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Picking a Neighborhood
Neighborhood Directory
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Picking a Neighborhood
New York City is composed of five boroughs: Manhattan, Brooklyn, The Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island. This City Sketch is focusing on Manhattan because, frankly, that's where most recent grads wind up living. There are lots of nice places to live in the other boroughs, especially in Brooklyn, and we'll be adding some "outer borough" sections when this module is updated in September.
If you're thinking about moving to New York, you're probably thinking about Manhattan, and that's only proper. It is the heart of the city and probably what those of you who want to be in New York are looking for. You shouldn't think of that as limiting, though. It is a wildly diverse place. The variety of neighborhoods on this little island would make your head spin. I've met people who have lived in Manhattan their entire lives and have never set foot in most of it. This is not a city that is broken up into neighborhoods that are strictly residential or strictly commercial. Although there aren't a lot of people who actually live in mid-town or on Wall Street, there are some. Essentially, people live and work everywhere.
Every neighborhood has it's own personality, and it's tough to pin down where you will be happiest. I've moved several times since I've been here, trying to find the right fit. Each area's vibe is different, and just a few blocks can mean a dramatic change. You wouldn't believe that 83rd and Madison is only a few blocks away from 86th and 3rd Avenue.
In my mind, there are three major things to consider in deciding where to live:
Directory of Neighborhoods
Following are some mini-discriptions of neighborhoods just to help you narrow it down. They are very, very general and full of exceptions (listed north to south):
Upper West Side: 59th to 125th west of Central Park West. All ages, many families, broad range of restaurants, many bars, brownstones on side streets, large buildings are on avenues, 3/4 residential. North of 105th are Columbia students and hip yuppies.
Upper East Side: 59th to 96th east of 5th Avenue. Older population with pockets of single yuppies, many bars, many restaurants of all types, mostly residential, alternately cheap and expensive apartments.
Midtown East: 34th to 59th east of 5th Avenue. Large buildings, mostly commercial offices.
Midtown West: 34th to 59th west of 5th Avenue. Large buildings, mostly commercial, some great values for apartments.
Gramercy/Flatiron/Murray Hill: 14th to 34th east of 5th Avenue. Middle-aged to old, half residential, half commercial, fewer restaurants, medium to larger apartment buildings, wide range of apartment values.
Chelsea: 14th to 39th west of 5th Avenue. Brownstones on cross streets, medium-sized buildings on avenues, moderately priced restaurants, some ethnic food, gay community, good value for moderately priced apartments, mostly residential.
East Village: Houston to 14th east of 5th Avenue. Some brownstones and many medium-sized buildings, arty, ultra hip, very young, many students, cheap eats, bars, inexpensive apartments, very residential.
Central Village/NYU: Broadway to 6th Avenue, Houston to 14th Street. Students, student food, student bars, tourists, cafes - the ultimate "urban campus." I love grass and trees and peace and quiet as much as the next guy, but every time I go visit my college friends in other cities, after a few days I find myself thinking, "Is this all there is?" It's just not the same living somewhere you can't buy a Snapple on any corner or see great jazz any day of the week.
West Village: Houston to 14th Street west of 5th Avenue. Young to middle-aged, brownstones and medium-sized buildings, large gay community, wide range of restaurants, cafes, predominantly residential, some bars, moderate to expensive apartments (smaller).
Lower East Side/Little Italy/Chinatown: south of Houston, east of Broadway. Large immigrant populations, wide range of buildings, many inexpensive apartments, some pockets of young people, 3/4 residential
Soho: Broadway to Varick south of Houston (name stands for South of Houston). Art galleries, cafes, moderate to expensive restaurants, medium-sized buildings, beautiful people, expensive clothes stores, expensive apartments, lofts, young to middle-aged.
Tribeca: Broadway to West Side Highway south of Canal (name stands for Triangle Below Canal Street). Arty, much commercial/warehouse, sparser residential population, a few cheap and expensive restaurants, ultra-hip.
Wall Street/South Street Seaport/Battery Park: south of Chambers Street. Mostly commercial, large buildings, some expensive yuppie developments.
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