Fifth Avenue

Fifth Avenue is a major and prominent thoroughfare in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, New York, United States. It stretches north from Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village to West 143rd Street in Harlem. It is one of the most expensive shopping streets in the world.

Fifth Avenue carries two-way traffic from 142nd to 135th Street and carries one-way traffic southbound for the remainder of its route. The entire street used to carry two-way traffic until 1966. From 124th to 120th Street, Fifth Avenue is cut off by Marcus Garvey Park, with southbound traffic diverted around the park via Mount Morris Park West and northbound to Madison Avenue. Most of the avenue has a bus lane, though not a bike lane. Fifth Avenue is the traditional route for many celebratory parades in New York City, and is closed on several Sundays per year.

Fifth Avenue was originally only a narrower thoroughfare but the section south of Central Park ...Read more

Fifth Avenue is a major and prominent thoroughfare in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, New York, United States. It stretches north from Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village to West 143rd Street in Harlem. It is one of the most expensive shopping streets in the world.

Fifth Avenue carries two-way traffic from 142nd to 135th Street and carries one-way traffic southbound for the remainder of its route. The entire street used to carry two-way traffic until 1966. From 124th to 120th Street, Fifth Avenue is cut off by Marcus Garvey Park, with southbound traffic diverted around the park via Mount Morris Park West and northbound to Madison Avenue. Most of the avenue has a bus lane, though not a bike lane. Fifth Avenue is the traditional route for many celebratory parades in New York City, and is closed on several Sundays per year.

Fifth Avenue was originally only a narrower thoroughfare but the section south of Central Park was widened in 1908. The midtown blocks between 34th and 59th Streets were largely a residential area until the turn of the 20th century, when they were developed as commercial areas. The section of Fifth Avenue in the 50s is consistently ranked among the most expensive shopping streets in the world, and the section between 59th and 96th Streets across Central Park was nicknamed "Millionaire's Row" in the early 20th century due to the high concentration of mansions there. A section of Fifth Avenue running from 82nd to 110th Streets, also alongside Central Park, is also nicknamed Museum Mile due to the large number of museums there.

Early history

Fifth Avenue between 42nd Street and Central Park South (59th Street) was relatively undeveloped through the late 19th century.[1]: 2  The surrounding area was once part of the common lands of the city of New York, which was allocated "all the waste, vacant, unpatented, and unappropriated lands" as a result of the 1686 Dongan Charter.[2] The city's Common Council came to own a large amount of land, primarily in the middle of the island away from the Hudson and East Rivers, as a result of grants by the Dutch provincial government to the colony of New Amsterdam. Although originally more extensive, by 1785 the council held approximately 1,300 acres (530 ha), or about 9 percent of the island.[3]

The lots along what is now Fifth Avenue were laid out in the late 18th century following the American Revolutionary War.[1]: 2  The city's Common Council had, starting in June 1785, attempted to raise money by selling property. The land that the Council owned was not suitable for farming or residential estates, and it was also far away from any roads or waterways.[3] To divide the common lands into sellable lots, and to lay out roads to service them, the Council hired Casimir Goerck to survey them. Goerck was instructed to make lots of about 5 acres (2.0 ha) each and to lay out roads to access the lots. He completed his task in December 1785, creating 140 lots of varying sizes, oriented with the east–west axis longer than the north–south axis.[3] As part of the plan, Goerck drew up a street called Middle Road, which eventually became Fifth Avenue.[3][4][5]

The topography of the lots contributed to the public's reluctance to buy the lots. By 1794, with the city growing ever more populated and the inhabited area constantly moving north towards the Common Lands, the Council decided to try again, hiring Goerck once more to re-survey and map the area. He was instructed to make the lots more uniform and rectangular and to lay out roads to the west and east of Middle Road, as well as to lay out east–west streets of 60 feet (18 m) each. Goerck's East and West Roads later became Fourth and Sixth Avenues, while Goerck's cross streets became the modern-day numbered east–west streets. Goerck took two years to survey the 212 lots which encompassed the entire Common Lands.[3] The Commissioners' Plan of 1811, which prescribed the street plan for Manhattan, was heavily inspired from Goerck's two surveys.[1]: 9 

