MANHATTAN REAL ESTATE--CHINATOWN AND LITTLE ITALY

Chinatown and Little Italy are adjacent neighborhoods in Lower Manhattan, each stepped in history. Chinatown’s borders are from Worth Street north to Kenmare/Delancey Streets and Little Italy’s are from Hester Street north to Kenmare Street and from Bowery west to Lafayette Street.

Within these borders–Baxter and Center Streets, Cleveland Place and Lafayette Street to the west, Jersey Street and East Hudson to the north and Elizabeth Street to the east and Worth Street to the south–is the official enclave of the Chinatown and Little Italy Historic District, designated as such by the National Register of Historic Places in February of last year.

Associated with U.S. immigration (more than any other city in the world) during the 1800s through 1965, its architectural buildings reflect Federal and Greek Revival. Factories, loft buildings and churches are historical remembrances along its streets.

By the late 1960s, Chinatown had expanded its boundaries into the “dividing line” between the two distinct communities and by the 1980s the Chinese community in the Manhattan was the largest in the country.

Each community celebrates its rich culture with vestiges and evidence from its past. Chinatown hosts its annual Chinatown Lunar New Year Parade and New Year’s Day Firecracker Ceremony in January or February, a large-scale celebration that includes colorful parades and cultural performances. Founded in 1999, the event brings in a half a million spectators and is held near Columbus Park, one of New York City’s first major urban parks and now, a beautiful green space that attracts a diverse population.

Little Italy’s Annual Feast of San Gennaro is a long-standing, revered celebration for Italian-Americans. The 11-day September event features parades, free music and plenty of delicious Italian fare and takes place along Mulberry, Hester and Grand Streets. Hundreds of vendors and Little Italy’s 35 plus famous restaurants go all out for the tradition, which brings in over a million visitors each year.

Chinatown’s streets are hustle-bustle, teeming with authentic Chinese cuisine, from its grocers with fresh fish displays, roast chickens and other fowl hanging in windows, Chinese delicacies, herbs, seedlings and the like, some with pricing depicted in American and Chinese. There’s more than 200 restaurants on its winding, crowded streets and Canal Street is a huge tourist attraction with vendors selling everything from imitation Prada bags to Rolex watches.

Little Italy’s Mulberry Street, between Broome and Canal Streets, is a picturesque and quaint area lined with Italian restaurants, bakeries, boutiques and turn-of-the-century buildings. The sights, sounds and smells of this lovely neighborhood are reminiscent of a simpler era. Plenty of old-world charm here and during the warmer months, sections of Mulberry Street are closed to traffic.

Rentals can run anywhere from $2-6,500K in Chinatown and Little Italy and there’s luxury condos and co-ops to be found as well. Little Italy’s Police Building at 240 Centre Street is an ornate and Beaux-Arts building renovated as co-ops. Its six stories house 55 units and it’s within walking distance to some of Little Italy’s top restaurants. A block away is 136 Baxter Street, a former warehouse converted into 14 condos and within walking distance to Chinatown and Soho.

Hester Gardens at 156 Hester Street in Chinatown is a brand-new luxury condominium building with eight stories of 61 units, some with terraces and amazing city views. Luxury lofts and duplexes can be found on Chinatown’s Grand Street and D’Arte House, bordering Tribeca has amazing, newly-designed, spacious penthouse condos. The 27-unit modern condo building at 123 Baxter Street is close to Little Italy and Soho–residents are within walking distance to three of Manhattan’s choice neighborhoods!

Chinatown and Little Italy have long been hotspots for tourists, but its enduring cultures, busy streets and active nightlife attract many New Yorkers to settle in among its borders.

For more information about Manhattan neighborhoods and happenings, visit The Bracha Blog.  For information about luxury condo listings in Chinatown, Little Italy and other neighborhoods in Manhattan, contact me or visit Keller Williams New York City!