|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Harlem Both East and West Harlem are being refurbished and are enjoying a rediscovery. East Harlem, known as El Barrio or Spanish Harlem, is bustling as well on Third and First Avenues. New families are restoring some of Harlem's historical brownstones. West Harlem, from Mount Morris Park at 199th to 124th Streets to Sugar Mill in the 140s and 150s, is peppered with interesting brownstones and high-rises. Upper East Side From 59th Street to 96th St. and from Fifth Avenue to East End Avenue. Many of the city's most stately co-ops, luxurious rentals and elegant townhouses are located in this area, as are the most fashionable boutiques. The coveted public schools and private schools as well as the playgrounds, recreational activities, museums, libraries, colleges, cultural activities and cinemas make this section very popular with the wealthy, well established family set. Each avenue offers a distinct neighborhood atmosphere of its own: Fifth Avenue imbues a sense of opulence and elegance. Madison Avenue reflects the international side: its boutiques and art galleries could just as easily be in Paris or London. Park Avenue, with its long strip of year-round flowers and plantings, offers stature and dignity. Eastward on Lexington, Third, Second and First Avenues, the ambiance changes to a kinetic, eclectic New York. The prices in the Upper East Side are expensive. One of the reason for the high costs is that the two best public elementary schools in Manhattan are located in these neighborhoods. Public School #6 is located at Madison Avenue and 82nd Street, and Public School #158 is located at York Avenue and 77th Street. If your child is aged five to eleven years old and you live in one of these school districts (at the specific zones), your child has the option of attending one of these free, public schools. The Upper East Side is also very safe, which is good for everyone and perfect for families. |
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
Upper West Side, Lincoln Center & Columbia University Upper West Side: Between 59th street and the high 90's from Central Park West to Riverside Drive. This neighborhood has perhaps the most beautiful townhouses in New York City. The rents vary, depending on the specific street and building. Riverside Drive has superb views of the Hudson River and Central Park West of Central Park. Many of the older buildings are co-operatives, but not all. The side streets have rows of brownstones that are usually inhabited by their owners, but there are some garden apartments and studios available for rent. West End Avenue and Riverside Drive are mostly co-ops and condos, but some rental units may be available. Central Park West has become as expensive and sought-after as Fifth Avenue. Lincoln Center: Lincoln Center is the largest performing arts complex in the United State and perhaps the most active community in NYC. Extending from Central Park West to Broadway, from 59th Street to 72th Street, this area knows no curfew. The New York State Theater within Lincoln Center has housed both the New York City Ballet and the New York City Opera. In the evenings, with it's varied cafes on Broadway and its cosmopolitan restaurants on Columbus Avenue, one has the feeling that this neighborhood is Lincoln Center's "encore": the continuation of an exciting evening "on the town". The older section, which includes the stately co-operative buildings of Central Park West and the historical brownstones between Central Park West and Columbus Avenue, is an architect's delight for a rich man's taste. Many of these residents are the successful musicians and artists involved with Lincoln Center or just those so enamored with the area's artistic life that they can't stand to live elsewhere. Many young singles have also been attracted to this area for its comparatively reasonable rents on Amsterdam Avenue and Broadway and the exciting nightlife on Columbus Avenue. Most of the high rise apartment buildings near Lincoln Center are expensive. There are some excellent private schools, as well as recreational opportunities , in this community. Central Park is the city's recreational center, and it is this neighborhood's extended backyard for joggers, children, dog walkers and even romantics. Columbia University: At 116th Street and Broadway. Many students and professors live in this community, and one has the feeling that in this neighborhood books and learning are more important than fancy apartments. The rents are very reasonable. Many apartments are owned or managed by Columbia University and renting priority goes first to their students and facility. East Midtown: Murray Hill & Gramercy Park Murray Hill: Mainly the east 30's to 40's from the East River to Fifth Avenue. This section of Manhattan is a lovely area to live and not, which is not as "discovered" as other sections of Manhattan. It is centrally located and provides good access to most areas of Manhattan. Many people choose to live here so they can "walk" to work, and therefore the neighborhood is rife with professionals (although not necessarily young ones). On Third Avenue there's a varied number and styles of restaurants, cafes and after-work meeting spots. They're all popular with the young professionals in the area, especially those working at New York University Hospital and Bellevue. On Second Avenue there are new high-rise buildings like Kips Bay Plaza (30th to 33rd Streets on First and Second Avenues). On First Avenue there's New York University Medical Center. The side streets have some beautiful townhouses and small landmarked residential buildings that offer an old world elegance. Gramercy Park : Gramercy Park is bounded by 18th and 23rd streets, between Third Avenue and Park Avenue South, on the east side of Manhattan. It is centered around a beautiful private park (the only one in Manhattan) open only to residents of buildings in the neighborhood. It is a quiet neighborhood because the park cuts up the streets and prevents most through-traffic. The park is surrounded by nineteenth-century townhouses, and there are many attractive small buildings nearby. Prices are very high as you get close to the park. New condos and pricey rentals have emerged on Second and Third Avenues, but it still seems like there are not enough units for the demand. |
