Gritty, industrial, and super cool.
Gowanus has an average violent crime rate and a below average property crime rate for New York City.
Next to the upscale, tidy neighborhoods of Carroll Gardens, Boerum Hill, and Park Slope is the gritty upstart, Gowanus. Its eponymous 1.8 mile long canal is a Superfund site – that's a place so polluted with industrial waste and sewage that only the U.S. government is capable of providing the USD $500 million needed to clean it up. Drinking the water from its canals might just give you dysentery, arsenic poisoning, or worse. During the summer the canal gives off quite a stink.
I know what you're thinking: "Ew." That's a perfectly reasonable reaction, but in the frothy real estate market of New York City a little pollution never stopped anyone and this is the latest hip neighborhood in Brooklyn. As The New York Times said, it may be the "coolest Superfund site".
So while you'll still see warehouses and light industry along the canal itself, all the investment money pouring in has resulted in brand new condos and apartment buildings side-by-side with the historic two- and three-story brick rowhouses.
Along with new housing are the new businesses catering to recent residents. There has been an influx of restaurants, ranging from Mexican to Peruvian to French, Italian, Caribbean, Southern, Thai, Greek, and others. Most of them are affordably priced. For a single neighborhood it also has a lot of breweries: Strong Rope Brewery, Other Half Brewing, and Threes Brewing all call Gowanus home. A number of boutiques, home goods stores, and thrift stores have set up shop as well.
It's not completely gentrified yet, however. While young professionals are moving in and driving up prices, much of its established, blue collar population remains.
Gowanus is bordered on the north by Boerum Hill, on the east by Park Slope, on the south by Sunset Park, and on the west by Carroll Gardens.
Commute:
Wall Street: 4.3 miles / 15-25 minutes by car / 35 minutes by transit / 30 minutes by bike
Rockefeller Center: 8 miles / 30-60 minutes by car / 45 minutes by transit
Jersey City: 10.5 miles / 30-60 minutes by car / 50-60 minutes by transit
Downtown Brooklyn: 2.1 miles / 15-30 minutes by car / 25 minutes by transit / 15-20 minutes by bike
Gowanus LOCAL schools
Gowanus Local Flavor 
This local pie place was founded in 2009 by two sisters. Their pies have received critical praise and have been featured in a variety of international food publications.
Pacific-Island decor sets the mood for exotic cocktails at this kitschy tiki bar.
Brooklyn Boulders is a dedicated rock climbing facility.
An ample selection of tasty ice cream (and free samples) are available at his branch of Ample Hills.
Wood-paneled neighborhood tavern with a chill vibe, handful of draft beers, and pet-friendly policy.
Runner & Stone serves the Gowanus neighborhood as a wholesale and retail bakery, restaurant, and bar. They bake all their bread and pastries in house.
Photo Credits: Thanks to @Adam Detrick , @Steven Pisano , @emma.maria , @jlroyalty , @highwayreaper3, @rubensdelacorte, @lotuswinnielee, @motoposto, @irenekhin, @eugene.gannon, @kkish07, @irenekhin, @nevernotriding for your great photos of this neighborhood!
