Neighborhoods

BATTERY PARK CITY
Created in the late 1970's, Battery Park City is a relatively new neighborhood. Battery Park City was planned from the beginning as a residential community for WTC and Wall Street workers. At least 1/3 of the land mass of Battery Park City was actually created artificially using the soil dug up from the World Trade Center foundation.

Nestled in the southwest corner of the island of Manhattan along the Hudson River, Battery Park City truly offers a reprieve from the hustle and bustle of city life. While only blocks away from the financial district, it is a primarily residential neighborhood that offers serenity and convenience, a combination that is not easily found elsewhere in Manhattan.

The Battery Park City area is a carefully planned urban village of luxury condominium and rental apartment buildings. It is characterized by parks, wide streets and features a tree-lined waterfront Esplanade - all designed to give its inhabitants a strong sense of open space. The buildings are varied in their design, only a "stone-throw" away from the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island and New Jersey.

A stroll through Battery Park City can be a very satisfying experience. Within just a few blocks, you can sit and relax in a lush green garden, enjoy the Marina's facilities, check out nearly two dozen public-art installations, visit one of four diverse museums, listen to free outdoor concerts at the South Street Seaport and Winter Garden and dine at your choice of restaurants. Businessmen can enjoy the proximity to the financial district, having easy access to and from work.

Nature lovers can enjoy some of downtown's greatest greenery, all hugging the western bank of the neighborhood, which also features small piers and footbridges in watery coves, as well as grassy open fields. In fact, Battery Park City is a superb combination of green foliage, peacefulness and water views.


FINANCIAL DISTRICT

Located at the Southern tip of the island and situated near the Brooklyn Bridge and trendy Tribeca, the Financial District is the heart of the financial capital of the world. This area has become quite popular for excellent values in a historic neighborhood that is undergoing dramatic restoration. It is surrounded with energy and life both day and night, with quite breathtaking river views.

South of Manhattan represents the birthplace of New York. The small town of New Amsterdam at the bottom of Manhattan was defended by a fort (south) and by a wall (north), in order to protect against Indians .In 1699, the wall was destroyed by the British and replaced by a street - Wall Street. The activity was concentrated here and it became an administrative, residential as well as a commercial area. Wall Street became the center of banking, finance and insurance in the latter19th century.

The Financial District is surrounded with energy and life both day and night. For evening entertainment and relaxation, find the South Street Seaport, New York's exciting gallery of shops, restaurants, and charming old streets. Experience the bustle of the New York Stock Exchange and Business Central, home to some of the nation's leading institutions and companies.

As one of Manhattan's oldest neighborhoods, the contrasts are striking, with glittering skyscrapers alongside landmark structures and cobblestone alleys. Wall Street, a tiny, winding street, is an unlikely metaphor for the powerful financial community that surrounds the New York and American Stock Exchanges. A short walk to the harbor provides views of the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, and the South Street Seaport provides abundant shopping, restaurants and the floating museums of restored antique ships.

Some of the very large historic skyscrapers and older office buildings are being converted into apartment buildings, making this neighborhood an attractive place for families, children, and even pets. During the day, the area's cafes, restaurants, and shops are bustling with Wall Streeters. After hours, however, a peace and quiet settles over the neighborhood, and seekers of nightlife have just a short walk to trendy Tribeca. Most of the buildings being converted are rentals, but there are condos to purchase as well. Many offer spectacular views and advanced technology features such as fiber-optic wiring, high-speed Internet access, and multiple phone lines.

Living in the Financial District means much more than owning your personal home. It means that you share a very dynamic and fascinating life artery. Providing a top quality life style, this neighborhood is definitely one of NYC's best, most exciting choices.


TRIBECA

Tribeca is today one of the most sought-after residential locations in Manhattan. But beyond the great places to live, it also boasts diversions galore -- from the culinary to the cultural. TriBeCa stands for "Triangle Below Canal". The name is derived from the name of Canal Street, a major street in Lower Manhattan.

With its 20,000 residents - mostly wealthy people with a taste for loft living, TriBeCa is more sparsely populated than most of Manhattan. This superb neighborhood in is a triangular-shaped area located below Canal Street. It is flanked by Broadway to the East, by the Hudson River to the West and by Chambers Street to the South. To the north lies SoHo, to the east - Chinatown, to the south - Battery Park City.

