115-532: The Beresford is a cooperative apartment building at 211 Central Park West , between 81st and 82nd Streets, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City . It was constructed in 1929 and was designed by architect Emery Roth . The Beresford is 22 stories tall and is topped by octagonal towers on its northeast, southwest, and southeast corners. The building is a contributing property to
230-451: A polychrome color scheme, which was painted white in subsequent years. Hanging from the ceilings are crystal-and-brass chandeliers. The elevator doors in the lobbies each contain floral decorations on their borders, as well as a central coat of arms that depicts a bear. The bottom of each coat of arms contains the Latin motto "Fronta Nulla Fides" (place no trust in appearances), and there is
345-513: A "Beresford Wall of Fame" with photographs of celebrities who lived there. Conversely, since there was a large number of celebrity residents, their presence did not affect property values, as in other neighborhoods with relatively few celebrity residents. In the early 2000s, the co-op board passed a rule that limited the duration of apartment renovations. The rule was enacted after comedian Jerry Seinfeld spent more than two years renovating his apartment, prompting complaints from his neighbors. During
460-451: A 15-story building on Central Park West, between 81st and 82nd Streets, on behalf of the site's owner Manhattan Square Beresford Inc. The structure was to cost $ 3 million. Demolition of the old Beresford began the same month. By November 1928, the building's leasing agent L. J. Phillips & Co. was renting out apartments at rates averaging $ 1,000 per room. Seventy percent of the suites had already been leased by May 1929. The construction of
575-566: A British practice of giving names to buildings without addresses. By contrast, buildings on Fifth Avenue , along the eastern side of Central Park, are mainly known by their addresses. Christopher Gray of The New York Times described the Beresford as one of several apartment buildings in Manhattan that were named after 1920; according to Gray, such structures usually "were either truly grand or had hotel-like features". The Beresford's name
690-677: A bank official testified that he had been ordered to burn the bank's documents in the Beresford's incinerator. After the Bank of United States had collapsed, the New York State Banking Department took over the bank's holdings. At that point, the luxury residential market in Manhattan had declined significantly. By early 1934, the Banking Department was in the process of selling the Beresford to an unidentified investor. The Beresford had still not been sold by
805-422: A bronze-and-glass single door. There are lanterns on either side of the doorway, as well as a cartouche atop the door frame. Above the door frame is a metal grille, which is flanked by garlands and scrolls and is topped by the head of a winged cherub. There are also nine entrances to individual offices on the ground floor: two on Central Park West, three on 81st Street, and four on 82nd Street. Each doorway contains
920-452: A co-op in June 1962 after existing tenants and newcomers bought shares in the co-op for half of the apartments. Riker & Co. then obtained a $ 4 million mortgage. The Beresford was one of twelve apartment buildings on Central Park West to be converted into housing cooperatives in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Pease & Elliman (later Douglas Elliman ) was appointed as the managing agent for
1035-487: A dragon atop each coat of arms. As of 2022, according to the New York City Department of City Planning , the Beresford has 183 apartments. When the Beresford opened, it had 178 apartments. The specifications of each apartment were modified to accommodate individual tenants, but each story generally had ten apartments. Units ranged from four to sixteen rooms, but most units had eight to ten rooms. Many of
1150-481: A four-story apartment with one bedroom, two terraces, a library, and two maids' rooms. The southwest tower apartment has a similar layout with three bedrooms, a kitchen, and a library. All three towers were designed with observation rooms. The top of the southeast corner had a 16,000-U.S.-gallon (61,000 L) water tower, and the northeast corner had a smaller 3,500-U.S.-gallon (13,000 L) water tower. Mike Nichols (and later David and Helen Gurley Brown ) lived in
1265-511: A high school education and 14% are high school graduates or have some college education. By contrast, 64% of Manhattan residents and 43% of city residents have a college education or higher. The percentage of the Upper East Side students excelling in math rose from 61% in 2000 to 80% in 2011, and reading achievement increased from 66% to 68% during the same time period. The Upper East Side's rate of elementary school student absenteeism
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#17327805899181380-559: A long-beloved West Side landmark". Though Goldberger did not consider the Beresford to be among New York City's ten best apartment buildings, he called it a "cousin" of the San Remo, which did rank among Goldberger's top ten. In 1996, a writer for Interior Design magazine said the Beresford was "among the Upper West Side's top-drawer co-ops, the buildings that evoke the basic emotions of lust and envy when one thinks-or dreams-of
1495-481: A low population of residents who are uninsured . In 2018, this population of uninsured residents was estimated to be 4%, less than the citywide rate of 12%, though this was based on a small sample size. The concentration of fine particulate matter , the deadliest type of air pollutant , in the Upper East Side is 0.0083 milligrams per cubic metre (8.3 × 10 oz/cu ft), more than the city average. Eight percent of Upper East Side residents are smokers , which
1610-423: A panel with the word "Service", and the panel above the gate is decorated with guttae . At the fourth story on Central Park West, bays 12–17 contain a limestone balcony, which projects from the facade and is supported by eight modillions . Above the fourth story, there are four cartouches on the eastern elevation, four on the southern elevation, and two on the northern elevation. Between the two inner cartouches to
