Battery Park

Battery Park City is great. I lived there for 6 years from 2002-2008. Its really beautiful, quiet, nice to be on the river. Bad things are not a lot of good restaurants and a little isolated. Also, there is a A LOT of construction in the area and that is going to continue for a long long time

I was at a wake last night and the undertaker lives in BPC....he loves it..the beauty, serenity, water views, etcetect...its mostly rentals but the buildings that are condos seem to have really high maintenances....and since its landleased by the city...i think the taxing structure is differant........i thought i also read somewhere that there is a potential for a huge tax hike there and this is causing pause for lenders and thus harder to sell apts.......again....im vaguely remembering reading this so not sure if my facts are straight here.

What would you like to know? I live here now.

Re location: In my opinion, North of the WFC is nicer than south. It is nice to be a quick hop across the highway to Tribeca, the subway, Whole Foods, etc. Rockefeller Park and Teardrop park are great with kids. The bike/jogging path is right here so if you are into outdoor exercise it is really convenient. I rarely go to S Battery Park. When I do I don't like it much. It seems darker more run down. I hear it's cheaper over there if that's a consideration for you, but I'd rather pay a bit more for the convenience of being closer to Tribeca.

Re buildings: The buildings are admittedly pretty ugly, but the ones on the N side are also newer/greener. I currently live in Tribeca Green, a related building, and it is a great building. I have no complaints whatsoever. They have all different sized apts. They are incredibly well insulated (quiet as the suburbs inside!) and have nice amenities.

Negatives: The walk across the west side hwy is brutal in the weather/winter. It's a little isolated, but again the N is better than the S imo.

and re Mjh's construction comment: N of the financial center they have just completed buildings on the very last two parcels of land available (I think they're called Liberty Luxe & Liberty Green- condos, I believe, opening next year) so that's not an issue. I lived through that construction, watching it out my window. Luckily the building is soundproof!

I agree that South Battery is in for a building boom in the future.

oh and one more thing. Riverhouse is a great location if you can get an apt overlooking the water. I think they're having trouble selling, probably because they're still wildly overpriced. You may be able to get a deal, but I can't really speak intelligently on it since I'm a renter.

Both Riverhouse and the Visionaire have shown some willingness to negotiate. If you're interested in the area, you should start reading the local paper, the Downtown Gazette, which has good coverage of BPC issues.

ali r.
DG Neary Realty

I live there and absolutely LOVE it!!! The parks, the water, the boats... walking along the water on a summer sunday night is absolutely heaven and puts you in a fantastic mood to beging the weekend. No more sunday eve blahs for me!!!
Every eve i feel like i am coming home to a luxury vacation hotel.
It's a little isolated, i don't mind, but fabulously close to all major subway line. I have lived all over NYC and this is the easiest to get around!

I've lived in various buildings in BPC and Tribeca for the past five years and really love the area. When I first moved to BPC from the UWS, I was afraid that it would feel completely isolated from the rest of the city, but I have not found that to be the case at all. For one thing, Tribeca and all of its restaurants and bars is just a short walk across the WSH (as noted, cold and windy during winter months). In addition, because the island narrows at the southern tip, nearly every imaginable subway line is accessible to BPC. In particular, the 1/2/3/A/C/E are very close, and the R/4/5/6 are just a few blocks further. Having Whole Foods (and a BBB) nearby is another enormous plus.

For the past year, I have lived in the Riverhouse. I'm happy to answer any specific questions that you have about the building, but I will begin by saying that I have been very happy with my purchase. The one thing I would avoid is buying an apartment on the east side of the building. I don't have any direct experience with them, so perhaps someone else will chime in with better advice, but from what I see on North End Avenue (buses, construction vehicles, garbage trucks, etc etc), I would not want a window overlooking that street. The interior views (of Teardrop Park) are really nice, and of course the Hudson views are spectacular. The building is quiet and in my opinion well constructed, though there are a few items that I do not like about them--in particular, the bamboo floors. They look great and certainly went a long way in the Riverhouse getting its LEED status, but the variety that they chose to use is VERY soft and dents at the slightest pressure. Almost anything I've dropped on the floor has resulted in a dent. That's annoying. I've also heard that some people are having trouble with their HVAC systems, but mine work fine.

Cheers.

Read BPC broadsheet. Be concerned about the ground rents which are ridiculous and over which you have no control. (These are like really high maintanence charges that go up and up).

Do you really want to live on landfill? Anywhere else in the country people would think you're buying a double wide.

Newsflash! Significant parts of Manhattan are landfill. All you have to do is compare a 1700s map to a current one.

