was there a turning point from back in the late '70s to now that you remember thinking, ‘wow, things have really changed’, or was it more gradual?
Linda: I think the biggest change in terms of the ... I know we can't use the G word, but in terms of the gentrification, that was kind of gradual honestly. In terms of the real time that a lot of us sat there and said, "What the heck are we doing here?" That was probably late '80s, during the mid to late '80s with the crack epidemic. That made the neighborhood for the first time — again, it was always edgy. It had a little element of danger — but it really made it dangerous. It was scary. That was a period that a lot of us thought about leaving the Upper West Side. The park was dangerous. The Theodore Roosevelt Park was a travesty. Riverside Park, people got mugged. It just wasn't the pleasant wonderful oasis, great neighborhood, little town that we have now. That said, the changes of gentrification started slowly.
I worked with the Columbus Avenue Business Improvement District. I do their publicity. 1998 was when they launched the BID. That was the turning point because up until then Columbus Avenue, which had been kind of funky, but fun, small town, it was virtually decimated by a capital improvements program during the Giuliani administration. About half the stores closed because they shattered the sidewalks in order to redo the infrastructure. That was a really sad time.
Amsterdam, my gosh. Amsterdam Avenue didn't come up until maybe 10 years ago. That was fine, too. It was botanicas, bodegas. It's kind of a fun place, too.
Emily: What do you think about it now,
Linda: It's fun.
Emily: ... about Amsterdam Avenue?
Linda: There's different kinds of appeal. I like the old times. I was one of the few of my crowd that actually hung out on Amsterdam Avenue because I used to work at McAleer's. We had a composer showcase there. I liked every iteration of the neighborhood. I've liked it all.
The only period of time that I didn't feel safe, that it was really kind of sad was in that chunk in the '80s. Every other time, it's been amazing. It's been wonderful.
This neighborhood, it grows. It blossoms and it does. I know there's a lot of people who clamor for the old neighborhood and they miss ... It wasn't that nice. It was nice in its way but it wasn't that nice. It's nicer. It's cleaner, better food, better restaurants. It's the next generation, millennials. Who would have that the Upper West Side would be millennials and seniors? That's kind of like the dichotomy there.
Emily: Are you seeing a lot of millennials in the neighborhood?
Linda: Yeah, I am.
Emily: Where do you see them or where are they drawn to?
Linda: I see them in the 90s and the 100s, especially Harlem. In our neighborhood, it's a little different. Sometimes I call it “Scarsdale on the Hudson.” It's a little different. My neighborhood, a lot of them are in their 30s, 40s and 50s. They're pre-millennial. They're mostly professionals. It's an expensive neighborhood to live in, and so it has changed. It doesn't have the edginess. There are times that I feel, wow, I miss the funkiness but not that much. I like the new side of it, too.
Emily: You described it also as a little town and an oasis. What is it that makes it that way?
Linda: The thing that makes the Upper West Side unique is that we have always been a community. This is a community neighborhood. Not all neighborhoods are like that. We know our neighbors. We know our vendors. We have one of the strongest community boards. It is a community neighborhood. I think it always will be. There's a different feel on the Upper West Side. You used to get it in Greenwich Village, not so much anymore. Boy, they're going to kill me for that. Not off the record.
The Upper West Side is really about people knowing people and neighbors knowing neighbors. Everybody knows their dogs. We have more dog runs on the Upper West Side, I think, than any other neighborhood in the city. When you've got dog runs, you've got community. You need a dog.
Emily: I do. Yes, I do. When people moved here, when the millennials moved here, they are expecting that. They want that. I think that's part of what maintains the community?
Linda: I think the millennials who are moving here are moving here as couples. Like you…. Couples and they're thinking about families. When you think about the Upper West Side ... Here you go: When you think about the Upper West Side, you think of a family neighborhood. When you think of a family neighborhood, you think about community.
Unlike a lot of my colleagues and my friends, I don't think it's ever gentrified. I just think it's evolving. The building stock is so beautiful. They're pre-war buildings. Even the new construction on Broadway, for the most part, is beautiful. It's not soulless. It is beautiful. The Laureate, some of the newer buildings, they're mostly made of masonry and they feel right.
Emily: You have that 30-plus years’ perspective. Has a lot of the building stock remain the same? Have we been able to preserve it?
Linda: It has. It has. The building stock for the most part-
Emily: Did that surprise you?
