TheLower East Side

The Lower East Side is a term that, for the unaffiliated, tends to bring to mind NYC documentaries in melodramatic black and white, amplifying the difficult and troubled past of the area. While this was an overcrowded area of tenements and poverty one hundred years ago, these days the Lower East Side is an overcrowded melting pot of need and want, rich and not-so-rich, and everything in between. Gone are the days when immigrants fleeing religious persecution would settle eight to a room for a paltry sum; it can cost an arm and a leg to live in this little corner of Manhattan now. This is the LES, a ‘hood with many faces that aren’t necessarily filled with hipsters and trendy little bars.

Historically, the Lower East Side was a crowded area ripe with immigrants of many backgrounds and nationalities; during the Great Depression it was one of the most densely populated areas in the United States. The Tenement Museum of New York stands in the Lower East Side today as a reminder of the horrible conditions many of the residents had to endure. These days, tiny, six floor walk-up apartments are still the norm, as are the towering projects that line the area known as “Two Bridges,” but with more attention being focused on the area landlords are increasingly conscientious of their tenants. Living conditions are better than ever in the neighborhood, and the glut of bars, clubs, restaurants, and money pouring in ensure that it will continue to improve. For the residents of the area who have lived here for years, the gentrification is of course an issue, but the Lower East Side manages to hold onto the flavor of its residents in way that many other neighborhoods cannot.

Delancey Street remains clogged with both bridge traffic and the dime stores, discount clothing outlets, and jewelry stores it has always showcased. Farther south, near Cherry Street you’ll find the streets teeming with children playing outside their buildings and older residents catching up over a cigarette. Many avant garde artists and performers find this an appealing place to live, , a place where grit and grime and tough living still exist—perhaps not as an actual way of life, but as an ever present idea from history.

Landlords love to spruce up Lower East Side apartments for wealthy young folks—this area attracts on the rise new professions who want a veritable slice of NYC and all the nighttime diversion, eating, shopping, and drinking they could ever want right in the palm of their hands. The LES has the same self-sufficient appeal of areas like Flatiron or Astoria, and is serviced by a number of buses and the F, J, M, and Z trains. Don’t want to take the train? Just about everything you need is within walking distance—from grocery stores to bodegas, bars, and delis. The Lower East Side is a veritable community unto itself, a diverse slice of Manhattan where everything is at your fingertips.

SPREAD THE WORD TO YOUR FRIENDS.
We are trying to influence the rental market to rid itself of tenant broker fees and we need your help to Spread The Word.

Sincerely
David Drake
President