19th century  Robert L. Bracklow (1849–1919), from his Glimpses through the Camera series, Fifth Avenue at 42nd Street, New York, USA, September 1, 1888, albumen print cabinet card, Department of Image Collections, National Gallery of Art Library, Washington, DC

From the early 19th century, some plots on Fifth Avenue in Midtown were acquired by the wealthy and by institutions. In the mid-19th century, Fifth Avenue between 40th and 59th Streets was home to several institutions such as the Colored Orphan Asylum, the Deaf and Dumb Asylum, the Roman Catholic Orphan Asylum, and St. Luke's Hospital.[1]: 2 [6]: 282–283  Other uses such as a cattle farm remained until the 1860s.[1]: 2 

The portion of Fifth Avenue in Midtown became an upscale residential area following the American Civil War.[1]: 2 [7]: 578  Among the first people to develop such structures was Mary Mason Jones, who built the "Marble Row" on the eastern side of Fifth Avenue from 57th to 58th Streets between 1868 and 1870.[8][7]: 578  Her sister Rebecca Colford Jones erected ornate houses of her own one block south.[1]: 2 [7]: 578  Further development came in the late 1870s with the construction of three Vanderbilt family residences along Fifth Avenue between 51st and 59th Streets (the William H., William K., and Cornelius II mansions).[7]: 578, 580 [9] In the 1880s and 1890s, the ten blocks of Fifth Avenue south of Central Park (at 59th Street) were known as "Vanderbilt Row".[1]: 3 

The Vanderbilts' relocation prompted many business owners on Fifth Avenue between Madison Square and 34th Street to move uptown.[7]: 581  The upper section of Fifth Avenue on the Upper East Side, facing the newly created Central Park, was not developed at that time because of what the Real Estate Record and Guide described as the presence of "no opposite neighbors", as the Upper West Side was not yet developed.[7]: 580–581 [10]

Early 20th century

The midtown blocks were largely a residential area until the turn of the 20th century, when they were developed as commercial areas.[11][12] As early as 1900, rising traffic led to proposals to restrict traffic on the avenue.[13] The section south of Central Park was widened starting in 1908, sacrificing wide sidewalks to accommodate the increasing traffic. As part of the widening project, the New York City government ordered the removal of stoops and other "encroachments" onto the sidewalk in February 1908.[14] The buildings that needed to be trimmed included the Waldorf–Astoria hotel. By early 1911, the avenue had been widened south of 47th Street.[15] Later that year, when widening commenced on the section between 47th and 59th Streets, many of the mansions on that stretch of Fifth Avenue were truncated or demolished. In addition, the front facades of St. Patrick's Cathedral and the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church were relocated, and the gardens in front of the St. Regis and Gotham hotels had to be destroyed.[16]

 Fifth Avenue after a snow storm in 1905

The first commercial building on Fifth Avenue was erected by Benjamin Altman who bought the corner lot on the northeast corner of 34th Street in 1896.[17] The B. Altman and Company Building was erected between 1906 and 1914, occupying the whole of its block front. The result was the creation of a high-end shopping district that attracted fashionable women and the upscale stores that wished to serve them.[18]: 266  The Lord & Taylor Building, formerly Lord & Taylor's flagship store and now a WeWork office, was built at Fifth Avenue and 38th Street in 1914.[19] The Saks Fifth Avenue Building, serving as Saks Fifth Avenue's flagship, opened between 49th and 50th Streets in 1924.[20] The Bergdorf Goodman Building between 57th and 58th Streets, the flagship of Bergdorf Goodman, opened in stages between 1928 and 1929.[21]: 2 

