With the instant "new nabe" mentality of the condo boom, sometimes developers get ahead of themselves on getting a building up but not anchoring the right businesses to support the new mass of condo dwellers they hope to entice. The group of buildings that got it right might be the developments off of Jackie Robinson Park on 145th Street and Bradhurst. First of all, the new buildings are anchored by a major express subway hub (the A,B,C,D at St. Nicholas Avenue) and there's the perk of having a historic park as part of the scenery. So what sort of creature comforts does it take to help make someone make the move 100 blocks north of midtown? Four major businesses that arrived right away set up the area for success: Starbucks, New York Sports Club, Duane Reade and a deluxe new Pathmark supermarket. All four are a microcosm of the basic needs of city living so maybe developers should focus on filling up their empty commercial spaces first before they start making major sales pitches. Oh yeah, there's also the major bank branch but that seems to be a given these days. All the condos along this West 145th Street corridor of three blocks have all of these businesses and they are basically fully sold so it seems like this scenario is a pretty good one. Off course, we would rather have a local cafe, gym, drugstore or supermarket but these new developments are not always so financially friendly for small businesses. Photos by Ulysses.
Thanks for featuring this part of Harlem. West 145th in Hamilton Heights is by far one of the better areas in Harlem. Convenience to midtown and access to parks (including Jackie Robinson which is very clean and well kept and St. Nicholas Park with the Hamilton Grange).
ReplyDeleteAlso nearby is the tennis triangle: over 30 tennis courts to play on indoor and outdoor - Frederick Johnson courts 150th and 7th ave., Harlem Armory indoor courts at 142 and 6th Avenue and across the river the new Stadium racket club with 20 courts - 16 indoor).
Like the song goes, "take the A train to Harlem." If it was written today, it would say you could get to midtown in 15 minutes.
ReplyDeleteYou are absolutely right when it comes to putting up condos. These residents need services and perhaps rather than leaving commercial spaces vacants for months at a time. Perhaps should help to develop and nurture small businesses, which give a neighborhood character and a wider selection of services. Look at the Brooklyn neigborhood - Dumbo -, twenty years ago that neigborhood was devoid of merchants but the developers made a conscious effort to attract small unique business. Now, the neighborhood has become an attractive place to live because of the various services one can get ...
ReplyDeleteThe problem is likely that the commercial leases are usually long-term (like 10 years, I think). The landlords don't want to "sell" at the bottom, and so it's hard to get everyone to settle on terms that satisfy everybody's interests.
ReplyDeleteThat said, I think we could use a gym along FDB between 110th and 116th or so...