The Flatiron District is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, named after the Flatiron Building at 23rd Street, Broadway and Fifth Avenue. Generally the Flatiron District is bounded by 20th Street, Union Square and Greenwich Village to the south; the Avenue of the Americas (Sixth Avenue) or Seventh Avenue and Chelsea to the west; 25th Street and NoMad to the north; Rose Hill to the northeast, and Lexington Avenue/Irving Place, Gramercy Park to the east.
Broadway cuts through the middle of the district, and Madison Avenue begins at 23rd Street and runs north. At the north (uptown) end of the district is Madison Square Park, which was completely renovated in 2001. The Flatiron District encompasses within its boundaries the Ladies' Mile Historic District and the birthplace of Theodore Roosevelt, a National Historic Site. The Flatiron District was also the birthplace of Silicon Alley, a metonym for New York's high technology sector, which has since spread beyond the area.
The Flatiron District is part of New York City's Manhattan Community Board 5.
History and name
The designation "Flatiron District" dates from around 1985, and came about because of its increasingly residential character, and the influx of many restaurants into the area â€" real estate agents needed an appealing name to call the area in their ads. Before that, the area was primarily commercial, with numerous small clothing and toy manufacturers, and was sometimes called the Toy District. The Toy Center buildings at 23rd Street and Broadway date from this period, and the annual American International Toy Fair took place there beginning in 1903, except for 1945. When much of this business moved outside the U.S., the area began to be referred to as the Photo District because of the large number of photographers' studios and associated businesses located there, the photographers having come because of the relatively cheap rents.
As of the 2000s, many publishers have their offices in the district, as well as advertising agencies, and the number of computer- and Web-related start-up companies in the area caused it to be considered part of "Silicon Alley" or "Multimedia Gulch", along with TriBeCa and SoHo.
Buildings
The Flatiron District is located in the part of Manhattan where the bedrock Manhattan schist is located deeper underground than it is above 29th Street and below Canal Street, and as a result, and under the influence of zoning laws, the tallest buildings in the area used to top out at around 20 stories; older buildings of 3-6 floors are still numerous, especially on the side streets.
Notable buildings in the district include the Flatiron Building, one of the oldest of the original New York skyscrapers, and just to east at 1 Madison Avenue is the Met Life Tower, built in 1909 and the tallest building in the world until 1913, when the Woolworth Building was completed. It is now occupied by Credit Suisse since MetLife moved their headquarters to the Pan Am Building. The 700-foot (210Â m) marble clock tower of this building dominates Madison Square and the park there.
Nearby, on Madison Avenue between 26th and 27th Streets, on the site of the old Madison Square Garden, is the New York Life Building, built in 1928 and designed by Cass Gilbert, with a square tower topped by a striking gilded pyramid. Also of note is the statuary adorning the Appellate Division of the New York State Supreme Court on Madison Avenue at 25th Street.
Completed in 2010, One Madison Park, an exclusive 50 story luxury residential condominium tower, sits at 22 East 23rd Street, at the foot of Madison Avenue, across from Madison Square Park. It is nearly as tall as the Met Life Tower (617.5 feet (188.2Â m), compared to 700 feet (210Â m) for the Tower), and taller than the Flatiron Building. The asking price for the triplex penthouse is $45 million.
Another landmark is the sidewalk clock outside 200 Fifth Avenue. It was erected in 1909.
Education
Baruch College of the City University of New York, is located on E. 23rd Street and Lexington Avenue on the eastern edge of the district. The College sits on the former site of the Free Academy (now City College of New York), which was founded in 1847 and was the first institution of free public higher education in the United States. Baruch's Newman Vertical Campus as well as the Zicklin School of Business, the largest collegiate school of business in the United States, are also located on 24th and 25th Streets between Third and Lexington Avenues.
Culture and shopping
Attractions in the area include the Museum of Sex and the Gershwin Hotel, both located on 27th Street. The Gershwin is a tribute to the late pop artist Andy Warhol, and features some of his art and memorabilia throughout the hotel.
There are also many stores around the area, such as Ann Taylor, Victoria's Secret, Take 31, Club Monaco and Origins. "Big-box" retailers dominate Sixth Avenue between 14th Street and 23rd Street, at the district's western edge.
The area is also home to the venerable eatery Eisenberg's Sandwich Shop revered for its long history, lengthy lunch counter, virgin lime rickeys, egg creams, old time feel and large sandwiches.
Notable residents
- Joe Quesada, comic book writer/artist/editor, and Chief Creative Officer of Marvel Comics.
- Chelsea Clinton, the daughter of U.S. President Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, as well as her husband Marc Mezvinsky and their children, moved to the Flatiron District in 2016, having previously lived in nearby NoMad and Gramercy Park.
See also
- Ladies' Mile Historic District
- Madison Square North Historic District
- Madison Square Park
References
Notes
External links
- Flatiron/23rd Partnership BID
- Madison Square Park Conservancy
- History of the International Toy Center
- Drive to Protect the Ladies' Mile
- Madison Square Park News