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
West Midtown: Clinton & Chelsea Clinton: Clinton, which until 1959 was known as "Hell's Kitchen"-a notoriously dangerous area , is bounded by 59th Street and 30th Street, and by Ninth Avenue to the Hudson River. Due to the Revitalization of several off-Broadway theaters on 42nd Street, and the Manhattan Plaza units on 43rd Street for artists, there are many more rentals, condos and co-ops available, especially on Eight and Ninth Avenues in the 30s and 40s. There has been some high-rise condo construction, but most of the housing is in smaller prewar buildings and lofts. Although Clinton is not as safer as Chelsea or the Upper West Side, it is a fine neighborhood and continues to improve each year. Chelsea: Chelsea is found within 14th and 30th Streets, and stretches from Seventh Avenue to the Hudson River. Eight Avenue, between 23rd and 15th streets, is the heart of Chelsea, bubbling with trendy restaurants and refurbished co-ops and condos. Chelsea Piers at the Hudson River (17th to 23rd Street) offers a gamut of spot facilities including an ice-skating rink, golf driving range and climbing walls. Restaurants and shops now line Eight Avenue and the western part of Chelsea contains several up-and-coming art galleries. You'll see attractive couples out for just walking hand in hand down the street. There are many attractive walk-up buildings and brownstones, plus a few loft buildings. This is a rapidly improving neighborhood and there may not be at all that many housing bargains left, but it's worth the try. Union Square The Union Square neighborhood runs approximately from 14th to 21st Street and from Third to Sixth Avenues. This neighborhood is one of the finest residential areas in the city. Union Square Park is well maintained and stands as a beautiful asset to the area. From spring through fall, the park has renowned farmers' markets, where chefs from New York City's finest restaurants shop for highest quality produce. Revitalized by Internet start-up companies (dot-coms) in "Silicon Alley" on Park Avenue, housing is at the prime. Rentals, co-ops and condos are available, though, as well as converted living lofts. |
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
East Village 14th Street in the north, East Houston Street on the south, Broadway on the west and the East River on the east. East Village is one of the most promising areas for newcomers on limited budgets. The neighborhood is steadily improving and even the dreaded "Alphabet City" (the area jutting out into the river, where the extra avenues are designated by letters) has been cleaned up dramatically by recent police action. Housing is mostly old and small, but there are bargains to be had. The area is especially popular with the young, anti-establishment crowd. Astor Place is replete with student life from Cooper Union and New York University. The Joseph Papp Public Theater and St. Mark's Place fill the area with theater-goers and uptowners who enjoy the trendy restaurants and clubs. NoHo (North Of Houston) is characterized by lofts in cast-iron manufacturing buildings, but many of the units are reserved for certified artists. West (Greenwich) Village The West Village runs from Houston Street to 14th Street, then from Broadway to the Hudson River. The West Village is one of the most sought after and expensive neighborhood in the City right now. The West Village includes the small winding streets west of Seventh Avenue such as Barrow Street, Christopher Street, Charles Street, Petty Street and Bank Street. The center of the neighborhood, physically and spiritually, is New York University. Many artists and intellectuals enjoy this area because of its proximity to New York University and the New School, as well as the unending choices of foreign films, lectures, conferences, the darkly lit jazz hangouts and the European-style cafes. The residential streets in the center of the village are elegant and full of attractive old brick townhouses, plus some apartment buildings. If you're thinking funky and unusual, you've got the wrong image - many of the streets in the West Village are as dignified as they come. The neighborhood is also popular with students and alternative types, but they have been pushed farther farther west, where funkiness is more of a possibility. The brownstones and townhouses have all been redone in exceptional taste, and in Manhattan one usually have to pay dearly for tree-lined streets, old-fashioned gaslights and charming historical buildings. Lower East Side, Little Italy & China Town Lower East Side: It runs from South to Canal Street and from the East River to the Bowery. The Lower East Side is one of Manhattan's last bastions of bargain housing, and the supply is rapidly dwindling as people catch on and the neighborhood becomes safer and more desirable. The neighborhood includes both the old Jewish