Loisaida

Loisdaida is a term derived from the Latino pronounciation of "Lower East Sider" in New York City. Loisaida Avenue is also the name for Avenue C in the Alphabet City neighborhood of New York City, whose population has largely been Latino (mostly Puerto Rican) during the past thirty years.

Related Topics:
New York City - Alphabet City

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Today, there is much dispute over where the borders of the Lower East Side, Alphabet City, and the East Village are. Historically, the Lower East Side is the area of Manhattan stretching from the East River at the southern end to 14th street at the northern end, bound on the east by the river and on the west by 1st Avenue. It was originally comprised of Jewish, Irish, and Italian working-class residents who lived in Tenements, without running water; it was also the red-light district of Manhattan, with most of the prostitutes being Jews. Since the 1940's the demographic has changed markedly several times: the addition of Stuyvesant Town / Peter Cooper Village after WWII at the northern end added a lower-middle to middle-class element to the area, which contributed to the eventual yuppification of the area in the 21st century; the contruction of large housing projects and the growing Latino population transformed the entire neighborhood into a Latin one until the late 90's, when low rents outweighed high crime rates and attracted larger numbers of artists and students to the area; the expansion of Chinatown has largely taken over the southern portions of the area; and now, with crime rates low, the area is a hipster mecca which is quickly becoming further gentrified.

Related Topics:
Lower East Side - Alphabet City - East Village - East River - Tenements - Stuyvesant Town - Peter Cooper Village - Yuppification - Housing projects - Hipster - Gentrified

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Today, the borders of the "Lower East Side" differ from its historical ones in that Houston street is now considered the northen edge, and the area north of that between Houston St. and 14th St. is considered Alphabet City. But, because the Alphabet City term is largely a relic of a high-crime era, most residents prefer to refer to Alphabet City as the East Village, despite the fact that the East Village is historically only the area west of Tompkins Square Park on and around St. Marks Place.

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