Linda: No, I think because we're landmarked. Thank you, Gale. I think that's really important. I was just on West End Avenue on Sunday. Walking down West End Avenue is such a high. It's beautiful. Riverside Drive, you don't have that kind of ... We have Park Avenue, and we have West End Avenue, and Riverside Drive, and Central Park West. That's pretty cool.
Emily: You mentioned the community board. Not everyone knows what the community board is. Community boards are a 50-member board that weighs in all kinds of neighborhood issues from businesses to preservation to playground-
Linda: Schools, education.
Emily: To schools, education, you name it.
Linda: Businesses.
Emily: If there's an issue, crime, the community board has an opinion or,
Linda: Well, we do have opinions.
Emily: ... is listening. Yes, yes. How long have you been on the community board, and can you talk about what you do there, what committees you're on?
Linda: I can. I'm not here as a community board member. I'm here as a long-time member of the Upper West Side, a long-time resident. I've been on the community board for over 14 years. I was appointed by Ronnie Eldridge to Community Board 7. We have an incredible chairman, Elizabeth Caputo, and we've got a great group of folks. Really, really representative of the community except for one thing. We don't have enough business owners. There are only two business owners on ours. I'm one of them. It's a planning board. It's advisory.
You're appointed. You're appointed to the community board if you have participated ... They look for people who have participated in different community efforts for a long time. I was one of the co-founders of Teddy's Run in Theodore Roosevelt Park in 1996, so that's how I piqued Ronnie Eldrige's interest because I was very involved with them in planting trees and stuff, all that cool stuff.
My committees are ... I'm on business consumer issues which deals with the liquor licenses and was dealing with sidewalk cafés. As a business owner, I'm very interested in participating in a business-oriented committee. Ours is very, very proactive. The B2B (business-to-business) is a great example of ... Again, George and Michele put this together.
Emily: They're co-chairs,
Linda: They're the co-chairs.
Emily: ... of the committee.
Linda: George Zeppenfeldt and Michele Parker. What they've done is they put together educational forums where people not only network, but they learn about healthcare providers. They learn about telecommunications. They'll have a theme and then everybody gets to meet with different providers and get information for their own businesses, which is really great for small businesses.
This last one, we invited all of the business committees from all the other community boards in New York and Manhattan because we're the only ones that does it right now. They were hoping to set a paradigm so that the other community boards will do it, too.
Emily: The board-
Linda: See, that's why we are the best. I said in on the record. The other committee I'm on is transportation. That's Andrew Albert who's been on the board for 40 years and Dan Zweig. It's controversial because we've had so many issues raised over the years, especially pertaining to accidents. Bike accidents are way down vehicular accidents, thank you, in the 24 and the 20 [precincts].
Now, we're addressing something, which I think is going to be fantastic, a northbound protected bike lane. We already have a southbound protected bike lane that we really rallied for. We lobbied for that, especially with the Columbus Avenue BID. Now, we're going to get northbound. It'd probably be Amsterdam Avenue. As a resident of Amsterdam Avenue, I'm looking forward to it. I don't know how DOT is going to make it happen, but they will. We've got Citi Bike now. That makes it critically important.
The other committee I am on and I was just appointed to, I am now co-chair of communications.
Emily: That's a new committee right?
Linda: It's a brand new committee and I'm serving with ... My co-chair is Sue Robotti. We're going to deal with everything from the way to write minutes so that everybody gets to participate to communicating. We do all the tweeting.
Emily: Yeah, all the social media.
Linda: We compete on tweets with you at the different meetings because you're way faster than we are. We're really going to be doing the communications and outreach to the community. That is exciting. That's really exciting.
Emily: Is it the goal that everybody should know what the community board is up to and that it exists?
Linda: Everybody who's interested should. I listen to people and they complain and they complain. Well, if you're complaining, give yourself a voice. Come to the community board meeting. I feel bad. Across the board, you complain if you don't like an elected representative, then get in there and vote. We're American. We have responsibilities. That's a responsibility of a New Yorker, of a neighborhood person. If you don't like the way something is done, well, then come to a meeting.
Emily: Do you recruit new people to come to meetings? Do people follow up? Do they actually show up?
Linda: Yeah, they do. You've been to the meeting. You go to every meeting. You show up to every meeting. Yeah, a lot of people do. When I was first on the board, there was a coterie of folks, a small group. It expands exponentially. There's a whole group of folks. I think a lot of that is they're seeing what's going on the website because we have a really robust website. They see what's going on and they really ... They feel engaged. Once you feel engaged, you're an activist in the best way.