Section near Hester, Orchard, Rivington and Delancey Streets that have now become Puerto Rican and China town in the vicinity of Canal Street. With a large immigration from Hong Kong, this neighborhood has become predominantly Chinese. Housing is crowded and expensive for what is available. Little Italy: Little Italy is bounded on the north by Houston Street, the east by Mulberry Street, the south by Canal Street and the west by Broadway. Little Italy, the Italian section of New York, is very colorful and very well known. It reminds us of a small community in Southern Italy. The Italian colony, began in the 1880s around Mulberry Street, has spread itself to Houston Street, Broadway, the Bowery and even as south as Canal Street. Real Estate is expensive, for there is very little available, and in recent years Hong Kong immigrants have bought up most of it. Chinatown: Chinatown currently covers about 35 blocks and stretches from Kenmare and Delancey Streets on the north and Worth Streets on the south. Chinatown contains nearly 100,000 residents, several Chinese newspapers, hundreds of Chinese restaurants, garment factories and a huge volume of produce and seafood business. It is truly New York's largest and fastest growing ethnic enclave. Unlike many other groups, the Chinese in this area have preserved traditional customs and culture. In fact, it is the only ethnic neighborhood in the city possessing an internal economy. Chinatown, which dates as far back as the mid-1800's, was originally Mott Street and Pell Street, but has now extended its boundaries as far as north of Little Italy. Pagodas on telephone booths, signs in Mandarin and an abundance of Chinese restaurants and outdoor fish or produce markets will make you wonder if you are indeed in New York. As in Little Italy, there are very little real estate available on these overcrowded, overpopulated streets. Canal Street is now inhabited predominantly by Chinese immigrants from Hong Kong. Many non-Chinese are finding good and cheap housing in Chinatown. SoHo On the east is Lafayette Street, on the north West Houston Street, on the west Avenue of the Americas and on the south Canal St. SoHo, Which means "South of Houston Street", is one of the most sought-after and expensive neighborhood in Manhattan. SoHo developed when West Greenwich Village became too commercial and far too expensive for its original inhabitants. Painters and sculptors needed more space and room to develop their expressions: renovated factories, old buildings and forgotten warehouses seemed to be the right answer. Today, SoHo is characterized by large pre-war factories and warehouses that include on their upper floors some very imaginatively renovated lofts where artists can live and work, and on the ground floor some very interesting art galleries and cafes where they can meet and talk. When the tourists aren't there, SoHo is what Greenwich Village was thirty years ago but not as "inexpensive". |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
TriBeCa TriBeCa, Which means "Triangle Below Canal Street", used to be strictly a commercial district. But, over the past few years, the dominos have fallen, first in TriBeCa and then with the construction of Battery Park and Wall Street. TriBeCa, with its large-windowed cast-iron buildings, now looks more like SoHo than like the industrial neighborhood it once was. The warehouses and small factories are being reborn as residential apartments-expensive ones. The restaurants situation is excellent, spurred by low rents in the 1980s and now sustained by desirable clientele despite climbing rents. Not as artsy as SoHo, TriBeCa nonetheless has an exceptionally active nightlife, an attractive park (Duane Park), A bike path along the Hudson River, a fair number of clothing and design shops, plus some galleries. Access to basic services has improved greatly over the past few years, such that this is now a fully functioning and very popular residential neighborhood. A good public elementary school (P.S. 234) offers an attractive and friendly atmosphere. Lower Manhattan: Battery Park & Wall Street Battery Park : Battery Park, created from landfill is the southern tip of Manhattan. Battery Park City is a a beautiful example of a mini-city: half commercial and half residential bounded by Chambers Street to the north, West Street to the east, Pier A to the south and the Hudson River to the west. Battery Park City is a carefully planned development of apartment complexes, with private security, bronze sculptures, a 1.2-mile esplanade, Hudson River view and breezes and a beautiful marina. Shops and restaurants are still somewhat rudimentary compared with the rest of the City, but residents find them sufficient given the neighborhood's other benefits. Some apartments have incredible views of the harbor or of Downtown. Rollerbladers, cyclists and parents with baby strollers give this architecturally designed area a neighborhood feeling. Wall Street : No longer a place people only go to for work. New apartment complexes (some renovated former office buildings) are springing up in the Financial District, and the investment bankers and traders - who arguably live there already - are starting to move in. Unlike some emerging neighborhoods, this area is not characterized by low prices. Expect to pay top dollar for newly renovated apartments in fully-service buildings. Neighborhood services are still rudimentary, but the video stores, twenty-four-hour markets and dry cleaners are slowly gaining a foothold. With the renovated seaport, shops and markets , you can roll out of bed and go to work. |
||||||||||||||||||||||