1725-752: A plurality (37%) are between the ages of 25–44, while 24% are between 45 and 64, and 20% are 65 or older. The ratio of youth and college-aged residents was lower, at 14% and 5% respectively. As of 2017, the median household income in Community District 8 was $ 123,894, though the median income in the Upper East Side individually was $ 131,492. In 2018, an estimated 7% of Community District 8 residents lived in poverty , compared to 14% in all of Manhattan and 20% in all of New York City. One in twenty-five residents (4%) were unemployed, compared to 7% in Manhattan and 9% in New York City. Rent burden, or
1840-456: A private mansion on upper Fifth Avenue was 907 Fifth Avenue (1916), at 72nd Street, the neighborhood's grand carriage entrance to Central Park. Most members of New York's upper-class families have made residences on the Upper East Side, including the oil-rich Rockefellers , political Roosevelts , political dynastic Kennedys , thoroughbred racing moneyed Whitneys , and tobacco and electric power fortuned Dukes . Construction of
1955-449: A projecting balcony at the 14th story; a curved broken pediment with a ram's head above the 14th story; and a cartouche above the 15th story. In front of the 14th-story setback, there are balustrades on the northern, eastern, and southern elevations. The balustrade of the eastern elevation occupies bays 7–22. There is a cartouche at the center of the eastern balustrade, decorated with half-cherubs, scrolls, and cherub heads. The balustrade on
2070-411: A set of bronze-and-glass double doors, and there are bronze-and-glass lanterns on either side of each set of doors. Each of the doorways is surrounded by a limestone frame with pilasters on either side, which contain panels with reliefs of acanthus leaves . The entrances on 81st Street are topped by curved broken pediments, each with a central cartouche and a keystone . On the second story above each of
2185-448: A single door, recessed within the rusticated limestone facade. The bronze-and-glass office doors are simple in design and are topped by a bronze-and-glass transom panel. On the far western end of the 81st and 82nd Street frontages, there is a short standalone wall of rusticated blocks, which contains a round archway topped by a keystone with a winged cherub's head. There is a metal service gate below each archway. The 81st Street gate contains
2300-406: A six-story building with 34 apartments. The initial structure also had a dining room on the top floor; wide hallways to each suite; and elevators. In 1892, Walker built a ten-story annex and moved the dining room to the top of that building. This addition had 64 apartments. The present Beresford was designed by Emery Roth . It is one of five Roth apartment blocks on Central Park West; the others are
2415-437: A small foyer on each floor, providing access to the two apartments. In some cases, an elevator served only one apartment on a floor, so the elevator doors opened directly into that tenant's foyer. In addition to the residential elevators, each apartment was also accessed by a service elevator and foyer. Roth intended for the decorations of the lobbies to reflect the building's luxury character, leading one publication to describe
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#17327805899182530-598: A year. The Beresford had been able to rent out many of its suites for $ 1,000 per room but, after the Wall Street Crash, similar buildings on Central Park West were not able to match that rate. The New York Times reported in February 1931 that the Bank of United States , which had collapsed not long beforehand, was the actual owner of the Beresford. The bank's relationship to the Beresford became publicly known after
2645-424: Is a curved broken pediment, inside which is a rounded dormer opening with a grille. At the 20th story, each corner contains urn-shaped finials just outside the penthouses. The Beresford has three octagonal towers above the northeast, southwest, and southeast corners of the 20th story. Each tower has four wider faces, which are parallel to Manhattan's street grid, as well as four narrower faces, which are diagonal to
2760-530: Is considered, then the neighborhood has an additional ZIP Code of 10029, along Fifth Avenue between 96th and 105th Streets. The United States Postal Service operates four post offices in the Upper East Side: The Upper East Side generally has a higher rate of college-educated residents than the rest of the city as of 2018 . A majority of residents age 25 and older (83%) have a college education or higher, while 3% have less than
2875-603: Is derived directly from a previous building on the site. The construction of Central Park in the 1860s spurred construction in the Upper East Side of Manhattan, but similar development in the Upper West Side was slower to come. Major developments on the West Side were erected after the Ninth Avenue elevated line opened in 1879, providing direct access to Lower Manhattan . The first large apartment building in
2990-560: Is higher than the city's average of 87%. In 2018, 89% of residents described their health as "good", "very good", or "excellent", more than the city's average of 78%. For every supermarket in the Upper East Side, there are 5 bodegas . Lenox Hill Hospital , NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital , and Weill Cornell Medical Center are located on the Upper East Side. In addition, Mount Sinai Hospital and Metropolitan Hospital Center are located nearby in East Harlem . The Upper East Side
3105-727: Is in the New York State Senate 's 27th , 28th , and 29th districts, the New York State Assembly 's 73rd and 76th districts, and the New York City Council 's 4th and 5th districts. The Upper East Side is one of few areas of Manhattan where Republicans constitute more than 20% of the electorate . In the southwestern part of the neighborhood, Republican voters equal Democratic voters (the only such area in Manhattan), whereas in
3220-410: Is less than the city average of 14% of residents being smokers. In the Upper East Side, 11% of residents are obese , 4% are diabetic , and 15% have high blood pressure —compared to the citywide averages of 24%, 11%, and 28% respectively. In addition, 6% of children are obese, compared to the citywide average of 20%. Ninety-four percent of residents eat some fruits and vegetables every day, which
3335-410: Is located at the western end of the southern elevation. The outer "pavilions" on the eastern elevation are five bays wide at each of the 16th to 19th stories and three bays wide at the 20th story. At the 19th story of each pavilion, the center window is flanked by pilasters. Directly above are brackets and pilasters, which flank the center window of each pavilion at the 20th story. Above these pilasters