I guess it depends on how "significant" you think 15% is (plus if you have the ability to tell when someone is joking).

was looking at some properties in battery park. i just don't think the price makes up for how isolated you feel. you don't get the sense of being in manhattan at all. just my opinion.

i work in 7WTC and looked at some units in north BPC but really hated it. It has a park feel to it, but thats it. The area is cramped with buildings and you are a schlep from everythign and anything. Personally did not want to live that close to work. I bought in northern Tribeca instead. close to work but not isolated and not sharing all the same amenities that i enjoy at work, ha. BPC just seemed way to much like a suburban housing development but with tall buildings. They all look exactly the same. no character.

"a quick hop across the highway to Tribeca". LOL. If you like being a human game of "frogger", god bless!

I lived in BPC for a year, a few years ago. It was OK. It's quieter, and more green, than other parts of Manhattan. But, it is VERY isolated - hardly any restaurants, tough to buy sonmething (anything) "after hours". It kind of defeats the very purpose of living in Manhattan. I would recommend you look at some place more...ALIVE!

BPC - the closest suburb to Manhattan.

not sure if 30 yr meant that as a good thing or a bad thing but he/she is correct. It's calm, quiet and somewhat like living in the burbs with being able to access everything in 5 mins. How you will like it depends on what you are looking for and where you are in your life.
My advise.... if you are serious, book one of the hotels for a few days and "live" down here. There is a doubletree across from the riverhouse and a marriott and guest quarters on west and a ritz near the the visionaire.
you can experience it first hand.

Battery Park City is great, while it may seem isolated geographically it is minutes from many subways, easy to get a cab and has the best of all Manhattan worlds. We have lived here for 8 years. The newer buildings may appear more glamorous however many of the smaller scale condos at the south have the best views and the units are completely renovated. These tend to be cheaper and make up for their high common charges.

Actually a long walk between upper and lower BPC. But middletown pointed out the big joke, right? The older condo buildings are better located with the better views than the new condo buildings. The exception being higher floors at Visionaire facing west and the west wing of Riverhouse. But the prices, wow. If you spend less, you end up with bad views, whereas you can spend less for an older condo and get good views.
I understand that in both the Visionaire and the Riverhouse they have a LOT of inventory of 1 bedrooms that are not river views. Visionaire faces over the parking lot, and Riverhouse, if they aren't too low, they are only diagonal views to the water. Plus looks like Milstein will block east diagonal views.

"the prices, wow. If you spend less, you end up with bad views, whereas you can spend less for an older condo and get good views. "

Now, marry this comment with the other comments about BPC being like the 'burbs. Add it all up, and what do you have?

- A very, very expensive sleepy suburb with not much going on, where you get tiny spaces, with a short commute to prime parts of manhattan.

I.e., it's Hoboken or Jersey City or Westchester County. Only you don't pay $1,000 a sq ft to live in those places! THink about it: BPC is neither fish nor fowl - you don't get the "good" parts about being in manhattan, but you get to pay manhattan prices. You get all the BAD parts about living in the burbs - sleepy atmosphere, can't walk to fun things in the city without crossing a major highway, no restaurants, shopping closed at 6pm - but you don't get the upside of the 'burbs -- huge spaces w/ garages and attics, good school districts.

BPC is not a smart place to live. Pick prime Manhattan, or pick a burb in Jersey or Westchester or Long Island. BPC tries for both and delivers NEITHER.

"not sure if 30 yr meant that as a good thing or a bad thing"

Neither. Just pointing out what it is since I saw complaints that it was that. Some people want to live in Manhattan specifically because they want to "feel like they are living on Manhattan. But BPC is for people who want to live in Manhattan but NOT feel like they are living in Manhattan. It's not getter/ worse. right /wrong. It's vanilla vs chocolate, order the one YOU like better.

BPC is the loveliest place in Manhattan!

I've been an owner for more than 16 years and presently live in the Millennium at 30 West St. and just love it.
This is also a green building with the newest elementary/intermediate/green school in NYC right behind it.

I can't say enough great things about BPC, especially for families. It's probably the safest place in NYC!! Mr. Kelly, our police commissioner also lives here!!

Single people can also enjoy the clean air and beautiful parks and if they want action it's just a short subway/taxi drive ride away.

Children and adults have wonderful parks and activities right outside their doors. The Financial Center Winter Garden is one of the most magnificent spaces in NYC and there is always something cultural happening there.

Just this morning we had the start of a transoceanic sailing competition from NY to Barcelona...just one of the varied events form this area. It is never dull!!

