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Stoop Coffee: A simple idea transformed my neighborhood

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Re: Stoop Coffee: A simple idea transformed my neighborhood

#51

Post by LawnGnome »

drcongo wrote: post #22
happytoexplain wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>just lots of people occupying neighboring space and rarely talking to each other. This is a bitter stereotype that is leveled against both city-dwellers and suburb-dwellers, and, like many stereotypes, has some truth to it in both cases, but amounts to uncalled-for negativity. Some people don't want to interact with their neighbors, regardless of whether they live in a city or a suburb. Others are sociable with thei…

Having lived most of my life in cities, I moved from London to the suburb of a smallish town about 4 years ago. Since that move, I've got to know maybe 20x more of my neighbours here than I managed in two decades in London. However, I also got a dog and I think 90% of this is down to that.

The dog part is definitely key. We moved a few blocks — so within the same neighbourhood — shortly after getting our dog, and it was amazing how much more quickly we got to know our new neighbours with our (extremely extroverted) then-puppy compared to the previous place. (And, on the flip side, I'm on a first name basis with every dog on my block, which usually implies also being on a first name basis with at least one of their humans.)

Re: Stoop Coffee: A simple idea transformed my neighborhood

#52

Post by bilbo0s »

stronglikedan wrote: post #38
josefritzishere wrote: post #23

This used to be completely normal. It was caled being neighborly.

Still normal in a lot of places that are not big cities.

I live in Wisconsin. Let me tell you, it's not so normal here.

I understand there's a lot going on with poverty, and opioid epidemics, and other menaces out here in flyover country. But man, it'd be nice if we could all at least make an attempt at being more neighborly.

Just think it's not a big city - small city thing anymore. I think there has been a collapse of neighborliness across society in the US. Vast majority of Americans live in neighborhoods without a 2 block stoop coffee event.

Re: Stoop Coffee: A simple idea transformed my neighborhood

#53

Post by polalavik »

Duhck wrote: post #48

This is so endearing. I've been at odds with my HOA [board] since I moved in and its a decades long tale of my community where everyone is treated poorly by our HOA. I've asked the board for block parties annually, and events semi annually and theyve rejected it over and over again. Meanwhile I miss this type of community that I had in every building I lived in around NYC before moving to the mountains

Are you an owner? the hoa is not the board - it’s the entirety of the home owners who can vote and amend any rules at any time with enough momentum and support.

Re: Stoop Coffee: A simple idea transformed my neighborhood

#55

Post by dfltr »

non- wrote: post #39

When people say "you can just do things" this is what they mean. Fun article, I hope everyone reading this who wishes they had something like it in their neighborhood starts this weekend by inviting their nearest friend for coffee on the stoop.

These people are anarchists! No really, they are. The stoop coffee to "It takes the hood to save the hood" pipeline is real.

Re: Stoop Coffee: A simple idea transformed my neighborhood

#56

Post by timewizard »

skyyler wrote: post #34
renewiltord wrote: post #20

Amusingly, we live in a high-rise in SF and it's like what people talk about neighbourhood living. We have a Whatsapp group and people meet for ethnic festivals, borrow an egg, or sugar, or flour, or a jump start kit, or an iron. It's honestly quite nice. It helps that you self-select for the audience by who can afford the building, just like they've done the same with their neighbourhood.

>It helps that you self-select for the audience by who can afford the building, just like they've done the same with their neighbourhood. Heavens forbid we have to break bread with one of the poors . Did you mean to imply that you only prefer to associate with people that have around as much money as you?

I believe you missed the OPs point. I believe he's suggesting that this couple has it on "easy mode" because of the affluence of the area they already live in. If they tried this same technique in a more working class neighborhood they would likely have a harder time creating and maintaining this group.

Re: Stoop Coffee: A simple idea transformed my neighborhood

#57

Post by Duhck »

polalavik wrote: post #53
Duhck wrote: post #48

This is so endearing. I've been at odds with my HOA [board] since I moved in and its a decades long tale of my community where everyone is treated poorly by our HOA. I've asked the board for block parties annually, and events semi annually and theyve rejected it over and over again. Meanwhile I miss this type of community that I had in every building I lived in around NYC before moving to the mountains

Are you an owner? the hoa is not the board - it’s the entirety of the home owners who can vote and amend any rules at any time with enough momentum and support.

Yea totally. I am an owner and I've been fighting with the board for 3 years over failure to hold elections, and inconsistent treatment of members / rules.

I have a lawyer, have won my first battle already but it cost me $6k out of pocket (and the HOA $25k) for something that should have never happened.

Next step is to expose the board and get people to turn out to vote, sadly there are unelected members on the board since 1995, and not enough turn out for a quorum so I am a bit hamstrung

Re: Stoop Coffee: A simple idea transformed my neighborhood

#58

Post by Kevguy »

RankingMember wrote: post #18
jjice wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why's that? Never used the app. Is it just a lot of negativity and you get negative vibes from them?

It is exactly that. A lot of "saw a black guy walking down the street...should I call police?"

NextDoor used to be bad about that, but they are now much more careful to remove it quickly if anyone does post racist crap. Now it seems to be 50% paid ads, 30% lost/found pets, 10% unpaid ads, and 10% everything else. Worth checking to find the owner of a stray dog or cat, but not much else.

Re: Stoop Coffee: A simple idea transformed my neighborhood

#59

Post by nbaugh1 »

afavour wrote: post #2

> my husband Tyler and I wanted that sense of community that feels like it’s only possible in the suburbs, but we believed we could achieve this while living in San Francisco. This genuinely threw me because in my experience the suburbs are the antithesis of this, just lots of people occupying neighboring space and rarely talking to each other. Still, a heartwarming story all the same. And yes, this is _exactly_ what…

Lol exactly. I 100% cannot imagine this happening where my parents live, in a typical US suburban subdivision. On the flip side, I can absolutely see something like this taking off on my block in Brooklyn and would just be another addition to the already established community
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