3450-548: Is located in five primary ZIP Codes . From south to north, they are 10065 (south of 69th Street), 10021 (between 69th and 76th Streets), 10075 (between 76th and 80th Streets), 10028 (between 80th and 86th Streets), and 10128 (north of 86th Street). In addition, 500 East 77th Street in Yorkville has its own ZIP Code, 10162. If the AIA Guide's broader definition of the neighborhood (extending up to Fifth Avenue and 106th Streets)
3565-802: Is patrolled by the 19th Precinct of the New York City Police Department . Neighborhood boundaries in New York City are not officially set, but according to the Encyclopedia of New York City , the Upper East Side is bounded by 59th Street in the south, 96th Street on the north, Fifth Avenue to the west, and the East River to the east. The AIA Guide to New York City extends the northern boundary to 106th Street near Fifth Avenue. The area's north-south avenues are Fifth , Madison , Park , Lexington , Third , Second , First , York , and East End Avenues , with
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3680-427: Is served by multiple New York City Fire Department (FDNY) fire stations: As of 2018 , preterm births and births to teenage mothers in the Upper East Side are lower than the city average. In the Upper East Side, there were 73 preterm births per 1,000 live births (compared to 87 per 1,000 citywide), and 3.4 births to teenage mothers per 1,000 live births (compared to 19.3 per 1,000 citywide). The Upper East Side has
3795-621: The Queen Elizabeth for pocket change". The investment group was known as the Sanbere Corporation, a portmanteau of the two buildings' names. The New York Times subsequently reported that Max N. and Norbert Natanson owned the building for two decades. The Natansons sold the building in March 1959 to Sarah and Isidor Korein. The Korein family sold a partial ownership stake to investor Daniel Levy shortly thereafter. In 1961,
3910-712: The Central Park West Historic District , a National Register of Historic Places –listed district, and is a New York City designated landmark . The building surrounds an internal courtyard to the west. The facade has two primary elevations , facing east toward Central Park and south toward the American Museum of Natural History . There are numerous setbacks on each elevation, which double as terraces . The first three stories are clad in rusticated blocks of limestone , with three main entrances at ground level. The remainder of
4025-589: The Great Lawn and Turtle Pond are directly to the east, inside Central Park . An entrance to the New York City Subway 's 81st Street–Museum of Natural History station is directly outside the southeast corner of the building. The Beresford is one of several apartment buildings on Central Park West that are primarily identified by an official name. Even though a street address was sufficient to identify these apartment buildings, this trend followed
4140-524: The NYPD , located at 153 East 67th Street. The 19th Precinct has a lower crime rate than in the 1990s, with crimes across all categories having decreased by 82.2% between 1990 and 2022. The precinct reported 2 murders, 12 rapes, 229 robberies, 173 felony assaults, 278 burglaries, 1,724 grand larcenies, and 192 grand larcenies auto in 2022. As of 2018 , Manhattan Community District 8 has a non-fatal assault hospitalization rate of 15 per 100,000 people, compared to
4255-616: The Third Avenue El , opened from 1878 in sections, followed by the Second Avenue El , opened in 1879, linked the Upper East Side's middle class and skilled artisans closely to the heart of the city, and confirmed the modest nature of the area to their east. The unbuilt "Hamilton Square", which had appeared as one of the few genteel interruptions of the grid plan on city maps since the Commissioners' Plan of 1811 ,
4370-516: The Times wrote in 2005 that the Beresford was one of several buildings on Central Park West whose bases exhibited "the comfortable old solidity of limestone". The Wall Street Journal referred to the Beresford, Dakota , and San Remo as the "three grand dames of the West Side". The building is a contributing property to the Central Park West Historic District , which was recognized by the U.S. National Register of Historic Places when its nomination
4485-467: The facade is made of light brick with terracotta ornamentation. Each of the towers is decorated with arches and finials and contains one penthouse apartment . The building has three terrazzo and marble lobbies with molded plaster ceilings. On the upper stories, many apartments are split across two levels and contain large rooms. There were originally 178 apartments, each with four to sixteen rooms, but several apartments have been split or combined over
4600-414: The 16th story, while the center bays set back at the 14th, 18th, and 20th stories. The east elevation contains 29 bays from south to north, arranged in a 3-3-5-3-3-5-3-4 pattern. Bays 1–6 and 23–29 are "pavilions" with 16th-story setbacks, while the center bays set back at the 14th, 18th, and 20th stories. The north elevation is also divided into 29 bays, which are all arranged into groups of three, except for
4715-582: The 1880s the neighborhood of Yorkville became a suburb of middle class Germans. Gracie Mansion , the last remaining suburban villa overlooking the East River at Carl Schurz Park , became the home of New York's mayor in 1942. The East River Drive , designed by Robert Moses , was extended south from the first section, from 125th Street to 92nd Street, which was completed in 1934 as a boulevard, an arterial highway running at street level; reconstruction designs from 1948 to 1966 converted FDR Drive , as it
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4830-528: The 1930s and 1940s, since these buildings were not "restricted", unlike others on the East Side. In July 1940, a group of anonymous investors acquired the San Remo and Beresford, assuming a combined $ 7.4 million in mortgages on the two structures. The buildings themselves cost only $ 25,000, although they had cost a combined $ 10 million to build. One observer likened the sale to "buying the Queen Mary and
4945-425: The 81st Street entrances is a group of three windows. The central window of each group is placed within a frame and contains the head of a winged cherub on its lintel. The Central Park West entrance is slightly off-center, spanning bays 14–15. It has a canopy, planted areas, bronze-and-glass double doors, and lanterns similar to those on 81st Street. The relief panels at this entrance also depict acanthus leaves, but
