Hudson Yards, Manhattan
Hudson Yards is a neighborhood on the West Side of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, bounded roughly by 30th Street in the south, 41st Street in the north, the West Side Highway in the west, and Eighth Avenue in the east.[4][5] The area is the site of a large-scale redevelopment program that is being planned, funded, and constructed under a set of agreements among the State of New York, City of New York, and Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), with the aim of expanding the Midtown Manhattan business district westward to the Hudson River. The program includes a major rezoning of the Far West Side, an extension of the New York City Subway's 7 and <7> trains to a new subway station at 34th Street and 11th Avenue, a renovation and expansion of the Javits Center, and a financing plan to fund the various components. The various components are being planned by New York City Department of City Planning and New York City Economic Development Corporation.
This article is about the neighborhood in Manhattan. For the Related Companies development, see Hudson Yards (development). For other uses, see Hudson Yards (disambiguation).
Hudson Yards
United States
70,150
Neighborhood tabulation area; includes Chelsea
65.1%
14.6
11.8
5.7
2.8
212, 332, 646, and 917
The largest of the projects made possible by the rezoning is the 28-acre (11 ha) multiuse Hudson Yards real estate development by Related Companies and Oxford Properties, which is being built over the West Side Rail Yard. Construction began in 2012 with the groundbreaking for 10 Hudson Yards, and is projected to be completed by 2024. According to its master plan, created by Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates, the Hudson Yards development would include 16 skyscrapers to be constructed in two phases. Architects including Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill, Thomas Heatherwick, Roche-Dinkeloo, and Diller Scofidio + Renfro contributed designs for individual structures. Major office tenants include or will include fashion company Tapestry, gym chain Equinox Fitness, and financial company BlackRock.
The area includes other major development projects. One such project is Manhattan West, developed by Brookfield Property Partners over the rail yard west of Ninth Avenue between 31st and 33rd streets. Other structures being developed in the Hudson Yards Zoning District include 3 Hudson Boulevard and the Spiral. The special district also includes Pennsylvania Station, the subject of a major overhaul.
Hudson Yards is part of Manhattan Community District 4 and its primary ZIP Codes are 10001 and 10018.[1] It is patrolled by the 10th Precinct of the New York City Police Department.
Geography[edit]
"Hudson Yards" takes its name from the MTA rail yard along the Hudson River between 30th Street and 33rd Street, part of a Penn Central rail yard that once extended to 39th Street. The portion of the MTA yard between the river and Eleventh Avenue is called the Western Rail Yard, and the portion between Eleventh Avenue and Tenth Avenue is called the Eastern Rail Yard. The Hudson Yards area includes parts of the Garment Center, the Javits Convention Center, Madison Square Garden, the Port Authority Bus Terminal, the Farley Post Office, and the Lincoln Tunnel.[6] Most of the Hudson Yards redevelopment area is also known as Hell's Kitchen South.[7][8] The special purpose district covering the area, the Special Hudson Yards District, includes a "Hell's Kitchen subdistrict", encompassing the core residential area existing prior to redevelopment of the surrounding area. The subdistrict extends between 30th Street to the south and 41st Street to the north.[5]
Parks[edit]
The platform atop which the Related development was built includes a 6-acre (2 ha) public square.[57][58] In the middle of the square is Vessel, a 16-story structure of freestanding, connected staircases designed by Thomas Heatherwick.[59][60]
Hudson Park and Boulevard, a four-acre system of parks and roads,[61] is located north of the rail yard site, extending from 33rd Street to 39th Street, mid-block between Tenth Avenue and Eleventh Avenue. The boulevard is divided into a Hudson Boulevard East and a Hudson Boulevard West, with the park between the two.[62] The first phase, between 33rd and 36th Streets, was completed in August 2015.[63] Proposed parks between Ninth and Tenth avenues in the original plan were later dropped.