Arguably one of the coolest neighborhoods in New York City. Its population soared from a few hundred people in the mid-seventies to over 25,000 today. In recent years, families have taken an interest in the generally larger loft spaces in this fashionable area. Its proximity to the West Side Highway's waterfront parks, its quiet streets, the spacious housing and wonderful schools, make it very popular for couples with children. Beyond that, the area just happens to be a loft-lovers dream-come-true, with many of its warehouses having already undergone extensive conversions. Loft living is so desirable that many of the newest structures to be built in Tribeca are designed with "loft like" ceiling heights.

Now one of the city's most desirable neighborhoods, Tribeca continues to draw the finest purveyors of food and services, furniture and recreational facilities, fine and fun dining establishments as well as is becoming a second Broadway with a wide variety of theater and cultural attractions.


SOHO

Whether an Indian summer awaits or the chill of fall is here to stay, the historic neighborhood south of Houston, north of Canal and west of Crosby is as lively as ever, with visitors, workers, and residents out in force at all hours.

Once known as the South Village, the area was transformed from farmland to an upper-class neighborhood in the early 19th century. It has gone through subsequent incarnations as a shopping district and later as the "Cast-Iron District," when warehouse and loft spaces of similar construction became common throughout the area. Beginning in the 1960s, it began to attract more and more artists, who were drawn to the area's cheap rents and ample work spaces. That's when, taking a cue from the artistic London neighborhood of the same name, the area looked to its northern boundary and truncated its location "South of Houston" to become Soho.

Broadway and West Broadway, the neighborhood's two main shopping strips, buzz with people from all walks of life and every social bracket. Fashion galleries, and many devotees of the publishing, music and graphic-design industries' have offices in the area, along with a number of stock brokers and famous personalities that also have homes here. Typically, buyers in this area are highly social, newly minted and not shy about it. Those who make Soho their permanent residence are usually drawn by its irresistible style and unstoppable energy.

The area continued to evolve, and is now known for its trendy restaurants and stylish boutiques as much as anything else. While Madison and Fifth Avenues are widely known as the shopping Mecca in Manhattan, New Yorkers who crave a dash of excitement with their spending max out their credit cards in Soho, the energetic and incredibly stylish area south of Houston Street. Anything a consumer's heart desires can be found in this fashionable neighborhood.

Soho has a very unique architecture. Many beautiful buildings abound in different styles such as Victorian Gothic, Neo-Greco, and Italianate. The area's many incarnations stimulates much discussion among New Yorker's who were around to watch it go from city slum to art hub to shopping mall. Still, one thing is for sure: Ever since its transformation in the 1960's, Soho's breathtaking housing - lofts that once defined a bohemian lifestyle and continues to define chic luxury, is more desirable now than it ever was.


WEST VILLAGE

Essentially, the West Village is the original Greenwich Village. The need for the modifier ("West") is a relatively new thing resulting from the emergence of the Eastern counterpart, the East Village. There is a certain degree of ambiguity as to whether the West Village includes the area around 5th avenue and University Place (aka the Central Village).

West Village's estimated population is 72,000. In lower Manhattan, the Village is bounded by 14th Street in the North to Houston Street and Fourth Avenue in the East to Seventh Avenue. Washington Square Park is the center of the Village with its large arch, marking the first presidential inauguration that took place in New York City.

The West Village currently is among the quietest and least dense neighborhoods in New York City. It is favored by professionals, models, actors, writers, directors and other members of the film community and the media.

The Village is more upscale than the East Village and is the original corner of cool, the closest any American neighborhood comes to a corner of Paris. This part of town has been home to artists and writers, nonconformists, entertainers, intellectuals, and bohemians since the turn of the 20th century. Downtown charm is personified in lots of low-rise townhouses, thumbnail size gardens, secret courtyards, and a wacky serpentine layout of streets.

Washington Square Park and the rows of townhouses around it with charming alleys behind them are the heart of the Village. This 9 ½ -acre park at the foot of Fifth Avenue is an oasis and circus combined, where skate boarders, jugglers, stand-up comics, sitters, strollers, sweethearts, chess players, fortune tellers, and daydreamers converge and commune.