5060-515: The 9th, 12th, and 13th stories; each band course consists of two molded terracotta bands. All three elevations are divided vertically into multiple bays , each containing one window per floor. Most of the building's windows are of a single design: two movable casements topped by a stationary transom . The south elevation is divided into 30 bays from east to west. They are arranged into groups of three, except for bays 1–4 and 29–30, which are paired. Bays 1–7 and 23–30 are "pavilions", which set back at
5175-622: The Asian population by 38% (5,145), the increase in the Hispanic/Latino population by 19% (2,537), and the decrease in the White population by 3% (5,644). The small Black population increased by 3% (191), while the even smaller population of all other races increased by 15% (628). Taking into account the three census tabulation areas, the decrease of the White population was concentrated Yorkville and Upper East Side-Carnegie Hill especially, while
5290-414: The Beresford in 1964. Town & Country magazine described the Beresford in the 1970s as having two doormen at each entrance and one operator at each elevator. The co-op board initially did not seek official city-landmark status for the Beresford, as that would have raised the cost of maintenance. Nonetheless, the board members wanted to preserve as much of the original design as possible, including
5405-652: The El Dorado , the San Remo , the Alden, and the Ardsley. The Beresford was built by HRH Construction . Unlike other large buildings on Central Park West, which were typically attributed to a single developer, no one took credit for developing the Beresford specifically. The syndicate that developed the Beresford had also erected the San Remo, seven blocks south, shortly after the Beresford was completed. The building contains 22 stories, which surround an interior courtyard to
5520-543: The Koreins sold the leasehold under the Beresford to an investment syndicate represented by Walter J. Fried. At the time, it had 193 apartments and was still characterized as a luxury apartment house. By April 1962, the Beresford's owner Riker & Co. was planning to turn the building into a housing cooperative . The apartments were to be offered at prices between $ 16,500 and $ 55,650, with yearly maintenance fees ranging from $ 3,200 to $ 10,600. The Beresford officially became
5635-617: The Old Post Road ( Third Avenue ) to the river and the farmland inherited by James Lenox , who divided it into blocks of houselots in the 1870s, built his Lenox Library on a Fifth Avenue lot at the farm's south-west corner, and donated a full square block for the Presbyterian Hospital , between 70th and 71st Streets, and Madison and Park Avenues. At that time, along the Boston Post Road taverns stood at
5750-639: The Sutton Terrace development on Sutton Place . The demolition of the els had an adverse effect on transportation, because the IRT Lexington Avenue Line was now the only subway line in the area. The construction of the Second Avenue Subway was originally proposed in 1919. Finally, on January 1, 2017, the first phase of the line was completed with three new stations opened. This brought in new local business to
5865-598: The Upper East Side are located just south of the neighborhood's northern limit at 96th Street, the Holmes Towers and Isaacs Houses . It borders East Harlem , which has the highest concentration of public housing in the United States. Politically, the Upper East Side is in New York's 12th congressional district , which has a Cook PVI of D+34 and is currently represented by Democrat Jerry Nadler . It
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#17327805899185980-517: The Wikimedia System Administrators, please include the details below. Request from 172.68.168.237 via cp1104 cp1104, Varnish XID 213485053 Upstream caches: cp1104 int Error: 429, Too Many Requests at Thu, 28 Nov 2024 07:56:29 GMT Upper East Side The Upper East Side , sometimes abbreviated UES , is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City , bounded approximately by 96th Street to
6095-473: The apartments were duplex units that originally spanned multiple stories. These duplexes were as large as many row houses and were arranged similarly to traditional row houses. In the duplexes, "public" rooms such as the living room and kitchen were on the lower level, while "private" rooms were on the upper level. When the building was sold in 1959, the Beresford was reported as having 182 apartments of three-and-a-half to twelve rooms each. In each apartment,
6210-468: The apartments within". Carter B. Horsley, a former writer for the Times , ranked the Beresford in 1998 as one of the "top 10 views of Central Park". Critical commentary of the Beresford continued in the 21st century. During the 2000s, The New York Times said the presence of Central Park West's "architectural gems", such as the Beresford, contributed to increased housing prices on the eastern side of Central Park, along Fifth Avenue . John Freeman Gill of
6325-429: The area and had positive impact on real estate prices in the Upper East Side. For census purposes, the New York City government classifies the Upper East Side as part of three neighborhood tabulation areas: Upper East Side- Carnegie Hill , Yorkville , and Lenox Hill - Roosevelt Island , divided by Third Avenue and 77th Street. Based on data from the 2010 United States Census , the combined population of these areas
6440-478: The area was the Dakota , which opened in 1884. The city installed power lines on Central Park West at the end of the 19th century, thus allowing the construction of multi-story apartment hotels with elevators. Among the early apartment hotels was the original Hotel Beresford at 81st Street and Eighth Avenue. The structure was built by Alva Walker in two phases. Theodore E. Thomson designed the first section in 1889,
6555-512: The beginning of the 20th century; and apartment buildings erected later on. The city district was slightly expanded in 2010 with 74 additional buildings. The Metropolitan Museum Historic District was designated a city district in 1977. It consists of properties on Fifth Avenue between 79th and 86th Streets, outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art , as well as properties on several side streets. The Park Avenue Historic District
6670-463: The boroughwide average of 632 crimes per 100,000 and the citywide average of 572 crimes per 100,000. In 2019, the highest concentration of felony assaults in the Upper East Side was near the intersection of 93rd Street and First Avenue , where there were 10 felony assaults. The highest concentration of robberies, on the other hand, was near the intersection of 86th Street and Lexington Avenue , where there were 19 robberies. The Upper East Side