By the way, I was always kind of an activist. I grew up on the South Side of Chicago in Hyde Park.
Emily: I didn't know that.
Linda: At 13, I was a member of SNCC and then NAACP… It was a really kind of cool environment.
Emily: You're tapping back into that.
Linda: The Upper West Side looks exactly like Hyde Park. Where I grew up, I grew up on the lake and the park. The actual building stock was all pre-war. It looks exactly the same.
Emily: The board— it takes in issues that businesses have. It has to approve or deny liquor licenses. The record of the committee seems to be pretty positive in terms of,
Linda: It is.
Emily: ... approving liquor licenses. Why do you think that is?
Linda: Because we want to see businesses succeed. Businesses are more than an amenity to local residents. They're also a revenue flow, revenue stream for the city. They provide jobs. They provide tax revenue. It's an integral part of any community. You want a really well-functioning retail corridor. You want a well-functioning business sector in your community because without it, you're losing wads of money, and wads of opportunities, and employment opportunities. It's just goes on and on. It's critically important.
By the same token we had, and I won't say which one, we had an issue where a hotel on a side street, a small street, wanted to open a large accessory restaurant, but it was inconsistent with the style of the hotel. We knew that it was not a serious endeavor in terms of ... That would have to change. That it would have to change that model.
Emily: It wasn't going to be a good fit between,
Linda: It wasn't-
Emily: ... the hotel and the restaurant.
Linda: Right. It wasn't what they were projecting nor was it a good fit for this particular street. We're not talking the street we're in. What made it so incredibly important was how many members of the community spent hours and hours talking to us about their history as residents, as neighborhoods. They really kind of helped us cement our ideas. We went over there. We looked at it. We got the idea. There are times ... It's not a rubber stamp.
It's really about what we think and, of course, we're only an advisory board. If we vote against something or force something, we can be overturned anyway. That's not the issue. We do take into consideration what the neighbors want, what the community wants. People are passionate about where they live. Yes, we've got that whole NIMBY-ism (not in my backyard.) That's part of it. You can really kind of tell the difference between a NIMBY and somebody who's really concerned about the impact of a certain kind of business is going to have on their streetscape and their immediate environment, how close it is to schools and all. We take that into consideration.
That said, business and consumer issues is really about how to make them work together. That's what we do.
Emily: On that issue, you had countless meetings. You met with the community on several occasions for hours. Do you think that public process part is important?
Linda: I think it's critically important.
Emily: Do you ever get frustrated like this is taking too long or, geez, I just sat here for four hours?
Linda: Yeah. Do I think that sometimes people have like ... We might have called the most selfish positions that you could possibly imagine. They couldn't care less about anyone else's position. Sure, I think that's human nature. Not saying that we're Solomon. I'm just saying that you have to take everything into consideration, and there will always be a coterie of folks that are really ticked off at you. There will always be a group that will say, "Wow. Thank you." It doesn't matter. You make the decisions. Also, there's a consensus. We're 12 people on any committee, ten to 12 people in any committee, so there's always got to be a consensus with the group.
Emily: Have you had your mind changed on things? Like you come in thinking you're going to vote one way and then-
Linda: Yeah, absolutely. I think you have to be flexible about everything. My inclination is to work with the business owner. I know what we go through. I know the taxes we pay. I know employment. I know payroll. I know things that most of my colleagues on the community board actually don't know anything about and have no empathy for. There have been many years that I've been very frustrated about being on the board, but I feel .... As I watch the diminution of business owners on that board ... When I joined that board, about 20 percent were actually small business owners in the neighborhood. That doesn't exist anymore.
Emily: They've just moved on or their businesses have closed?
Linda: They haven't been appointed. For whatever reason, they haven't been appointed. I've known a lot of folks who are business owners who wanted to be on the board, and they just weren't appointed and they've tried.
Emily: I think that empathy part about understanding where someone is coming from seems like it would be crucial for any issue on the board.
Linda: It is.
Emily: Are you trying to recruit business owners to join?
Linda: I have for years. I have to get our elected to agree to it. That's all. Right now-
Emily: The people that want to but they haven't been appointed?
Linda: They have not been appointed. It's a lengthy process. Even to be a re-appointed-
Emily: They have to interview-
Linda: Probably after this interview, I won't be re-appointed. No. Even to be re-appointed, you have to really ... Kudos to our Borough President and our previous Borough President Scott Stringer. They really kind of set a different standard. They raised the bar and they really made us work, and show why we want to do this, and really commit. That's really important.