Legendary streets such as McDougal, Astor Place, and Bleecker are lined with super-hip boutiques, delis displaying esoteric beers from around the globe, and cafes and restaurants of all stripes. It makes sense that New York University is in the Village, an area that has been home to some of the world's most famous writers and artists.

At night West Village comes alive with sounds from late-night coffeehouses, experimental theaters, and music clubs. It's certainly one of the best NYC neighborhoods to live in.


EAST VILLAGE

The East Village is one of the most unique neighborhoods in the City. The East Village means everything east of Lafayette / Fourth Avenue, south of 14th street and north of Houston Street. The distinction between the East Village and Alphabet City (Avenues A,B,C and D) has all but disappeared as these have merged thanks to the booming real estate market.

Most buildings in the East Village are 5 or 6 story walkup apartments or studios. The space crunch of the past several years facilitated major renovations in many of these quaint buildings.

The name is derived from the East Village's "parent neighborhood" called "Greenwich Village". Originally, the area was considered part of the Lower East Side, but since the 50's, when artists, writers and bohemians started their slow migration east in search of cheaper rent, the neighborhood has been associated more with Greenwich (West and Central) Village and its artsy community than with immigrants living on the Lower East Side.

East Villagers are on the whole younger than other New Yorkers - about half are in their 20's and 30's. Residents are students, artists, "creative professionals", musicians, actors, writers and so on.

The East Village is pleasant, fun and fashionable, with the beautiful Tompkins Park providing a sense of relaxation from the busy city life. The East Village is a great place to choose your next residence and make it your real home.


LOWER EAST SIDE

Orchard Street - the famous Lower East Side Street is one of the busiest commercial districts in the world. The neighborhood has paved the way for some of the most popular restaurants and boutiques in New York. Once the sun goes down on Manhattan, the curtain goes up on Orchard Street's exciting nightlife where one can enjoy poetry readings, local bands and cozy lounges. The neighborhood that was so passionately sought out for its amazing bargains has become one of the top destinations for fashion, dining, theatre and nightlife.

Renovated pre-war walk-ups and new construction exist: to the delight of all the designers, publishers and professionals who actually own property in the neighborhood. This is still an area made up primarily of renters who have found their identities in the lively bars, cutting-edge boutiques, discount shops, tiny bodegas, charming cafes and ethnic restaurants that color the blocks from Houston Street to the Brooklyn Bridge and the Bowery to FDR Drive.

The old-world shops sit side by side with a new generation of boutiques and galleries that showcase the best of New York's avant-garde fashion scene. More than a century after hardworking immigrant families first crowded the tenements of Orchard Street, visitors from around the world are coming back to rediscover the historic neighborhood and be treated to new surprises. Come explore the Historic Lower East Side. Like thousands of immigrants before you, you may never want to leave.


GRAMERCY/MURRAY HILL

The Gramercy Park District has too often been thought to be simply a collection of 19th-century houses surrounding a private park. In reality, it is part of a rich urban mixture of townhouses, apartment, commercial, and institutional buildings, and great old trees, all reinforcing each other.

Gramercy Park is an actual park, located at the very bottom of Lexington Avenue. It is a private park which means it's closed to visitors. Gramercy Park is bounded by 23rd street to the north, 14th street to the south, Park Avenue to the west and Second Avenue to the east (although the area between 2nd and 3rd avenues feels more like Murray Hill than Gramercy proper).

Gramercy Park is one of the most expensive areas to buy in New York City, offering its residents the convenience of living downtown (the Village, Noho and Soho are only blocks away). The private park for which the area was named is the epicenter of a tight-knit community made up of breathtaking Victorian brownstones and manicured blocks.

As you move further east, beyond Third Avenue, the terrain becomes a mix of pre- and post-war structures that are significantly more affordable than their park-side counterparts. The residents in these buildings tend to be young professionals and singles who chose the area because it's reasonably priced and centrally located. As a result of their decision to move here, more restaurants, bars, lounges and venues for entertainment are settling in the blocks between E 14th and E 23rd Streets, giving the neighborhood a more a youthful glow.

