NEW YORK—There are few luxuries greater than a parkside property in the city. Living adjacent to a park in Manhattan means having access to urban conveniences, as well as a bigger backyard than you could ever keep yourself. Properties along the west, east, and south sides of Central Park have long been some of the most coveted Manhattan real estate, and in the last decade, properties along its northern edge have come into vogue too.
“It is the last parkside neighborhood,” said Tom Postilio, managing director of CORE Group, the marketers of One Museum Mile.
A model home at One Museum Mile, with views overlooking the Dutch Meer in northern Central Park.
One Museum Mile is the newest condominium overlooking Central Park North. The 116-unit building is dubbed “One Museum Mile” for its location at the top of Fifth Avenue, after the city extended that honorary name, which originally referred to Fifth Avenue from 82nd Street to 105th Street, up to 110th Street.
To “anchor” the northernmost point of this culturally significant corridor, the developers built the Museum for African Art on the ground floor of One Museum Mile. The museum is set to open next year.
The area is rapidly changing, said Joyce Gold, New York historian and the giver of daily tours. “Ten to 15 years ago, you wouldn’t go into this part of the park,” she said. “It was derelict. Now there are new restaurants, jazz clubs, and hip clothing stores.”
Gentrification is undoubtedly a contentious issue, but is a growing reality in Manhattan and many parts of New York.
A small handful of luxury condos already populate Central Park North, and two more are under proposal, according to Postilio. Referring to the transformation of Columbus Circle at the southwest corner of Central Park, Postilio said that a similar change in Central Park north is “inevitable.”
Sofia Song of Streeteasy.com, a property listing and New York City real estate research website, said there has been a “notable rise in property values along this corridor [upper Fifth Avenue].” Their site and many others now call the area “Upper Carnegie Hill” rather than East Harlem.
“This area is distinct from the area to the east of it,” said Song. “It’s very much driven by new development.” According to Streeteasy.com, properties in Upper Carnegie Hill have a median price of close to $1.6 million, and a median price per square foot of $1,172.
The building’s amenities include a 24-hour doorman/concierge, gym, children’s play room, teen game room, live-in super, parking, roof deck, and swimming pool. Units range from studios to three-bedrooms with the option to purchase and connect adjacent units. New tenants have already moved in, and as of this writing, 20 listings are in contract, and 40 are active.