By the 1920s, Fifth Avenue was the most active area for development in Midtown, and developers were starting to build north of 45th Street, which had previously been considered the boundary for profitable developments.[22]: 2–3 [23]: 14–15 [24] The most active year for construction in that decade was 1926, when thirty office buildings were constructed on Fifth Avenue.[22]: 2 [23]: 14 [25] The two-block-wide area between Fifth and Park Avenues, which represented eight percent of Manhattan's land area, contained 25% of developments that commenced between 1924 and 1926.[24]

In the 1920s, traffic towers controlled important intersections along the lower portion of Fifth Avenue.[26] The idea of using patrolmen to control traffic at busy Fifth Avenue intersections was introduced as early as 1914.[27] The first such towers were installed in 1920 upon a gift by Dr. John A. Harriss, who paid for patrolmen's sheds in the middle of Fifth Avenue at 34th, 38th, 42nd, 50th and 57th Streets.[28] Two years later, the Fifth Avenue Association gave seven 23-foot-high (7.0 m) bronze traffic towers, designed by Joseph H. Freedlander, at important intersections between 14th and 57th Streets for a total cost of $126,000.[29] The traffic signals reduced travel time along Fifth Avenue between 34th and 57th Streets, from 40 minutes before the installation of the traffic towers to 15 minutes afterward.[26] Freedlander's towers were removed in 1929 after they were deemed to be obstacles to the movement of traffic.[30] He was commissioned to design bronze traffic signals at the corners of these intersections, with statues of Mercury atop the signals. The Mercury signals survived through 1964,[28] and some of the statues were restored in 1971.[31]

Mid-20th century to present

In 1954, rising traffic led to a proposal to limit use of the avenue to buses and taxis only.[32] On January 14, 1966, Fifth Avenue below 135th Street was changed to carry only one-way traffic southbound, and Madison Avenue was changed to one-way northbound. Both avenues had previously carried bidirectional traffic.[33]

Through the late 1960s and early 1970s, many of the upscale retailers that once lined Fifth Avenue's midtown section moved away or closed altogether.[34]: 390 [35] According to a 1971 survey of the avenue, conducted by the Office of Midtown Planning under the leadership of Jaquelin T. Robertson, only 57 percent of building frontages between 34th and 57th Street were used as stores. The remaining frontage, including was used for companies such as banks and airline ticket offices. The section between 34th and 42nd Street, once the main shopping district on Fifth Avenue, was identified in the survey as being in decline. The section between 42nd and 50th Street was characterized as having almost no ground-level retail. The section between 50th Street and Grand Army Plaza was identified as having a robust retail corridor that was starting to decay.[34]: 390 

In February 1971, New York City mayor John Lindsay proposed a special zoning district to preserve the retail character of Fifth Avenue's midtown section. The legislation prescribed a minimum percentage of retail space for new buildings on Fifth Avenue, but it also provided "bonuses", such as additional floor area, for buildings that had more than the minimum amount of retail. The legislation also encouraged the construction of several mixed-use buildings with retail at the lowest stories, offices at the middle stories, and apartments at the top stories.[36][37] The types of retail included in this legislation were strictly defined; for example, airline ticket offices and banks did not count toward the retail space. Furthermore, new skyscrapers on the eastern side of the avenue were allowed to be built up to the boundary of the sidewalk. To align with the buildings of Rockefeller Center, new buildings on the western side had to contain a setback at least 50 feet (15 m) deep at a height of 85 feet (26 m) or lower.[34]: 390, 392  The New York City Planning Commission approved this legislation in March 1971.[38] The legislation was adopted that April.[39] Just before the legislation was enacted, American Airlines leased a ground-level storefront on the corner of Fifth Avenue and 53rd Street; Robertson initially disputed the move, even though it had been finalized before the legislation was proposed.[34]: 392 [40] As part of an experiment in 1970, Lindsay closed Fifth Avenue between 42nd and 57th Street to vehicular traffic for seven hours on Saturdays.[41]

In 1998, a midblock crosswalk was installed south of the intersection of Fifth Avenue and 50th Street, part of an experiment to allow vehicular traffic to turn without conflicting with pedestrians. At the time, it was one of a few midblock crosswalks in the city.[42] The former southern crosswalk at Fifth Avenue and 50th Street was fenced off.[43] A similar crosswalk was later installed south of 49th Street. Both crosswalks were removed in 2019.

