Although many of us reside on campus, most upperclassmen live in the oh so splendid Hoboken. The cost of living in Hoboken is 60% higher than the national average, and it is quickly becoming one of the most sought after areas to live in the United States. Its proximity to the city, combined with a small-ish town vibe, has created a bustling yet subtle atmosphere that everyone wants to be a part of. However, every rose has its thorn, so this week, we are discussing Hoboken’s red flags.
Hoboken, more like home-broken; does anyone else remember the water main break of last Spring? This infrastructure nightmare resulted in the school deploying emergency porta potties across campus, as most of the upper campus lost all access to water. If you are feeling brave, ask a Spring 2023 resident of Davis Hall why the doors to the communal bathrooms had to be eventually locked. It took the city of Hoboken over a week to completely resolve the problem, and students were sent on long and harrowing voyages back home. Even this year, multiple smaller main breaks have occurred on Frat row and throughout the city.
If there is one thing I am scared of in life, it is packs of middle schoolers roaming the streets unsupervised. Every time I step onto Washington Street after 3 p.m. I am on an alert lookout for these young community members. They crowd the coffee shops and do not think about what their order is before they approach the register, causing a pre-teen congestion clog at every door. Do NOT go to Francescas during this time frame — you will be overwhelmed by a pack of middle schoolers swarming the earrings display screaming, “this is cute,” repeatedly until your ear drums fall out, and spoiler alert, they don’t buy anything. Furthermore, they definitely think they are cooler than the college students (they are), and I feel in immediate danger of being bullied at all times.
Do you own a set of rainboots? If you want to live in Hoboken, it’s definitely something you should invest in. Floods are semi-common, and the water can come up to your knees depending on the part of town you are living in. Generally campus is safe because of the elevation, but the back of the city definitely suffers from a wet commute every so often. Additionally, it just rains A LOT, to the point where I’m wondering where the rain is even coming from. Hoboken has also been blessed with a genetically modified strain of rain called “sideways rain.” This special subclass of rain actually makes umbrellas unusable because instead of falling from the sky, the rain seems to just fly horizontally from the Hudson!
Last but not least is the grocery situation. First of all, apparently, you need to be a billionaire to purchase anything from Acme. Second of all, walking back with your groceries is like training for a triathlon. As someone who is from a rural area with cars, this whole walk with four bags of groceries is not exactly my forte. This also means you need to go grocery shopping so much more frequently, which let’s be honest, no one has time for that. I’m convinced Stevens lobbied to prevent grocery stores from opening closer to campus to prevent us from dropping meal plans.
Anyway, all of these red flags are so minor in the scheme of things, and so many people would feel lucky to live in Hoboken. We really do have the best of both worlds, with the city at our fingertips and greenspaces in our home space.