Just a few blocks west of Gramercy Park and beyond Union Square, there is the Flat Iron District. This neighborhood is an impressive scene of activity, populated with a combination of young students, frenzied shoppers and tireless professionals. Those who rushed here were drawn to this traditionally commercial area by its detailed architecture and its huge, airy lofts. Some of the other attractions in the vicinity include Madison Square Park, chic restaurants and a number of useful retail stores.


MURRAY HILL

Quakers Robert and Mary Lindley Murray earned their place in history in September 1776 by simply offering the British General Sir William Howe a few glasses of Madeira wine. It was that or, possibly, the company of their charming daughters, Beulah and Susannah, that made him linger. Either way, George Washington's troops led by General Israel Putnam were able to sneak by past Howe from the Battery Point to a new position in Harlem Heights. Before this historical event, the area was known by its Dutch name of "Inclenberg".

Murray Hill is located at the East Side of Manhattan, south of 42nd street, east of Park Avenue, very convenient for offices in midtown east. It is mostly a land of tall modern high-rises, although brownstones do exist. Residents are a mix of yuppies, NYU medical students, NYU medical faculty, seniors and some "creative professionals".

The area east of Fifth Avenue between 23rd and 42nd Streets has become especially attractive for stylish, young professionals. But there may be many other reasons that have drawn so many new residents to the area: the delicious ethnic restaurants along Lexington and Third Avenues; the neighborhood's tantalizing mix of graceful towers, well-maintained apartment buildings, condos, co-ops, and brownstones; or maybe its proximity to Midtown's business district and Downtown's nightlife.

Murray Hill is a smart locale for any city dweller or business owners. Its renowned landmarks create a very strong attraction point, delivering a very strong appeal to this neighborhood: The Morgan Library located at Madison Avenue and East 36th Street - which serves as architectural eye candy for incoming residents; The Gilbert-designed Beaux Arts mansion originally built for entrepreneur Joseph Raphael De Lemar; The Grand Central Station just on the outskirts of town; The New York Public Library and the Queens-Midtown Tunnel, are all notable landmarks to its credit.

If you are the kind of person who wants to be exactly half-way between the East Village and Central Park, this is your best choice in terms of location.


CHELSEA

In 1750, when Capt. Thomas Clarke bought a tract of farmland for his retirement, he named it Chelsea after the Chelsea Royal Hospital, an old soldiers' home in London. Captain Clarke's grandson, Clement Clarke Moore developed Chelsea as a garden suburb. Moore, known as Chelsea's founding father, incorporated guidelines for building that are still in effect today.

Today, Chelsea is known as that small town community where everybody knows your name. The resident population is made up of artists and creative professionals. In this small community atmosphere everyone feels safe and comfortable to do whatever they please. Hence, Chelsea has many diverse entertainment spots, ranging from traditional bars and restaurants to some more avant-garde nightclubs and pubs.

The buildings in Chelsea range from lofts to 19th century brownstones to townhouses converted into multi apartment units to large apartment buildings. Loft buildings are the primary residences, for photographers, artists and designers. Located between Midtown and the West Village, this neighborhood offers convenience, comfort and safety. Besides, shopping, movie theatres and local bazaars on weekends Chelsea 9 different subway lines that pass through it, making it one of the most accessible places in the city.

The Historic Chelsea Hotel can also be found in this area. Some of it's more famous residents: Mark Twain, Tenessee Wiliams and Bob Dylan.

East of Ninth Avenue, the crowds get thicker, the merchants are more abundant and the warehouses give way to stunning landmark townhouses, prewar co-ops and new luxury rental buildings.

As you continue northbound on Seventh Avenue, the buildings grow taller and the streets more hectic. Here's the Fashion Avenue and Fashion Center. It's also where millions of shoppers flock to snap up the bargains at Macy's, an equal number take in events at Madison Square Garden and more yet travel daily through Penn Station.

Whichever camp you prefer-Chelsea's art community, the Fashion District's style society-both offer its residents exciting perspectives on city life and opportunities dynamic in every way you can think of.