It is incorrect that there aren't good restaurants here...there are a few in the Financial Center and in southern BPC we have Inatteso (Millennium), Gigino's (the same as Gigino in Tribeca) and the Ritz Carlton restaurant. There are plenty more in the South St. Seaport, Stone St. etc.

If you want to purchase in BPC, you do have to be careful because each building has negotiated a different landlease with Battery Park City Authority. Some buildings have great landleases and some have horrible ones. You should have your attorney review in great detail any offering plan for the building you choose. I would review very carefully the offering plan of Riverhouse, one of the worst in BPC for future costs.
The one building with the lowest common charges in BPC is Liberty View at Rector Place.

Will also add i have lived in nyc for 21 years, about 1.5 yrs in bpc. I met more people mu first weekend here then my entire time in nyc... prada we are neighbors !!!!!!
and if you have a dog this is the BEST place to live.

"Just this morning we had the start of a transoceanic sailing competition from NY to Barcelona...just one of the varied events form this area. It is never dull!!"

Gee, BPC does sound classy. By way of contrast, my neighborhood *w90s* just hosted the US Pole Dancing Championships.

I will be moving back into the Millennium (30 West) this summer--I have not been a huge BPC fan but I love that building and the area seems to have gotten a lot more restaurants than when we first bought around 3 years ago and now there is a Whole Foods nearby --a big plus for me because grocery shopping was seriously difficult. RE2009--where do you walk your dog? I know the Esplanade is nice but there seem to be few grassy areas where dogs are allowed. I have two dogs so please advise!

The newer buildings in BPC (Millennium certainly, I think Visionnaire and Riverhouse too) have negotiated longer term initial landleases (25 years before next increase, if memory serves). The two new northside ones (Liberty Green & Luxe) I would expect to get the same treatment. Your CC PILOT will be higher than CC RE Tax in other comparable parts of the city. However, my total monthly costs (including mortgage) are lower than what I would pay for a comparable unit (in terms of size, amenities) anywhere else in the city that I'm prepared to live.

North BPC with its proximity to Whole Foods and Tribeca is great, my first choice would be to live there. Transportation-wise you've got the 1,2,3 at Chambers Street and R, 4, 5, 6 at City Hall (though that is a bit of a schlep). Both require Westside Highway frogger, though the crossings are not horrifically scary and have traffic cops at rush hour.

The newer buildings on the south side (Millennium and Visionnaire) are pretty nice and it's not the wasteland some make it out to be. I live in south BPC and there are new feeding options (Inatesso, Cafe Casano, Ritz etc) but we tend to wander over to Pearl/Stone Streets or to some of the new places on Broad St for restaurants. It's about the same distance as walking from north BPC to the Greenwich St restaurants. You've got the R, 1 at Morris Street and the 4, 5 at Bowling Green (the latter can be reached without crossing the Westside Highway)

Both sides of BPC have great parks (the new West Thames Park will be open soon too), space to jog, cycle etc (all the way to the GWB, if the fit takes you), good primary schools, things for kids to do, peace and quiet, generally a good quality of life. Transportation is good. Despite earlier comments you can find somewhere pretty nice for well under $1,000 psf. The downsides: the landlease is offputting and does make places harder to sell.

fleur... i think you will enjoy things a bit more. a few more restaurants have opened, the one in your building is great, and there is some type of store opening in the visionaire. everyone loves whole foods and you always see a fresh direct truck!!!
the dog and i have a few routes we take, but we really go everywhere we are allowed. the grassy section of the walkway in front out your building is off limits as is not southern part of the esplanade. For a quick walk we walk down to the ritz and then back on battery place or we keep going down to the park. I believe it's all clear from thames north on the water. and the new dog park should be finished in the next week or two.
welcome back!!! i think you will love it now that it is a bit more lively.
Oh- and the W opens in may.

You might also want to consider the Financial District about a 7 minute walk from BPC and closer to a dozen subway stations, restaurants, drug stores, grocery stores etc. And just a 2-3 minute walk to one river and 7-10 minute to the other.

RE2009-- a new dog park?? I did not know about that!! The one in front of the Visionaire is pretty boring! I am actually pretty excited about moving back and re-discovering the area! thanks for giving me your 'dog route'! I usually did approximately the same route--around the Ritz, up Battery Place and then over to the Esplanade. And, will, we did the same--just a quick walk to Haru, Harry's and Stone Street--or over to Tribeca--we like to do a lot of walking especially after eating!! Hey RE--maybe I'll see you around--I have two Portuguese Water Dogs--so look for me!!

fleur.....remember we have Giginos here too on the waterfront (same as the one in Tribeca).
The new dog run is actually in front of Liberty View (next to the Visionaire). It will be brand new and looks quite large.