Emily: You have to have an attendance record that's good, right?
Linda: Yeah.
Emily: Show that you understand issues and show leadership.
Linda: Yup.
Emily: It's not just a walk in the park.
Linda: No, it's a lot of work. I'm on a couple of boards, not just the community board. I'm on budget associations because, again, if you want to make changes, if you want to have a voice, then you have to really commit to having a voice.
Emily: How has the board membership changed your perspective on your neighbors and the people living in the neighborhood? Do you get to know people more?
Linda: I always knew my neighbors. I tell you how I've gotten to know my ... I have had a dog. I have had a rescue dog or two at a time in this neighborhood since 1977. I've gotten to know my neighbors over the years. It's scary because I can walk down the street and even with a whole new contingent, a whole new group of folks, anybody who has a dog or anyone who's knelt down to pet a dog, I know them. I know their kids. That's how it works.
Dog owners are friendly or else they're unfriendly. They're like their dogs. The dog people are ... We're like crazy friendly. Dogs, look at it, they wag their tails. They sniff each other's tuchus’. Their owners are like dogs. They look like their dogs. They sound like their dogs.
Emily: I was going to say I love it when owners look like their dogs. You mentioned the Theodore Roosevelt dog park. That you got involved in that early on. What do you think about that dog park now? It wants big changes, right?
Linda: It needs to be remodeled. I think they're doing the right thing. They're raising money for it, and they're going to succeed. It's a nice group that took over there. You were asking me earlier about ...
Emily: The expansion.
Linda: The expansion of the ...
Emily: The New Gilder Center. Do you think that's going to affect the dog run?
Linda: No, I don't but a lot of the dog run owners evidently do because I've gotten calls from them, from some. I think it's going to be great. I just think this will be a wonderful destination. First of all, I love the design. I love the contrast between the pre-turn of the century. I love every iteration of that and this new modern, exciting new home for it. I think that's very cool. The contrast is gorgeous in terms of design.
The footprint, it's not going to take up that much of the footprint. There are 17 acres in that park. It's going to have to be kind of repositioned, laid out in a different way but they will. It will accommodate everyone. I think that it's going to be an extraordinary amenity for the neighborhood, for New York City and will be a destination for people from all over the world. That's exciting.
It's a learning center. It would be great for the kids. We are a family neighborhood with lots and lots and lots of kids. Wow. Another place for them to learn. It'll be a gateway for Columbus Avenue. It will bring more people, maybe will get more shoppers, more consumers. It's not like things happen in any sense in an isolated way. A community is about the integration of everything. Why not have another great destination placed on the Upper West Side? I want to see people from all over the world, all over the city coming to Columbus Avenue going to the new museum.
Emily: You're not worried about extra foot traffic? That's something that you welcome. You're not worried about this kind ... I know some of the neighbors are like, "The neighborhood will become overrun." That's a concern.
Linda: There's always this kind of vision in my experience that they think ... That there's a group of folks who think that you build something, it's all going to come at the same time. All of a sudden, 200,000 people are coming at 10 a.m. on a Saturday morning. It doesn't work like that.
I remember they were talking about building a parking garage with 26 spaces a few years ago in a building on 86th Street and West End Avenue. It was an Extel building. There were 26 apartments. They wanted 26 garage spaces. The neighbors went crazy. I said, "What do you think? They're going to be coming in a caravan? All 26 cars are leaving at 9 a.m? They're coming back at 5:30 p.m.They're going to run over your kids?” No. It doesn't work like that, nor the 200,000 extra bodies and the foot traffic. Maybe 30,000 will come in the morning. That's great. Then they'll leave and they'll go shopping on Columbus Avenue, and Amsterdam, and Broadway.
Emily: Are there any changes in the neighborhood that you regret, that didn't end up being as great as you thought or were just as bad as you predicted?
Linda: I think we blew it with above 96th Street, north of 96th Street. We kind of knew it was coming with the 50-story tower. Now, you look at those buildings because we got the downzoning. We got the downzoning and you see they're really kind of startling.
Emily: Just the fact that they come out of nowhere?
Linda: Yeah, they come out of nowhere. From a distance, they're really striking. I think if we hadn't gotten the downzoning in time, then you would have all of that and that would have been awful.