Chelsea Piers Sports & Entertainment Complex is a 30-acre waterfront sports village located between 17th and 23rd Streets along Manhattan's Hudson River. This $120 million, privately-financed project has transformed four historic, but long-neglected, piers into a major center for public recreation and waterfront access. Situated on Piers 59, 60, 61 and 62 and in the head house that connects them, the Complex features many sports and entertainment venues. This massive sports complex, allows New Yorkers to enjoy a huge range of sporting options without leaving the city. There is a golf driving range, roller-skating, ice skating, bowling, swimming and workout facilities, just to name a few options.


MIDTOWN WEST

Midtown West runs from 5th Avenue west to the West Side Highway and from 34th Street up to the southern tip of Central Park. Midtown is the main hub in NYC for business, shopping, entertainment and tourism. There is so much to find and so much to do that many New Yorkers can't help but to come here at least once a week.

What was once a run down neighborhood has been cleaned up into a very presentable and lively residential district. Making up Midtown West is Hell's Kitchen and Clinton. Both neighborhoods are an eclectic mix of people. What makes this neighborhood special is that everyone seems to know each other here.

Ninth Avenue has become a hotbed of fun and chic bars, restaurants and shops. There have been some new galleries that have opened in the area recently along with Kenneth Cole and Prada moving their corporate headquarters into the neighborhood. Residents say they are the next Soho, without the attitude.

Midtown West has seen more new construction than any other area in Manhattan and is the number one destination for those shopping for luxury hi-rises.


MIDTOWN EAST

Financial institutions, law firms and luxurious hotels are what this area is all about. Located between 5th and 3rd Avenue and roughly between 40th and 60th street Midtown East is primarily a business district. During regular working hours on weekdays it is one of the busiest parts of the city where businessmen and women as well as tourists walk the streets tirelessly and endlessly.

Among the many attractions here are: the famous Rockefeller Center, the Saint Patrick Cathedral and the fabulous and newly renovated Grand Central Terminal. The neighborhood is also home to many corporations such as Met Life and Citicorp, as well as the United Nations. With the art deco Chrysler Building illuminating the skyline, every style of home is available in this neighborhood.

Towards its northern part, in the vicinity of Central Park there are a number of magnificent luxury towers, which stand tall above the park offering breath-taking views. The most impressive- the jewel of the area is the Trump Tower. Located directly on Fifth Avenue the building is the office and home of the New York real estate magnate Donald Trump who resides on the top floors of the tower he himself built.

Most residents who decide to live in the area usually work around midtown as well. They like the convenience of walking to work and having the 850acre park right on their front step. The area from 55th street and up has some of the best and most exotic restaurants the city has to offer. Since many residents are know public figures, celebrities and other wealthy individuals the rents and sales prices are among the highest in the city. But if you can afford it there are few other places that you will provide you with proximity to work, best restaurants and an escape in the city quote s biggest park all within walking distance.

One more aspect that makes the area even more attractive is the exclusive shopping that 5th Avenue offers. Gucci, Armani, Versace and Tiffanies are just some of the designers who offer their products to the very selective crowd who comes goes to shop there.

If you ever need to venture to other parts of the city transportation is excellent with 6 different subway lines and the Grand Central Terminal within a five minute walk from anywhere in the area.


UPPER EAST SIDE

From the Plaza Hotel at the edge of Central Park at 59th Street to the top of Museum Mile at El Museo del Barrio at 105th Street, this is the city's Gold Coast. The neighborhood air is perfumed with the scent of old money, conservative values, and glamorous sophistication, with Champagne corks popping and high society putting on the Ritz.

On the corner of Lexington and 59th Street is Bloomingdale's - one of the NYC shopping icons, a beloved sanctuary for stylish consumers. On Madison Avenue, window shopping can be intoxicating: so many tempting boutiques, so many famous names to flaunt on everything from socks to shoes to satin sheets to chocolates.

Between Lexington and Madison Avenues, Park Avenue is an oasis of calm with wide streets meant for strolling, lovely architecture, and a median strip that sprouts tulips in season and sculptures at other times of the year. This grand street stretching down to midtown is one of our city's most coveted residential addresses.

Once Manhattan's Millionaire's Row, the stretch of Fifth Avenue between 72nd and 104th Streets has been renamed Museum Mile because of its astonishing number of world-class cultural institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Guggenheim Museum. This stretch is lined with the former mansions of the Upper East Side's more illustrious industrialists and philanthropists.