6785-424: The boroughwide rate of 49 per 100,000 and the citywide rate of 59 per 100,000. Its incarceration rate is 71 per 100,000 people, the lowest in the city, compared to the boroughwide rate of 407 per 100,000 and the citywide rate of 425 per 100,000. Of the five major violent felonies (murder, rape, felony assault, robbery, and burglary), the 19th Precinct had a rate of 264 crimes per 100,000 residents in 2019, compared to
6900-427: The building for the next two decades. The building was then converted to a housing cooperative in 1962. Over the years, its residents have included directors, actors, journalists, and executives. The Beresford is at 211 Central Park West in the Upper West Side neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City . The building occupies the western sidewalk of Central Park West (formerly Eighth Avenue) between 81st Street to
7015-626: The building. The LPC designated the Beresford as a city landmark on September 19, 1987. Landmarks commissioner Gene A. Norman said the Beresford's towers are part of the Central Park West skyline, contributing to the "image that most of the world has of New York". The Beresford is also part of the Upper West Side Historic District, which became a New York City historic district in 1990. Housing cooperative Too Many Requests If you report this error to
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#17327805899187130-539: The buildings' gross profits. The building officially opened on September 13, 1929, a little more than a month before the Wall Street Crash of 1929 . At the time, Edgar Stix of L. J. Phillips & Co. predicted that all apartments at the building would be rented within the next month. This optimistic projection was based on the fact that an apartment with 13 rooms had been rented for $ 15,000 a year, while several five-room apartments were rented at rates of $ 7,500
7245-404: The center bay of each grouping, there is a rosette above the 11th story. At the 14th and 15th stories, there are more double-height window groupings, each three bays wide. Each grouping is flanked by brick pilasters and is topped by a triangular broken pediment surrounding a central grille. There are rosettes on the spandrels between the 14th and 15th stories. The center bay of each grouping contains
7360-494: The completion of the New York City Subway 's Eighth Avenue Line , which opened in 1932. Central Park West was concurrently widened from 48 to 63 feet (15 to 19 m). Under the Multiple Dwelling Act of 1929, this allowed the construction of proportionally taller buildings on the avenue. The Beresford, with its three relatively short towers, had been designed just before the passage of the act. It contrasted with
7475-449: The dining rooms. The units behind each setback also contained "sun rooms", which open out onto the terraces. There were multiple large closets in each apartment, as well as large walk-in closets paneled in cedar. Each bedroom had its own bathroom, and the master bedroom of each unit also adjoined a dressing room. The tops of all three towers were intended to be triple-story penthouse apartments . The southeast-corner tower contains unit 22D,
7590-434: The east is a plaque with the inscription "Erected 1929", which is framed by swags and scrolls. At the 10th and 11th stories, each elevation contains several double-height window groupings, each three bays wide and surrounded by terracotta frames. In each grouping, the 10th-story windows contain false balustrades, while the spandrel panels between the 10th and 11th stories contain a cartouche, winged cherubs, and brackets. In
7705-537: The elevator foyers lead to a central gallery. Duplex units contain curved iron-and-brass staircases, leading to bedrooms on the upper level. In single-story units, the gallery leads directly to the living and dining rooms. There are also long hallways leading to bedrooms and the kitchen. Butlers' pantries and maids' rooms also lead off each kitchen. Rooms generally had large dimensions, particularly in comparison to apartments built after World War II. Some units also contained dedicated "breakfast rooms", which were distinct from
7820-594: The entrances on 81st Street and Central Park West leads to its own lobby; as a result, the Beresford is divided functionally into three sections, and staff must go outdoors to travel between each section. Because each lobby has its own elevators and stairs, there were fewer public hallways on the upper stories. This gave residents a feeling of privacy, since tenants were largely separated both from each other and from servants. There were eleven elevators in total, including five residential elevators. Each elevator served at most two apartments on each floor. The elevators stopped at
7935-515: The expansive southward views from the building. The others were 88 Central Park West , 101 Central Park West , the Dakota , and the San Remo . The AMNH had also wanted to buy an apartment for its president in 1988, but the Beresford's co-op board voted against allowing the AMNH to buy a unit. Paul Goldberger of The New York Times wrote in 1976 that the Beresford was "a glorious building whose three castle‐like towers and fine siting have made it
8050-468: The ground floor, as if watching calmly for life and fashion to flow northward to her solitary door... She was sure that presently the quarries, the wooden greenhouses in ragged gardens, the rocks from which goats surveyed the scene, would vanish before the advance of residences as stately as her own. Before the Park Avenue Tunnel was covered (finished in 1910), fashionable New Yorkers shunned
8165-442: The increases of the other racial groups were evenly split across the three areas. The entirety of Manhattan Community District 8 , which comprises the Upper East Side and Roosevelt Island, had 225,914 inhabitants as of NYC Health 's 2018 Community Health Profile, with an average life expectancy of 85.9 years. This is higher than the median life expectancy of 81.2 for all New York City neighborhoods. Most inhabitants are adults:
8280-417: The latter running only from East 79th Street to East 90th Street . The major east-west streets are 59th Street, 72nd Street , 79th Street, 86th Street , and 96th Street. Some real-estate agents use the term "Upper East Side", instead of " East Harlem ", to describe areas that are slightly north of 96th Street and near Fifth Avenue, in order to avoid associating these areas with the negative connotations of
