New York’s hottest new neighbourhoods are dangerously close to the water
CONSTRUCTION is booming across the Big Apple, which means a lot more restaurants, bars and boutiques to discover. But a dark cloud hangs over these new neighbourhoods.
YOU’VE been to SoHo, Chelsea and the Meatpacking District. Done the Lower East Side and the West Village. So, what are the next New York neighbourhoods to explore? Point your compass towards the river.
With construction booming across the Big Apple, and space getting harder and harder to find, the city’s newest developments are sprouting along the water’s edge — along the Hudson River, the East River and out by the Atlantic Ocean.
The good news is that this growth means there are lots more restaurants, bars and boutiques to discover.
However, these neighbourhoods also happen to be some of the most vulnerable to flooding and storms.
After Hurricane Sandy walloped New York in 2012, the city divided neighbourhoods into zones, with Zone 1, mostly made up of land along waterways, being the most likely to flood in a storm or following a tidal surge. Much of this Zone 1 land had been used for industrial purposes in the past, and then left dormant as other neighbourhoods were built up and gentrified.
But with more and more residents and visitors pouring into New York, development has turned to these underused areas — and you’ll now find some of the hottest new restaurants and neighbourhoods right in the middle of potential flood zones.
According to a recent report on New York’s potentially flooded future in New York magazine, a surge of six feet has a one per cent chance of happening each year. Climatologists call them “100 year” storms. So, while the forecast is not doom and gloom for these spots on a daily basis, you may want to earmark them for a visit on a sunny day with no chance of rain.
SOUTH STREET SEAPORT DISTRICT
Once home to the city’s Fulton Fish Market (which has moved to The Bronx), the Seaport neighbourhood, adjacent to the Financial District, suffered serious damage from Hurricane Sandy. But it is rebounding with vigour, with new retail, restaurants, design studios and hip boutiques opening as part of a major revitalisation project.
Abercrombie & Fitch has long brought tourists to the area but other chain stores that used to line Fulton Street are being replaced with a more refined mix of retailers, including 10 Corso Como, Scotch and Soda, and other indie shops with an artisanal bent. On the way is a massive new seafood market helmed by star chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten and new restaurants from other celeb chefs including David Chang, Tom Colicchio and Keith McNally.
Stay: The Beekman, the newly opened Thompson Hotel, which brings artsy sophistication to one of the city’s most striking old buildings.
HUDSON YARDS
This development on the west side of Manhattan — between 10th and 12th Avenues and from West 30th Street to West 34th Street — won’t be completed until 2025, but construction is in full swing and it’s tipped to be a hub for residents and tourists alike, blending office space and apartment buildings with public space, art installations, shops, bars and restaurants.
Fashionistas will be thrilled to hear that New York’s first Neiman Marcus department store will open here, along with 100 other shops. Hudson Yards’ collection of restaurants is being “curated” by acclaimed chef Thomas Keller.
Stay: The Hudson Yards development plan includes an Equinox-branded luxury hotel, but until then, a good bet is a few blocks south — the minimalist chic Hotel Americano.
BROOKLYN BRIDGE PARK
This series of piers and park land lining the East River beneath and either side of the Brooklyn Bridge has been under development for a few years and there’s more to come. Local Brooklynites love the sports fields and parks with water features for the kids, as well as the hip eateries that have popped up to serve the growing crowds who flock here on the weekends, such as No. 7 Sub, Luke’s Lobster, Fornino and Ample Hills Creamery. Stroll the greenways, create Instagram envy with photos of Jane’s Carousel and the lower Manhattan skyline as a backdrop, or hop on a ferry for a ride up the East River.
Stay: Eco-chic hotel group 1 Hotels will open their new Brooklyn Bridge property in February, 2017, so you can stay right amongst all the action.
GOWANUS, BROOKLYN
The Gowanus Canal is still a Superfund site, and unless you like the look of toxic sludge in an urban setting, it’s not the prettiest. That said, a clean-up is underway, rents are skyrocketing, and there are promises of new parkland and more development to come.
What’s undeniable is that the surrounding area, home to manufacturing and industrial warehouses, has been filling up with indie breweries, coffee shops, bars and restaurants, which all cater to the influx of residents who have moved to the surrounding Carroll Gardens neighbourhood in the past 10 years. In the summer, locals relish in the ample space at Pig Beach, a seasonal barbecue joint dotted with picnic tables, and foodie spot The Pines has a summer pop-up of its own in its backyard: a taco stand.
Stay: The area’s first boutique hotel, Gowanus Inn & Yard, is under construction. In the meantime, travellers can stay at nearby Park Slope’s Union Hotel, or one of the many new options in downtown Brooklyn.
LONG ISLAND CITY, QUEENS
This area, just one stop from Manhattan on the subway, is gentrifying at a breakneck pace. With cheaper rents and a more laid-back lifestyle, LIC is drawing New Yorkers fed up with the overrun neighbourhoods of Brooklyn. Take a stroll along the redone riverfront and you’ll see locals enjoying outdoor yoga classes, plenty of dogs, and an old Pepsi sign that has become the neighbourhood’s landmark. MoMA PS1 has cutting-edge exhibitions and superb food at its M. Wells Dinette. M. Wells proper, a few blocks away, opened to rave reviews in 2013, and is worth checking out for its innovative dining, tucked away behind an old garage door. Shop for locally designed clothing, homewares and gifts in shops along Vernon Boulevard, and hit up the LIC Flea & Food for more shopping and food truck-style bites.
Stay: Staying in LIC is a smart way to save a bunch of cash — you can spend your days in Manhattan but pay a whole lot less to sleep just across the bridge. You’ll find all the major hotel chains here, plus boutiques like Z Hotel, Ravel, and the design-focused Boro Hotel.
THE ROCKAWAYS, QUEENS
The fact that this peninsula is a good 90-minute commute from Manhattan had kept Rockaway Beach sleepy for many years. But now Ramones diehards and surfers have been joined by waves of hipsters — New Yorkers and visitors alike — seeking sun, sand and more space than the city can provide. Many homes here were destroyed in the aftermath of Sandy, but recovery has been underway (Patti Smith is just one homeowner who rebuilt after the storm), and a new section of the boardwalk has been restored and is expected to draw more shops and businesses in the next few years. Outdoors bars, taco joints and the city’s best beaches await at the end of the A train subway line.
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Stay: The artsy Playland Motel, where you’ll meet the cool crowd who flock to the Playland Grill for cocktails and dinner.
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