The neighborhood is a cornucopia of treasures, including the intimate Frick Collection, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the National Academy of Design's 19th 20th-century collections of American Art, the Jewish Museum's Gothic-style mansion and the graceful Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, Smithsonian Institution. An added attraction to strolling along Fifth and Park Avenues are the many fascinating non-museum displays on view to the careful observer, especially in the evenings.

Central Park lines Fifth Avenue. Go into "the yard" and discover a zoo, a castle, a reservoir, an ice-skating rink, a boathouse where you can rent rowboats, a gorgeous "secret" conservatory garden, and plenty of trails for walking, jogging, bicycling, and horseback riding. It's a park for all seasons, from ice skating in winter to free, summertime performances of Shakespeare's plays and concerts on the Great Lawn that crescendo to dazzling displays of fireworks. After the show, you could head over to the bar at one of the neighborhood's tony hotels, like The Mark or The Carlyle.


UPPER WEST SIDE

The area from 59th Street to 125th Street and Central Park West to Riverside Park is considered by many to be the quintessential Manhattan neighborhood. Parks, theaters, historic buildings, world famous museums, fine restaurants and prestigious Universities call the area home.

The Upper West Side is separated from the Upper East Side by Central Park. This is the traditional stronghold of the city's intellectual, creative, and moneyed community, but the atmosphere is not as upper crust as the Upper East Side.

Elegant, pre-war buildings along the boulevards of Broadway, West End Avenue, Riverside Drive, and Central Park West meet shady, quiet streets lined with brownstones. Much of the area is protected by landmark status, and the neighborhood's restored townhouses and high-priced co-op apartments are coveted by actors, young professionals, and young families.

The residents range from the professional to the prolific. Many are drawn to the area to be around like-minded New Yorkers who are, historically, politically and spiritually liberal - yet who harkens to the sensibilities of suburbia. But all who inhabit this vast stretch of Manhattan would agree that the satisfying jumble of chic spots and local haunts, glamorous concert halls and humble community forums-the irresistible fusion of town and country-render the Upper West Side its own little Big Apple.

The famous Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts sits between 61st and 66th Streets on Broadway. It is home to the New York State Theater, New York City Ballet, the New York City Opera, the Metropolitan Opera House, Avery Fisher Hall, the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, the Vivian Beaumont Theater, Jazz At Lincoln Center, the Library and Museum of the Performing Arts, Alice Tully Hall for chamber music, and the world-famous Julliard School of Music. The Walter Reade Theater is the home of the center's film society. Its central plaza is the focus of summer outdoor performances of all kinds and dance nights.

Sidewalks in this neighborhood are always crowded during the day with performers rushing to auditions and families pushing their babies in imported strollers. In the evenings, however, the action moves inside, where singles mingle in myriad restaurants and bars. Stroll along Columbus Avenue to investigate the glitzy boutique-and-restaurant strip; walk along Amsterdam Avenue with its mix of bodegas, bars, and boutiques. Along Central Park West are such titanic habitats as the buff colored, castle-like Dakota. Other interesting architectural jewels along the avenue include The Lanhgam, the twin-towered San Remo, and The Kenilworth.

Cultural attractions include the dinosaur-filled American Museum of Natural History and Rose Center for Earth and Space, the New-York Historical Society (whose collection reaches from the 1600s to today), and the Children's Museum of Manhattan.

Venturing further uptown one finds the world's largest gothic Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine, Columbia University, Grant's Tomb, Riverside Church, Audubon Terrace (home of the Hispanic Society), and the Morris-Jumel Mansion, a colonial treasure. For greenery, Riverside Park is a real haven. The only state park situated on Manhattan Island, this 28-acre multi-level park rises 69 feet above the Hudson. Keep going, just past the George Washington Bridge, to the very tip of the island, and you will discover the Cloisters, which houses the Metropolitan Museum of Art's medieval art collection. In Fort Tryon Park, the Cloisters display the famous unicorn tapestries and other 12th-16th century treasures.

With generations of high profile tenants putting down roots on the Upper West Side, it's no wonder rents and real estate values continue to soar. Still, it's easy to justify when you consider the benefits of the vicinity. Best of all, within one wonderful section of town there are a number of distinct communities, each boasting unique character and neighborhood charm.