During three Sundays in December 2022, the NYCDOT closed Fifth Avenue between 48th and 57th Streets to all vehicular traffic.[44][45] Excluding special events such as parades, this was the first time since the 1970s that the midtown section of Fifth Avenue was closed to vehicular traffic.[46]

^ a b c d e f g h "John Peirce Residence" (PDF). New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. June 23, 2009. Retrieved April 28, 2021. ^ Stokes, Isaac Newton Phelps (1915). "The iconography of Manhattan Island, 1498-1909 : compiled from original sources and illustrated by photo-intaglio reproductions of important maps, plans, views, and documents in public and private collections". p. 67 – via Internet Archive. ^ a b c d e Koeppel, Gerard (2015). City on a Grid: How New York Became New York. Boston: Da Capo Press. pp. 17–28. ISBN 978-0-306-82284-1. ^ Bridges, William (1811). Map of the City of New York and Island of Manhattan: With Explanatory Remarks and References. author. Retrieved May 12, 2021. ^ Reps, John W. "1811 COMMISSIONERS PLAN FOR NEW YORK". URBAN PLANNING, 1794-1918. Retrieved May 12, 2021. ^ Maurice, Arthur Bartlett (1918). Fifth Avenue. Dodd, Mead. ISBN 9781421962672. Retrieved May 12, 2021. ^ a b c d e f Stern, Robert A. M.; Mellins, Thomas; Fishman, David (1999). New York 1880: Architecture and Urbanism in the Gilded Age. Monacelli Press. ISBN 978-1-58093-027-7. OCLC 40698653. ^ Gray, Christopher (July 6, 2012). "A Woman With an Architectural Appetite". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 20, 2020. ^ Gray, Christopher (April 9, 1995). "Streetscapes/647 Fifth Avenue; A Versace Restoration for a Vanderbilt Town House". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 12, 2021. ^ "Central Park Lots". The Real Estate Record: Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide. Vol. 18, no. 453. November 18, 1876. p. 851 – via columbia.edu. ^ Wist, Ronda (1992). On Fifth Avenue : then and now. New York: Carol Pub. Group. ISBN 978-1-55972-155-4. OCLC 26852090. ^ "Mr. Edward Harriman..." (PDF). The Real Estate Record: Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide. Vol. 79, no. 2038. April 6, 1907. p. 296 – via columbia.edu. ^ "Fifth Avenue Traffic Bill; Mr. Weekes Introduces the Bill to Bar Wagons During Certain Hours". The New York Times. February 9, 1900. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 13, 2020. ^ "Fifth Av. Buildings Must Be Trimmed; City Orders the Removal of Stoops and Vaults That Are Encroachments". The New York Times. February 7, 1908. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 18, 2021. ^ "Thoroughfares Are Now Being Widened; The Waldorf-Astoria's Fancy Entrance at 34th Street Will Soon Be Torn Down". The New York Times. March 26, 1911. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 18, 2021. ^ "Upper Fifth Avenue in Wreckers' Hands; New York's Most Famous Mansions Have Their Facades Cut Back to Widen Thoroughfare". The New York Times. August 13, 1911. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 18, 2021. ^ "Altman Firm to Build a Fifth Avenue Store; New Establishment to Be Opposite Waldorf-Astoria". The New York Times. December 11, 1904. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 10, 2020. ^ White, Norval; Willensky, Elliot; Leadon, Fran (2010). AIA Guide to New York City (5th ed.). New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19538-386-7. ^ "Fifth Avenue's Wonderful Evolution as Shopping Centre". The New York Times. February 22, 1914. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 11, 2019. ^ "Saks New Store Opens Tomorrow; Marks Another Milestone in the Development of Fifth Avenue". The New York Times. September 7, 1924. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 13, 2020. ^ Cite error: The named reference NYCL-0735 was invoked but never defined (see the help page). ^ a b Cite error: The named reference NYCL-1915 was invoked but never defined (see the help page). ^ a b "Fred F. French Building" (PDF). National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service. December 19, 2003. Retrieved October 7, 2020. ^ a b "Millions of Dollars for New Buildings Invested in the Fifth Avenue Area: Steady Increase Shown in Real Estate Values". The New York Times. July 25, 1926. p. RE1. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 7, 2020 – via ProQuest. ^ Robinson, Cervin (1975). Skyscraper style : art deco, New York. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 12. ISBN 978-0-19-502112-7. OCLC 1266717. ^ a b Gray, Christopher (May 16, 2014). "A History of New York Traffic Lights". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 13, 2020. ^ Taylor, S. W. (August 3, 1914). "Fifth Avenue Traffic; Plan for Policeman in "Crow's Nest" Is Proposed". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 13, 2020. ^ a b Gray, Christopher (February 2, 1997). "Mystery of 104 Bronze Statues of Mercury". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 13, 2020. ^ "Start New Towers for 5th Av. Traffic". The New York Times. June 20, 1922. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 13, 2020. ^ "Signal Towers to Go as 5th Av. Obstacles". The New York Times. February 2, 1929. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 13, 2020. ^ "Statuettes of Mercury Restored to Fifth Ave". The New York Times. May 13, 1971. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 13, 2020. ^ Sershen, John (December 22, 1954). "Restricted Fifth Avenue Traffic". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 13, 2020. ^ Cite error: The named reference nyt19660112 was invoked but never defined (see the help page). ^ a b c d Stern, Robert A. M.; Mellins, Thomas; Fishman, David (1995). New York 1960: Architecture and Urbanism Between the Second World War and the Bicentennial. New York: Monacelli Press. ISBN 1-885254-02-4. OCLC 32159240. OL 1130718M. ^ Barmash, Isadore (October 3, 1970). "Best & Co. Is Expected to Close, Speeding Evolution of fifth Ave". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 21, 2021. ^ "New York Proposes Zoning Law to Save Fifth Avenue Shops: Special Zoning District Would Require Ground-Floor Retail Outlets in All New Buildings". Wall Street Journal. February 10, 1971. p. 30. ISSN 0099-9660. ProQuest 133625773. ^ Stern, Michael (February 10, 1971). "A Plan to 'Save' 5th Ave". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 21, 2021. ^ Weisman, Steven B. (March 4, 1971). "Planners Vote Zone Plan To Save Fifth Ave. Stores". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 21, 2021. ^ Scott, Gil (April 20, 1971). "New York's 'Fifth' may glow at night, too: Bonuses offered Restrictions seen Gallery-like setting? Apartments valued". The Hartford Courant. p. B7. ProQuest 511211737. ^ Whitehouse, Franklin (April 4, 1971). "City and American Airlines at Odds Over Ticket Office in Old Georg Jensen Building on Fifth Avenue". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 21, 2021. ^ Schumach, Murray (July 12, 1970). "Crowds Stroll in Fifth Avenue". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 5, 2022. ^ Newman, Andy (April 11, 1998). "Barricade-Weary Pedestrians Welcome New Midblock Crosswalks". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 13, 2020. ^ Haberman, Clyde (April 14, 1998). "NYC; If Barricades Help Traffic, Proof Is Secret". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 12, 2021. ^ "Iconic 5th Avenue Stretch Is Only for Pedestrians This Month". NBC New York. December 2, 2022. Retrieved December 5, 2022. ^ Manna, Victoria (December 4, 2022). "Fifth Avenue closed to traffic for the first time". Spectrum News NY1 New York City. Retrieved December 5, 2022. ^ Lazar, David (November 22, 2022). "Fifth Avenue will go car-free for three December Sundays". Spectrum News NY1 New York City. Retrieved December 5, 2022.
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