Upper West Side: Past, present, and future of one of the greatest neighborhoods in all of New York City

The Upper West Side, one of the greatest neighborhoods in all of New York City (in my humble opinion), was founded in 1609 by Henry Hudson on behalf of the Dutch East India Co. In 1613, Dutch immigrants decided to settle north of the city then known as Bloemendal-a variety of flowers. The stretch of land is known today as Broadway. The initial settlers were Munsees, a northern offshoot of the Lenni Lenape tribe. By the 1700s, the Munsee tribe was forced out of New York by Dutch Colonists. The Munsees fled to Canada, Wisconsin, Ohio, Indiana, and most settled in Oklahoma where their descendants live today. Today the Upper West Side is situated between 59th St. on the south, 125th St. on the north, Central Park to the East, and the Hudson River to the west. There are individual towns within the Upper West Side such as Morningside Heights (its boundaries are West 110th St. on the south, Riverside Dr. on the west, West 125th St. on the north, and Morningside Dr. on the east), Manhattan Valley (its boundaries are West 110th St. to the north, Central Park West to the east, West 96th St. to the south, and Broadway to the west), and Lincoln Square (centered around the intersection of Broadway and Columbus Ave., between West 65th and West 66th Sts.) to name a few. Since the beginning, the Upper West Side was a bustling place of commerce where small mom and pop shops sold everything from apples and produce to baked goods to tobacco and wine. This dynamic helped the Upper West Side become assimilated into New York City as a whole which attracted affluent business owners to live and work in the area. The proliferation of buildings began in the 1880s when developers decided it was time to cash in on land they held for so long. Around this time, Columbia University (originally known as Kings College which was founded in 1754) relocated from the East Side to the Upper West Side. In the early 1900s, the subway allowed for easy access and for a more diverse neighborhood. The subway allowed for developers to build bigger apartment buildings than first sought out due to new demand. Today, the Upper West Side is host to the Apple store at West 67th St. and Broadway (1981 Broadway), Century 21 department store at West 66th St. and Broadway (1972 Broadway), Fairway Supermarket at West 74th St. and Broadway (2127 Broadway), Whole Foods Market between West 97th St. and West 100th St. on Columbus Ave. (798 Columbus Ave.), numerous banks, and pharmaceutical chains. Chain stores changed the character of the Upper West Side. Owners of retail buildings know that they can get top dollar per s/f from chain stores with a long term lease. This in turn, encourages owners to drive out mom and pop stores, changing the face of the neighborhood. Hence, the new proposed regulation to limit banks to a frontage of 25 ft. along Broadway, Amsterdam Ave., and Columbus Ave. At a recent West Manhattan Chamber of Commerce meeting, I asked council member, Gale Brewer if a tax incentive can be implemented for mixed-use or retail building owners who host mom and pop shops as opposed to chains. "It's the first thing I asked for when I got to office. It had to go to Albany. I tried, it's not going to happen" said Brewer. Despite recent economic hardships throughout the U.S., for the Upper West Side, the trend has not changed. The Upper West Side continues to attract all walks of life and grow. New developments continue to rise such as Extells' Riverside Center, an over eight acre lot from West 59th St. to West 61st St. between West End Ave. and Riverside Dr., which will consist of five residential buildings with 2,500 residential apartments, a 250-room hotel, a movie theater, a massive underground garage for 1,500 cars, an auto dealership, 104,000 s/f of office space, a public park and playground of 2.76 acres, and a new Public School (P.S./I.S. 342) that will open to educate students from kindergarten through the eighth grade. The new public school will be housed on the fourth floor in one of the residential towers and will accommodate about 488 students. Another project, Sam Zells' recent development site purchase of 20,700 s/f on Amsterdam Ave. between 66th and 67th Sts. for $76.5 million in which Zell revealed that he will build a 230-unit residential complex with 8,500 s/f of retail space, and Friedland Properties' new development project to be completed two years from now: a 20-story, 181-unit luxury apartment complex to be named "Larstrand" with 40,000 s/f of retail space on Broadway and 77th St. in which CVS will anchor some of the retail space. At the Larstrand, 37 units of the 181 residential units will be available to affordable housing. All units will be available for lease only. Development projects are proof that demand to live and work in the area continues to increase. These future developments show how "smart money" investors and developers are confident in the future of the Upper West Side. Another reason for the growth of the Upper West Side is due to the great schools in the area which rank among the highest and best in the city. This dynamic attracts families to the area. For these reasons and many others, the Upper West Side will continue to prosper. Alex Isak is the director of Sales | Upper West Side at Falco & Isak Realty Services, Manhattan, N.Y.