8395-586: The latter, a neighborhood which is generally perceived as less prestigious. The Upper East Side Historic District was designated as a city district in 1981 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. The city district runs from 59th to 78th Streets along Fifth Avenue, and up to Third Avenue at some points. It is composed of residential structures built after the American Civil War ; mansions and townhouses built at
8510-431: The lobbies as "marble halls of your dizziest dreams". The floors of each lobby are composed of gray and beige terrazzo tiles. The terrazzo tiles are surrounded by a multicolored band of mosaic tiles laid in a chevron pattern, as well as a dark marble border. The lobby also contains freestanding brass pedestals with lighting sconces ; the pedestals are decorated with cherubs and foliate decorations. The lower sections of
8625-431: The lobbies' walls contain baseboards of oxblood and green marble; the baseboards are molded at the top. The remainders of the lobbies' walls are beige and contain projecting marble pilasters. The capitals of each pilaster are decorated with varying motifs, including garlands interspersed with classical volutes, as well as cherubs' heads. By the 1980s, the walls had been painted yellow. Though The New York Times described
8740-463: The mile-markers, Five-Mile House at 72nd Street and Six-Mile House at 97th, a New Yorker recalled in 1893. The fashionable future of the narrow strip between Central Park and the railroad cut was established at the outset by the nature of its entrance, in the southwest corner, north of the Vanderbilt family 's favored stretch of Fifth Avenue from 50th to 59th Streets. A row of handsome townhouses
8855-526: The multi-story twin towers of the Century , the Majestic , the San Remo , and the El Dorado , which were all built one to two years after the Beresford was completed. As Christopher Gray of The New York Times wrote: "Had the Beresford been designed a year later, its three towers would have sprouted up like Jack's beanstalk." The Beresford Central Park West Corporation, headed by Bennett Gordon, acquired
8970-406: The narrower faces of each tower are finials. These are supported by console brackets, which are placed beneath the level of the arched windows on the wider faces. Each narrow face contains a rectangular blind opening. Above each of these openings are triangular broken pediments, followed by panels with winged cherubs' heads. Above the towers are pyramidal roofs with copper and glass lanterns. Each of
9085-425: The nation for political contributions are in Manhattan. The top ZIP Code, 10021, is on the Upper East Side and generated the most money for the 2004 presidential campaigns of both George W. Bush and John Kerry . The area is host to some of the most famous museums in the world. The string of museums along Fifth Avenue fronting Central Park has been dubbed " Museum Mile ", running between 82nd and 105th Streets. It
9200-594: The neighborhood contains the greatest concentration of individual wealth in Manhattan. As of 2011, the median household income for the Upper East Side was $ 131,492. The Upper East Side maintains the highest pricing per square foot in the United States. A 2002 report cited the average cost per square meter as $ 8,856; however, that price has noticed a substantial jump, increasing to almost as much as $ 11,200 per square meter as of 2006. There are some buildings which cost about $ 125 per square foot (~$ 1345/ m ). The only public housing projects for those of low to moderate incomes on
9315-434: The neighborhood, at 86th Street, which became the heart of German Yorkville . The area was defined by the attractions of the bluff overlooking the East River , which ran without interruption from James William Beekman 's "Mount Pleasant", north of the marshy squalor of Turtle Bay , to Gracie Mansion , north of which the land sloped steeply to the wetlands that separated this area from the suburban village of Harlem . Among
9430-460: The neo-Gothic style. Each bathroom was covered in ceramic tiles and contained glass doors and multiple showerheads, a novelty at the time of the Beresford's construction. Some units were redecorated for specific tenants; for example, Ely Jacques Kahn designed an Art Deco -style apartment for artist Edith Bry when the building was completed. By the late 1920s, high-rise apartment buildings were being developed on Central Park West in anticipation of
9545-428: The new Beresford had prompted another developer to buy an adjacent group of row houses and develop an apartment building there. The Beresford's owners obtained a $ 5 million first mortgage loan for the building that July. HRH Construction was paid $ 150,000 for its role as general contractor for the Beresford. HRH also agreed to manage the Beresford (as well as the San Remo, which it also built) in exchange for two percent of
9660-403: The next year, prompting the department to adjust the building's mortgage loan to facilitate its sale. The Banking Department had planned to subdivide some of the large suites in the mid-1930s, but these plans were canceled after the luxury market began to improve. The journalist Peter Osnos wrote that the Beresford and other Central Park West apartment houses contained many Jewish residents during
9775-559: The north, the East River to the east, 59th Street to the south, and Central Park and Fifth Avenue to the west. The area incorporates several smaller neighborhoods, including Lenox Hill , Carnegie Hill , and Yorkville . Once known as the Silk Stocking District, it has long been the most affluent neighborhood in New York City. The Upper East Side is part of Manhattan Community District 8 , and its primary ZIP Codes are 10021, 10028, 10065, 10075, and 10128. It
9890-399: The old Hotel Beresford from Frederick Brown in March 1925. Sugarman and Berger filed plans the next year for a high-rise apartment building to replace the hotel. These plans did not proceed, and Gordon resold the hotel to Max Verschleiser in 1927. Active Properties Inc. a syndicate led by banker and politician Henry Pollock, acquired the site in March 1928. Emery Roth filed plans that August for
10005-484: The percentage of residents who have difficulty paying their rent, is 41% in Community District 8, compared to the boroughwide and citywide rates of 45% and 51% respectively. Based on this calculation, as of 2018 , Community District 8 is not considered to be gentrifying : according to the Community Health Profile, the district was not low-income in 1990. As of the 2000 census, twenty-one percent of
