the rix mix

Elizabeth NJ is a city almost entirely without charm. Except for one old suburban section, Elmora, which starts about block over from me, this city is relentlessly ugly. The eye finds no rest or relief. It has a few interesting buildings, only one of landmark quality that I love; the restored brick Jersey Central Railroad Station & clock tower, now a restaurant. Neighborhoods that once had a lot of character, like Italian Peterstown, weren't attractive to begin with. There's no streets of upscale or possibly upscale brownstones. The river is tedious. The parks are bland - the best one, Warinanco, is 90% in an adjoining town. The area around the train station has little potential for serving as an economic focus. Sure there are uglier cities: Paterson & Camden come to mind, but those retain a few amazing attributes. Plainfield, a smaller city ten miles west I've long disliked, has a stock of great victorian homes, which are long gone from Elizabeth, either renovated beyond recognition or bulldozed for apartment buildings. There's a lot of good about Elizabeth - a strong & growing middle class, several decent retail districts outside of the big downtown. a venerable public library, but hardly any of the dynamic & creative urban culture one finds in Jersey City & Newark.

Do I love any of Jersey's largest cities? Honestly, no. I think they're unmanageable. That they don't collapse into complete chaos is a tribute to the people who inhabit them & to public sector & social services workers rather than their governing bodies.