Yes-- prada--I actually took some of my friends over to Gigino's and was pleasantly surprised--the food was good!! I was expecting a touristy place but we had a lovely time!! I hope my dogs like the new dog run!! btw--I had your painter Juan over to give me an estimate but he could not do the work because he does not carry his own insurance--he was a very nice guy though!! I am using Noah (urbandigs) recommendation (cityworks) for the painting and floors!

Fleur... will do. Love Portuguese Water Dogs, so cute.
And 2 !!!!!!
The new dog run in the one next to the Visionaire, grand opening end of the week. While my guy is not a huge fan dog park fan (neither am i it does look nice as well as all the new playgrounds ect. And it seems like everyone in BPC has a dog... lots of new puppies this spring!
You are going to LOVE it.. the boats where out this weekend. Heaven!!

As my name suggests, I love BPC. It's clean, virtually crime free, and the amenities are amazing. True it's isolated, but that's what we love about it. Where else in the city can you live IN a park (we don't even cross a street to get into the park and prominade). I would not want to raise kids anywhere else in NYC.

Thanks everyone!! You are all making me feel better about living in BPC--as I said it was not my first choice but husband is a big fan and right now, living at the Millennium (since we already own it) is our best option--so I will keep an open mind and enjoy all that BPC has to offer--thanks to all of you BPCers!!

Fleur... i was nervous when i moved here that i would feel isolated and that i had lost my mind moving so far away. I have lived all over the city and this is by far the best place to get all around.. I was just in union square and was going to hop on the 4/5, then realized i had to go over to 7th. What a pain that would have been living anywhere else- but instead did a little shopping at one of my favorite markets and jumped on the 1 !!!! I have saved a ton in taxis...
And now i am watching to boats go by the sun is about to set!!!
see you and the pups soon!

Thanks RE--looking forward to it--should be in there by May!!!

I currently live in BPC (The Cove Club), and absolutely love it down here! Sure its isolated and quiet, but its what I prefer. Sidewalks are clean, the people are friendly, and the Esplanade is awesome! If I want to feel "Alive" as one poster above stated, I hang at my GF's place in Chelsea ... but then I have to deal with drunks yelling @ 5AM, puke in the streets, and more dirtiness :P

Regarding amenities, everything is within at least a 5 to 10 min walking distance. Gristedes is right across the street and Whole Foods is a 10 min walk (good workout when carrying groceries!). There aren't too many restaurants in the immediate area, but walk 10 minutes to the Stone St area, Seaport or Tribeca and you've got it all.

Subways are close, the 1 Train is literally a 2 minute walk to Rector. N/R, 5/6 are nearby as well. Commute to the office in midtown is about 30 min via the 2 or 3 express from Chambers. The only real negative are the exhoritant common charges. But you do get to deduct 42% of that so its a little relief.

> Sure its isolated and quiet, but its what I prefer.

Then why pay to live in Manhattan?

It's not *that* isolated. Cross the West Side Highway and in ten minutes you can either get to Tribeca, the Financial district, or every train in the city. You can visit your friends in Brooklyn easily, too. The big difference from the rest of the city is that you have lawn, albeit shared but you don't have to mow it, and you can actually sleep without traffic noise at night.

evnyc....and you don't have to weed!!! Remember it all from living in the suburbs for 23 yrs! I'll take BPC in a hearbeat.

I do not understand the isolation talk….There are at least 6 subway lines within a 5 minute walk, takes minutes to get to Tribeca, easy to access via taxi.
Upper East past 3rd Ave, Upper West after Broadway, are much more isolated.

Totally with you on this, Prada. Weeding was never my forte, and I had the worst-looking lawn on the block!

LIBERTY HOUSE not Liberty View has the lowest common charges in BPC.....sorry, my error.

@prada Thanks for the correction and all your BPC info. You're a mensch.

Battery Park is not New York

RE2009 is delusional. It's not even close to being the "easiest to get around". It's very dog UNfriendly...meaning these park patrol people ticket you if your dog steps 1 foot in the park.

across from Goldman Sachs some high end restaurants have opened. I also noticed that Harry's is also due to open a place.

But the air feels much fresher here. I like the accesabillity to Tribeca. With all the building going on, I can't see how prices will not rise soon.

Shah, I live here, and love it. I moved from the Lincoln Center area.

It's a wonderful part of the city to live in and visit.