10120-541: The population was foreign born; of this, 45.6% came from Europe, 29.5% from Asia, 16.2% from Latin America and 8.7% from other areas. The female-male ratio was very high with 125 females for 100 males. The Upper East Side contains a large and affluent Jewish population estimated at 56,000. Traditionally, the Upper East Side has been dominated by wealthy White Anglo-Saxon Protestant families. Given its very high population density and per capita income ($ 85,081 in 2000),
10235-404: The rest of the neighborhood Republicans make up between 20 and 40% of registered voters. Nonetheless, it is still heavily Democratic; in the 2020 presidential election , every single precinct voted for Joe Biden and all but one gave him over 70% of the vote. The Upper East Side is notable as a significant location of political fundraising in the United States. Four of the top five ZIP Codes in
10350-471: The same time, twenty of the former maids' rooms at ground level were sold to tenants at an average price of $ 200,000. The northern tower was restored in 2005. The Beresford remained a luxury apartment house during the early 20th century. According to a 1996 article in New York magazine, many brokers classified the Beresford as one of five top-tier apartment buildings on Central Park West, largely because of
10465-467: The series of villas a Schermerhorn country house overlooked the river at the foot of present-day 73rd Street and another, Peter Schermerhorn's at 66th Street , and the Riker homestead was similarly sited at the foot of 75th Street. By the mid-19th century the farmland had largely been subdivided, with the exception of the 150 acres (61 ha) of Jones's Wood , stretching from 66th to 76th Streets and from
10580-436: The simplest ceilings had molded, three-tiered plaster cornices. Ceilings on the second to 16th stories were generally 10 feet (3.0 m) high, while ceilings on the top floors were generally 12 feet (3.7 m) high. One observer said the high ceilings and the decorations constituted "the final touch of grace". There are wood-burning fireplaces in the living rooms; these contain ornate cast-stone fireplace mantels decorated in
10695-557: The sites of fishing camps used by the Lenape , whose controlled burns once a generation or so kept the dense canopy of oak–hickory forest open at ground level. In the 19th century the farmland and market garden district of what was to be the Upper East Side was still traversed by the Boston Post Road and, from 1837, the New York and Harlem Railroad , which brought straggling commercial development around its one station in
10810-428: The smoky railroad trench up Fourth Avenue (now Park Avenue), to build stylish mansions and townhouses on the large lots along Fifth Avenue , facing Central Park, and on the adjacent side streets. The latest arrivals were the rich Pittsburghers Andrew Carnegie and Henry Clay Frick . The classic phase of Gilded Age Fifth Avenue as a stretch of private mansions was not long-lasting: the first apartment house to replace
10925-420: The south and 82nd Street to the north. The Beresford is situated on an approximately square land lot with an area of 40,350 square feet (3,749 m). The land lot has a frontage of 204.33 feet (62.28 m) along Central Park West and 200 feet (61 m) on both of the side streets. The American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) is immediately across 81st Street to the south. The Diana Ross Playground and
11040-438: The southeast tower, while John McEnroe lived within the northeast tower. The author Steven Ruttenbaum described the southeast-corner apartment as "one of the most desirable apartments in the Beresford", even more so than the other two towers. All of the ceilings are finished in plaster; in contrast to other buildings, the structural beams were hidden above the ceilings. Some ceilings have molded plaster reliefs , although even
11155-460: The southern elevation takes up bays 8–22, while that on the northern elevation takes up bays 7–18; there are no cartouches on these balustrades. On the 17th story of the eastern elevation, there is a cartouche between bays 14 and 15, decorated with scrolls and ribbons. It is aligned with both the entrance below and the chimneys above. Above the 17th story, there are chimneys at the centers of the northern, southern, and eastern elevations. Another chimney
11270-544: The street grid. There are balustrades, flanked by console brackets, on the wider faces of each tower. There are large arched windows above the balustrades. The arches were originally open-air openings but were fitted with windows in the 1950s. Above each console bracket, engaged columns support a triangular broken pediment with an oval bull's-eye opening at the center. Above the oval openings are winged cherubs' heads. There are also decorations of half-cherubs flanking rams' heads and urns, as well as swags that hang from rosettes. On
11385-407: The tops of these relief panels also contain motifs of winged angels playing horns. Above the Central Park West entrance is a broken lintel , which flanks a cartouche with festoons. On the second story is a window with a winged cherub's head on its lintel. The 82nd Street entrance is simpler in design compared with the three other entrances, occupying bay 23. This entrance lacks a canopy and contains
11500-424: The town houses on East End Avenue between 86th and 87th Streets, built by John C. Henderson in 1981. The Treadwell Farm Historic District, designated in 1967, includes low-rise apartments on East 61st and 62nd Streets between Second and Third Avenues, on the former farm of Adam Treadwell. Before the arrival of Europeans, the mouths of streams that eroded gullies in the East River bluffs are conjectured to have been
11615-667: The walls as being clad with plaster, the building's managing agents said the walls were still made of marble and that the yellow color came from a coating. There are "art glass" windows on the walls, overlooking the courtyard. The walls contain doorways leading from the lobbies to various rooms. The lintels of these doorways contain gilded plaster cartouches, which depict the actions of arrival and departure. The ceilings of each lobby are 12 feet (3.7 m) high and contain flat, vaulted , coffered , and sloped surfaces. The ceilings are plaster bas-reliefs of friezes, foliate decoration, cherubs, and mythological figures. The ceiling originally had
