Chelsea, Manhattan
Chelsea is a neighborhood on the West Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City. The area's boundaries are roughly 14th Street to the south, the Hudson River and West Street to the west, and Sixth Avenue to the east, with its northern boundary variously described as near the upper 20s[4][5] or 34th Street, the next major crosstown street to the north.[6][7] To the northwest of Chelsea is the neighborhood of Hell's Kitchen, as well as Hudson Yards; to the northeast are the Garment District and the remainder of Midtown South; to the east are NoMad and the Flatiron District; to the southwest is the Meatpacking District; and to the south and southeast are the West Village and the remainder of Greenwich Village.[8][b] Chelsea is named after the Royal Hospital Chelsea in London, England.
For other uses, see Chelsea.
Chelsea
0.774 sq mi (2.00 km2)
47,325
61,000/sq mi (24,000/km2)
65.1%
14.6
11.8
5.7
2.8
$116,160
212, 332, 646, and 917
Roughly:
West 19th – West 23rd Streets
Eighth –Tenth Avenues[a]
1830
Multiple
Greek Revival, Italianate, Georgian
December 6, 1977 (original)
December 16, 1982 (increase)
September 15, 1970
February 3, 1981 (extension)
Chelsea contains the Chelsea Historic District and its extension, which were designated by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1970 and 1981 respectively.[9] The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977, and expanded in 1982 to include contiguous blocks containing particularly significant examples of period architecture.
The neighborhood is primarily residential, with a mix of tenements, apartment blocks, city housing projects, townhouses, and renovated rowhouses, but its many retail businesses reflect the ethnic and social diversity of the population. The area has a large LGBTQ population.[10] Chelsea is also known as one of the centers of the city's art world, with over 200 galleries in the neighborhood. As of 2015, due to the area's gentrification, there is a widening income gap between the wealthy living in luxury buildings and the poor living in housing projects, who are, at times, across the street from each other.
Chelsea is a part of Manhattan Community District 4 and Manhattan Community District 5, and its primary ZIP Codes are 10001 and 10011.[1] It is patrolled by the 10th Precinct of the New York City Police Department.
Demographics[edit]
For census purposes, the New York City government classifies Chelsea as part of a larger neighborhood tabulation area called Hudson Yards-Chelsea-Flat Iron-Union Square.[30] Based on data from the 2010 United States Census, the population of Hudson Yards-Chelsea-Flat Iron-Union Square was 70,150, a change of 14,311 (20.4%) from the 55,839 counted in 2000. Covering an area of 851.67 acres (344.66 ha), the neighborhood had a population density of 82.4/acre (52,700/sq mi; 20,400/km2).[31] The racial makeup of the neighborhood was 65.1% (45,661) White, 5.7% (4,017) African American, 0.1% (93) Native American, 11.8% (8,267) Asian, 0% (21) Pacific Islander, 0.4% (261) from other races, and 2.3% (1,587) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 14.6% (10,243) of the population.[2]
The entirety of Community District 4, which comprises Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen, had 122,119 inhabitants as of NYC Health's 2018 Community Health Profile, with an average life expectancy of 83.1 years.[32]: 2, 20 This is higher than the median life expectancy of 81.2 for all New York City neighborhoods.[33]: 53 (PDF p. 84) [34] Most inhabitants are adults: a plurality (45%) are between the ages of 25–44, while 26% are between 45 and 64, and 13% are 65 or older. The ratio of youth and college-aged residents was lower, at 9% and 8% respectively.[32]: 2
As of 2017, the median household income in Community Districts 4 and 5 was $101,981.[35] In 2018, an estimated 11% of Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen residents lived in poverty, compared to 14% in all of Manhattan and 20% in all of New York City. One in twenty residents (5%) were unemployed, compared to 7% in Manhattan and 9% in New York City. Rent burden, or the percentage of residents who have difficulty paying their rent, is 41% in Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen, compared to the boroughwide and citywide rates of 45% and 51% respectively. Based on this calculation, as of 2018, Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen are considered to be high-income relative to the rest of the city and not gentrifying.[32]: 7
Police and crime[edit]
Chelsea is patrolled by the 10th Precinct of the NYPD, located at 230 West 20th Street.[69] The 10th Precinct ranked 61st safest out of 69 patrol areas for per-capita crime in 2010.[70] As of 2018, with a non-fatal assault rate of 34 per 100,000 people, Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen's rate of violent crimes per capita is less than that of the city as a whole. The incarceration rate of 313 per 100,000 people is lower than that of the city as a whole.[32]: 8
The 10th Precinct has a lower crime rate than in the 1990s, with crimes across all categories having decreased by 74.8% between 1990 and 2018. The precinct reported 1 murder, 19 rapes, 81 robberies, 103 felony assaults, 78 burglaries, 744 grand larcenies, and 26 grand larcenies auto in 2018.[71]
Health[edit]
Preterm births in Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen are the same as the city average, though teenage births are less common. In Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen, there were 87 preterm births per 1,000 live births (compared to 87 per 1,000 citywide), and 9.9 teenage births per 1,000 live births (compared to 19.3 per 1,000 citywide).[32]: 11 Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen have a low population of residents who are uninsured. In 2018, this population of uninsured residents was estimated to be 11%, slightly less than the citywide rate of 12%.[32]: 14
The concentration of fine particulate matter, the deadliest type of air pollutant, in Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen is 0.0098 mg/m3 (9.8×10−9 oz/cu ft), more than the city average.[32]: 9 Eleven percent of Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen residents are smokers, which is less than the city average of 14% of residents being smokers.[32]: 13 In Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen, 10% of residents are obese, 5% are diabetic, and 18% have high blood pressure—compared to the citywide averages of 24%, 11%, and 28% respectively.[32]: 16 In addition, 14% of children are obese, compared to the citywide average of 20%.[32]: 12
Ninety-one percent of residents eat some fruits and vegetables every day, which is higher than the city's average of 87%. In 2018, 86% of residents described their health as "good", "very good", or "excellent", more than the city's average of 78%.[32]: 13 For every supermarket in Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen, there are 7 bodegas.[32]: 10
The nearest major hospitals are Beth Israel Medical Center in Stuyvesant Town, as well as the Bellevue Hospital Center and NYU Langone Medical Center in Kips Bay.[75][76]
Chelsea is located within two primary ZIP Codes. The area north of 24th Street is in 10001 while the area south of 24th Street is in 10011.[77] The United States Postal Service operates four post offices in Chelsea:
In addition, the Centralized Parcel Post and the Morgan General Mail Facility are located at 341 9th Avenue.[82][83] The USPS also operates a vehicle maintenance facility on the block bounded by 11th Avenue, 24th Street, 12th Avenue, and 26th Street.[84] This facility has the ZIP Code 10199.[77]
Transportation[edit]
The neighborhood is served by the M7, M10, M11, M12, M14 SBS and M23 SBS New York City Bus routes. New York City Subway routes include the 1, 2, and 3 services on Seventh Avenue, the A, C, and E services on Eighth Avenue, and the F, <F>, and M services on Sixth Avenue.[93] The 34th Street – Hudson Yards station on the 7 and <7> trains opened in September 2015 with its main entrance in Chelsea.[94][95]