Southwest Harlem

By Patrick Verel | Special to amNewYork

April 12, 2007

The revival of Harlem is well known. But the area of Manhattan that was once the Dutch village of Nieuw Haarlem is a vast one, stretching from the Hudson River to the East Side.

Of all the parts of Harlem, few are feeling the winds of change as much Southwest Harlem, the section hemmed in by Marcus Garvey Park, Morningside Park and Central Park. Hamilton Heights may have Strivers Row and Sugar Hill can claim Duke Ellington, but the blocks surrounding the lower part of the expansive Lenox Avenue are chock-full of the stylish brownstone buildings and leafy, quiet streets that first made the area a world-class destination in the 1920s.

Nancy Cabrera, vice president at Prudential Douglas Elliman, counts herself as one of the newcomers to the area, having moved here four years ago.

"There's a diversity of people in the area, and it's quite lovely. The buildings are low; they're just starting to build buildings that are high," she said. "A block off the 125th street, it's very residential. There are all these lovely brownstones, and it's not congested."

In what has turned out to be a nice surprise, her commute in now actually easier. She notes that she has a shorter ride on the express train from 125th Street to midtown than she did when she commuted from West 103rd Street.

That's exactly what Michael Goldenberg, head of sales for Halstead Property's Harlem office, said has Harlem on the rebound. Easy access to parks, lots of transportation, ample housing, and cultural touchstones like the Apollo Theater, the Lenox Lounge, the Abyssinian Baptist Church and Sylvia's restaurant continue to draw newcomers to the area, just as they first did when elevated trains connected New York to the town of Harlem in 1880.

"If you put the positives of Harlem up against the Upper East Side or the Upper West Side, you see the same positives; it's just now people are looking at it," he said. "We saw it in Alphabet City, we saw it in Chelsea, and we see it in any neighborhood that has had a rebirth."

The Basics

Find it
The area we reviewed is bordered by 125th Street to the north, Fifth Avenue to the east, Central Park to the south and Morningside Park to the west.

Transportation
Subway: 2, 3, 125th St., 116th Street, 110th Street-Central Park North; A, C, B, D, 125th Street; B, C, 116th Street, Cathedral Parkway

Bus: M1, 2, 3, 4, 10, 60, 100, 101, 102, 116, BX 15

Crime
The 28th Precinct has had no murders, one rape and 60 robberies this year, compared to four murders, six rapes and 62 robberies at this time last year. It had a total of 12 murders, 18 rapes and 301 robberies last year.

Schools
Future Leaders Institute Charter School, 134 W. 122nd St.; Sisulu Children's Academy/Harlem Public Charter School, 125 W. 115th St.; P.S. 149, 41 W. 117th St.; P.S. 180, 370 W. 120th St.; P.S. 208, 21 W. 111th St.; P.S. 241, 240 W. 113th St.; P.S. 242, 134 W. 122nd St.; P.S. 76, 220 W. 121st St.; I.S./H.S. 415, 215 W. 114th St.; M.S. 860, 215 W. 114th St.

Post Offices
Morningside Station, 232 W. 116th St.; Manhattanville, 365 W. 125th St.

Banks