11730-435: The west, creating a U-shaped plan. There are setbacks at the 14th, 16th, 18th, and 20th stories, which were included to comply with the 1916 Zoning Resolution . These setbacks are enclosed by iron railings and stone balustrades, creating private terraces for each tenant. When the building opened, its leasing agent described the terraces as being multicolored. Above the 20th story are small octagonal towers. The northwest corner
11845-511: The westernmost pair of bays. There are four entrances at the base: two on 81st Street and one each on Central Park West and 82nd Street. The main entrances are at 1 and 7 West 81st Street and 211 Central Park West; each leads to its own lobby. The entrance at 1 West 81st Street is within bays 5–7, while the entrance at 7 West 81st Street is within bays 23–25. The sidewalks in front of both doorways are covered by canopies, and there are planted areas on either side of each doorway. Both doorways contain
11960-520: The windows. The Beresford's co-op board also periodically renovated the tenants' private elevator foyers, along with other shared interior spaces. The Beresford was protected as an official city landmark in 1987, and Akam Associates replaced Douglas Elliman as the building's leasing agent in 1989. During the 1990s, Crain's New York described the Majestic, Beresford, and El Dorado as having "become brand names that grow in strength as noted personalities move in". The Beresford's superintendent had even created
12075-506: The years. The Beresford replaced an 11-story apartment building with the same name, built in 1889 and 1892. The current apartment complex was built after a previous attempt to redevelop the site in the 1920s had failed. The building opened in September 1929 but soon went into receivership following the collapse of the Bank of United States , which held the mortgage. The Beresford was acquired in 1940 by an investment syndicate, which owned
12190-526: Was 219,920, an increase of 2,857 (1.3%) from the 217,063 counted in 2000 . Covering an area of 1,291.51 acres (522.66 ha), the neighborhoods had a population density of 170.3 inhabitants per acre (109,000/sq mi; 42,100/km ). The racial makeup of the neighborhoods was 79% (173,711) White , 3.2% (7,098) African American , 0.1% (126) Native American , 8.6% (18,847) Asian , 0% (98) Pacific Islander , 0.3% (609) from other races , and 1.8% (3,868) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race
12305-487: Was 7.1% (15,563) of the population. While the White population is a dominating majority in all three census tabulation areas, it is more so in Upper East Side-Carnegie Hill compared to Yorkville and Lenox Hill-Roosevelt Island, being close to 90% of the population. The racial composition of the Upper East Side changed moderately from 2000 to 2010. The most significant changes were the increase in
12420-518: Was accepted on November 9, 1982. In 1984, the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) hosted hearings to determine whether the Century, Majestic, San Remo, Beresford, and El Dorado should be designated as city landmarks. Manhattan Community Board 7 supported all five designations, but the Beresford's co-op board was concerned about whether a landmark designation would hinder maintenance of
12535-422: Was built on speculation by Mary Mason Jones, who owned the entire block bounded by 57th and 58th Streets and Fifth and Madison. In 1870 she occupied the prominent corner house at 57th and Fifth, though not in the isolation described by her niece, Edith Wharton , whose picture has been uncritically accepted as history, as Christopher Gray has pointed out: It was her habit to sit in a window of her sitting room on
12650-505: Was designated a city district in 2014. It encompasses 64 properties on Park Avenue between 79th and 91st Streets. The Carnegie Hill Historic District was designated a city district in 1974 and expanded in 1993. It covers 400 buildings, primarily along Fifth Avenue from 86th to 98th Street, as well as on side streets extending east to Madison, Park, and Lexington Avenues. There are also two smaller city historic districts. The Henderson Place Historic District, designated in 1969, comprises
12765-571: Was intended to straddle what had now become the Harlem Railroad right-of-way between 66th and 69th Streets; it never materialized, though during the Panic of 1857 its unleveled ground was the scene of an open-air mass meeting called in July to agitate for the secession of the city and its neighboring counties from New York State, and the city divided its acreage into house lots and sold them. From
12880-572: Was intended to take advantage of the building's placement next to the AMNH and Central Park. The north elevation on 82nd Street is simpler in design than the primary elevations, while the west elevation is not decorated. The north, south, and east elevations contain terracotta ornamentation such as pilasters , broken pediments , balustrades , obelisks , and cartouches . There are also motifs such as angels, dolphins, and rams' heads. The corners of each elevation are articulated by vertical bands of brick quoins . There are horizontal band courses above
12995-616: Was once named "Millionaire's Row". The following are among the cultural institutions on the Upper East Side: Many diplomatic missions are located in former mansions on the Upper East Side: Other missions to the United Nations in the Upper East Side include: There are several historic districts in the Upper East Side, the districts are: The Upper East Side is patrolled by the 19th Precinct of
13110-518: Was renamed after Franklin Delano Roosevelt, into the full limited-access parkway that is in use today. Demolishing the elevated railways on Third and Second Avenues opened these tenement -lined streets to the construction of high-rise apartment blocks starting in the 1950s. Among these were Manhattan House at 200 East 66th Street, one of the first apartment buildings in New York City to use white glazed brick on its facade, as well as
13225-515: Was subjected to more stringent zoning laws, so the westernmost section contains setbacks beginning at the 9th story. When the building opened, there was high demand for apartments with large terraces, particularly before air conditioning became popular. The lowest three stories of the facade are made of rusticated blocks of limestone , while the rest of the building is clad with beige brick. The facade's primary elevations face south toward 81st Street and east toward Central Park West. This design
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