Sheepshead Bay Residents Tell Curbed What’s What

After we posted the Sheepshead Bay – Penny Lane music video on Monday, a number of other blogs and websites began snatching it up. We don’t know where it appeared first, but we do know that no one credited Sheepshead Bites for cranking it out to the public.

But that’s not what’s got our panties in a bunch. What bothered us at Sheepshead Bites was Curbed’s reaction. One of the contributors there snarked up a post about the neighborhood that he’s probably never visited, and seemed in disbelief that we could find ourselves on New York Magazine’s list of top neighborhoods.

Sheepshead Bay came in at #27 on New York magazine’s Most Livable Neighborhoods list. Stat boy Nate Silver’s review of the ‘hood: “Far from the action but close to the sea; quiet, safe, and clean, with good public schools.” But this southern Brooklyn enclave has so much more to offer! Like the Banco Popular, or the Roll Roaster that’s “usually hit or miss.” In fact, one viewing of the above music video (set to the Beatles’ “Penny Lane”) and you’ll agree: Sheepshead Bay is deserving of a ranking as high as, dare we say, #26.

Now, I didn’t take it too personally. Their writers have a history of dumping on Sheepshead Bay and all of Southern Brooklyn, as if a commute longer than 25 minutes means you live in the boonies. Though this dig got a little bit further under my skin than most do, a night spent drinking near the water watching the boats and the Bay’s beautiful girls – well, I realized it ain’t worth my time.

But other Sheepshead Bay residents, including some readers, didn’t let it roll off their backs so easily.

Here are a few comments they left on Curbed’s site:

haha, 26. sheepshead’s mah hood. i couldnt care less if it was ranked #32654645464843168460000. and yeah, those who live here love the vid.

Funny how the blog of the “we can’t afford manhattan so we’re forced to live in brooklyn and are entitled to being snobs” decides to put down Sheepshead Bay. Sheepshead Bay has just as much if not more to do than a combination of the “downtown Brooklyn” neighborhoods, and just as much real history. However, I can definitely say, Sheepshead Bay has more heart and soul than all of Park Slope, Carol Gardens, and Brooklyn Heights combined. Some of us definitely love the video, and frankly would rather not have a bunch of hipsters and fake new yorkers move in and destroy our great neighborhood. (where you get three times the space for half the price!)

I remember when I saw hipsters skulking around the court I lived on. They were all weirded out by the tiny little bungalows, and the complete lack of an actual street, and the sound of the boats coming into the bay. They were a couple, wide eyed, somehow reminding me of Hansel and Gretel. At the end of the day, though, they can’t hack the commute, so the Bay is safe.

Curbed, hate all you want. You ain’t got shit on this.