I do worry about Broadway starting to look, I'm afraid ... I'm hoping, I'm praying that it doesn't start to look like Second Avenue, First Avenue, Third Avenue in the '90s. The idea of all this glass tower to glass tower to glass tower, it's boring. It's just incredibly boring. When you go downtown to the Lower East Side, it's starting to get boring. The sameness of the design, of the glass curtain wall. We have a lot of empty lots and they're being built.
Emily: You must have a lot of go-to spots for eating on a typical night— like your casual go-to, and then where you like for,
Linda: It's embarrassing.
Emily: ... formal or for a,
Linda: There's no formal dining.
Emily: ... or a fancy night out?
Linda: There's no fancy night out in this neighborhood. My Monday night and Tuesday night go-tos are my home, the Hi-Life. There is nothing better than half-priced sushi and a martini. They have great martinis there.
Emily: The Hi-Life is on 82nd-
Linda: 83rd and Amsterdam.
Emily: 83rd and Amsterdam.
Linda: Here's the thing-
Emily: They're open late, right?
Linda: Yeah. There used to be a restaurant there called Forest and Sea. In 1979 through 1981, I was a waitress there, a server because that was the height of my singing career. That was called Forest and Sea. A lot of the same folks in the kitchen and all, the owner, Earl, they all come out of that whole group. By the way, that was the hot place. There were only three restaurants on the Upper West Side, maybe four.
Emily: Back in the late '70s?
Linda: Yeah. You had Teacher's, Teacher's Too, Marvin Gardens, Museum Café, Forest and Sea.
Emily: That was it?
Linda: The rest were Chinese and Indian, and they were-
Emily: Just take-out oriented?
Linda: Yeah or just really funky but fine. We didn't have ... Victor's. We had Victor's, which was Cuban. That was it. This was not a big eating area.
That's my Monday or Tuesday night when I'm just wiped. I call Tar and I sau, "Meet me at Hi-Life." We have our table.
Other restaurants our go-to is Bustan. We love Bustan. Bistro Citron, we love that. We were just there the other night. B.Cafe, Mermaid Inn, the new one is cool. Bodrum and our other real serious go-to, Cibo e Vino. We love them so much. They're such a lovely couple. You go in there and you feel, to me, I feel like I'm in Milano. I feel like I'm in Milano because you go to that side street, and it just looks like a small cool restaurant. The people are so nice and the food is so good. That's a definite destination. I'm still in love with Sarabeth's. I love Sarabeth's. Jacob's Pickles.
Emily: To grab a meal?
Linda: Again, Jacob's Pickles. I'm never going to wait. I love Jacob. He's a community guy. He's a great community guy. Cafe Tallulah, community guys. Greg Hunt, unbelievable.
Emily: Are there under-appreciated spots that you think the neighborhood should know about?
Linda: McAleer's has really great sandwiches. They have a good solid kitchen. My go-to for Japanese ... Here we go. The best sushi sashimi platter and a saketini, get the dry one, oh, my god, that's heaven, that's Kouzan on 93rd and Amsterdam Avenue. That's good stuff.
Emily: There's so many.
Linda: We have so many good restaurants.
Emily: From five when you first ... Half a dozen when you first moved to the Upper West Side to now. Is this astounding to you?
Linda: We have cuisine. We have cuisine and so much of that started in Columbus Avenue and now it's on Amsterdam Avenue. We have real food here. A.G. Kitchen, that's a really fun place. It's fun. I know I'm forgetting places.
Emily: Well, I love the New York Times profile of people they do, what their Sundays are. It sounds like your Sunday routine would be ...
Linda: Here we go.
Emily: I don't want to guess.
Linda: It's 7 o'clock. We're early risers. My husband and I go to Central Park with Buddy, a psychotic Chihuahua we've gotten 2007 who's now 16 years old. We play Frisbee with the Chihuahua. Then at 8 o'clock, 8:30, I'm over at Crunch Gym.
We order bagels or we go and get bagels at Lenny’s, double toasted, whole wheat, everything for me. Plain everything for Tar, always double toasted. I'm the sun-dried tomato cream cheese. He's the everything cream cheese. We've got this down pat. We have coffee, and hang out, and read he papers. Then we start meeting, or we hang out, and go out with friends. Do what we have to do and then that's it. That's basically the Sunday routine. Sometimes we see a movie. Sometimes we go to ... We love the Neue Gallery. We go there. We go to American Museum of Natural History. We love that. We go to museums. We're big museum folks. Then sometimes I come to the office because I'm nuts.
Emily: No. Well, I want to say thank you for talking with me.
Linda: Thank you. This is really fun.
Emily: This was really fun.