The High Line, an elevated park using the former right-of-way of the southern portion of the West Side railroad line, runs along Hudson Yards' southern and western edges before continuing south to Gansevoort Street in the Meatpacking District; its northern terminus is at 11th Avenue and 34th Street on the north side of Hudson Yards. In 2012, the city government acquired the northernmost section of the High Line from CSX Transportation.[64] In late 2014, the final phase of the High Line opened. It enters the Hudson Yards site and curves along 30th Street, Twelfth Avenue and 34th Street, with a spur along 30th Street to Tenth Avenue. The High Line is integrated with the Related Development's buildings; for example, 10 Hudson Yards cantilevers over the Spur.[65] Dubbed "High Line at the Rail Yards", the section was built in three phases. The right-of-way from 30th Street was extended into the Hudson Yards site, running parallel to 30th Street past Eleventh Avenue, and developed in a manner similar to the previous sections of the park. The Spur along 30th Street received an amphitheater, restrooms, trees and grasses above Tenth Avenue.[66] Finally, the curved section around the western part of Hudson Yards was originally developed as an "interim walkway", with further construction occurring in 2015.[67] There are entrances to the High Line from within the rail-yard development.[68]
Interpretations and reception[edit]
Urban planning and architecture[edit]
The Related development Hudson Yards, within the broader Hudson Yards area, has received negative attention for its inability to blend into the city and its architectural character.[134][135][136] The Related development has been cited in opposition to other, similar projects.[137]
Justin Davidson, in an article about the Manhattan West's opening for New York, compared the Brookfield development favorably to Related's Hudson Yards, writing that Manhattan West "[...] feels like a corner of New York conceived with actual human beings in mind" while Hudson Yards has "[...] has aged from a shiny new space station to a disconsolate one".[138]
Restaurants and amenities[edit]
In a review of the restaurant offerings at Related's Hudson Yards development written in anticipation of the complex opening to the public, Ryan Sutton criticized Related and Oxford for including only two establishments run by women.[139] Further, Sutton criticized Related and Oxford for failing to provide opportunities for small, local operators to open in Hudson Yards, instead leasing to established restaurateurs and organizations which had already experienced "great success".[139] Sutton also criticized the lack of "vibrancy" at the Hudson Yards development, caused by a lack of street-level restaurants.[139] Sutton noted the presence of several chain establishments, such as Sweetgreen and Think Coffee, at street-level in and near the complex, but wrote that "Fast casual isn't known for fostering communal dinnertime bonhomie".[139] In his review, Sutton did express positive anticipation of Mercado Little Spain, a restaurant and food court which had not yet opened in 10 Hudson Yards at the time the piece was published by Eater.[139]
When Mercado Little Spain ultimately opened in 2019, Eater published a mixed review of its offerings written by Robert Sietsema.[140] In a separate review by Sutton of the opened complex, published in 2019, the critic referred to Hudson Yards as "the worst place to eat fancy food in New York".[141] In the 2019 review, which served as an introduction to Eater's individual reviews of restaurants in Hudson Yards, Sutton panned TAK Room, a restaurant by Thomas Keller, but offered praise for Korean restaurant Kawi and Milos Wine Bar.[141] In his full review of TAK Room, Sutton criticized its prices and the discrepancy between the cost of eating at the restaurant and his perception of the quality of the food and service.[142] Pete Wells, in his review of the restaurant, echoed Sutton's criticisms.[143] TAK Room closed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[144]
The Equinox Hotel in Related's development received a positive review from Vanity Fair.[145] Samantha Lewis praised the hotel for its emphasis on providing guests with "blissful slumber".[145] The hotel's restaurant, Electric Lemon, has received an "underwhelming" review from Pete Wells.[146]
In Manhattan West, restaurants including Ci Siamo and Zou Zou's, were given positive reviews by Adam Platt and Ryan Sutton, respectively.[147][148] Italian Restaurant Legacy Records, located in a new apartment building on West 38th Street, was reviewed favorably by Pete Wells.[149]
Demographics[edit]
For census purposes, the New York City government classifies Hudson Yards as part of a larger neighborhood tabulation area called Hudson Yards-Chelsea-Flat Iron-Union Square.[150] 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).[2] 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.[3]
Police and crime[edit]
Hudson Yards is patrolled by the 10th Precinct of the NYPD, located at 230 West 20th Street.[151] The 10th Precinct ranked 61st safest out of 69 patrol areas for per-capita crime in 2010.[152]
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.[153]
Post offices and ZIP Codes[edit]
Hudson Yards is located within two primary ZIP Codes. The area south of 34th Street is in 10001 and the area north of 34th Street is in 10018.[158] The United States Postal Service operates the RCU Annex Station post office at 340 West 42nd Street.[159] In addition, the James A. Farley Station, the main post office for New York City, is located at 421 8th Avenue.[160]
Notes
Further reading
Project websites:
Descriptions:
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