Upper West Side - Please define boundries

duhhh, starts at 72nd?

The upper west side is a state of mind, you take it with you wherever you go.

#2 - I asked where is the northern boarder, not southern.

86th Street and 125th Street are not the boundaries for the UWS. When we lived at 79th and B'way, I assumed 96th was the edge for n real reason. Now we live between 96 and 110 and I think it is somewhere in that range, but growing a bit each year. Some say it turns into Manhattan Valley over 100th, but I don't see that term much. Just my opinion.

#2--UWS does not start at 72nd. It historically started at 57th Street. The Northern boundary historically was 92nd Street but now has been expanded by brokers to 110th, some even up to Columbia, which is bullcrap. Personally, I consider north of 92nd as some other nabe, but in full disclosure, I hate the UWS and would never live there.

I grew up on the Upper West Side. While the "good to live in" boundaries evolved over the years, and of course vary by individual, the neighborhood boundaries are set in stone: 59th St. to 110th St. That means, of course, all the blocks west of Central Park.

#7 is correct. Those are the boundaries.

Actually, #7 is not correct, and #6 does not know what he/she is talking about. For the record, 57th Street and 92nd Street were never the boundaries of the Upper West. #7 almost has it right. Drum roll please....The southern boundary is, indeed, 57th Street, the northern boundary is, indeed, 110th Street, the western boundary is the Hudson, but the eastern boundary is not Central Park...it is 5th Ave. Technically Central Park is part of the Upper West Side; likewise, as a technical matter, the Metropolitan Museum of Art is not located in the Upper East Side, but the Upper West Side.

#9, I think you are splitting hairs because the streets start going west on the west side of 5th Ave. By your analysis, all of Central Park South would be considered the Upper West Side and that just is not the case from a realistic point of view. If you were right, why would it not be called Westside Park, instead of Central Park? That's because "central" is intended to denote the middle between west and east.

#10: Actually, it is not "splitting hairs" the boundary is the boundary. It is what it is. Central Park South is 59th Street and does constitute the boundary. South of Central Park South is Midtown, so the Plaza Hotel, the New York Athletic Club, the Essex House, Etc. are all in Midtown not the Upper West Side. Speaking of Midtown, geographic names in place names do not support a proposition. For instance, Midtown is no longer in the middle. Central Park was not named central park, because it was located in the center of the East Side and the West Side (it is not in the center in any event). I know that this can be a bit confusing for some - especially those new to the City. I was born and raised in Manhattan, so its areas are somewhat second nature to me.

In any event, again, the boundaries are what they are. And, as a technical matter, the boundaries of the Upper West Side are 110th Street on the north, 59th Street on the south, the Hudson River on the west and 5th Avenue on the East.

As for 5th Ave being the east/west divide (as it is for building numbering purposes north and south of Central Park), it was clearly not the intention of 19th Century city planners to consider Central Park part of either the UWS or UES. Thus, buildings on Central Park West are not numbered 300 West XXth Street -- their side entrances are 1 or 2 West XXth St, and always have been.

FWIW, the Met uses 10028 -- a zip for the UES and Yorkville.

Ducky, you are contradicting yourself. In #9 none, you said the southern "boundary" is 57th Street and the eastern "boundary" is 5th Ave., right? That means, by your definition, the Plaza is on the Upper West Side. But in #11, you say the Plaza is Midtown after changing your southern boundary to 59th Street. Which is it?

lets end this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upper_West_Side

This really doesn't end it because there seem to be 2 different northern borders mentioned: 110th and 125th. In fact, the picture shown is of Tom's Diner which us on 112th.

The wikipedia article acknowledges Morningside Heights as 110th-125th, and describes in a dismissive fashion that some people lump it into the UWS because of broker babble and changing demographics. They're basically saying, then, that 110th is the northern UWS border.

The Tom's pic is (presumably) to link the UWS with Seinfeld, which was set there, even if they used Tom's exterior (in Morningside Heights) for outside shots.

#9---you claim central park is on the UWS and you say #7 doesn't know what they're talking about? And for the record if 125th were the northern boundary, then Columbia would be on the UWS, which it is not nor has it ever been, in the classical sense of the term UWS. And in no way is CPS on the UWS.

#13...You are right. There is a typo in my post #9. I meant to say that the southern boundary is, indeed, 59th Street not 57th Street. As I note in the begining of that post, 57th Street has never been considered the boundary. Sorry for any confusion regarding that.

BTW, the dividing line in Manhattan between east and west is 5th Ave.

92nd street is not the boundary (unless you care more about zipcodes than about neighborhood character).

Manhattan Valley goes between 96th and 110th. But most people consider (with good reasons) the west side of that area, mostly between Broadway and Riverside Drive, to still be part of the UWS.

And south of 72nd street, the area around Lincoln Center has it's own personality too, so it tends to be considered a neighborhood on its own too.

North of 110th is definitely not UWS, but rather Morningside Heights. A very nice neighborhood, but no matter what brokers say (and you should see what they say in Craigslist), it is not the upper west side.

In reading through the posts I agree with Ducky - I think. I have heard that the UWS boundary is 110th Street by 5th Avenue by 59th Street by the Hudson River.

The right answer is:

North - 110th
West - Hudson River
East - Central Park West
South - 59th Street

5th ave is the dividing line for east/west as far as addresses are concerned (but not for streets that are intersected by CP as #12 as noted), but is NOT necessarily the dividing line for any neighborhoods.

Perhaps we should just agree to disagree! It appears that we are all in agreement that it is

59th Street to the south

the Hudson River to the west

110th to the north

And whether the eastern border is CPW (as some contend) or 5th Ave. (as I and others contend), we seemingly agree in any event that Central Park is on the west side. I suppose we should leave it at that.

However, I will point out that Poster #12 put forth a specious argument. 1) zip codes are not indicators of neighborhoods, as they are a relatively recent construct and there are innumerable instance of zip codes covering more than one area in two different neighborhoods and 2) the numbering of CPW would be, perhaps, relevant if the Manhattan developed around a primeval swath of land that became Central Park, but that is not what happened. CPW was originally a continuation of 8th Avenue, which continued the alternating side of the street numbering that is used south of 59th. There were communities that existed in the area of what is now Central Park. The area for the park was condemned, razed and then the park was developed. With the creation of the park came a change of the name and designation for the stretch of 8th Ave on western front of the park to CPW, and then came the current numbering sequence.

I think people agree that Central Park is west of 5th Ave., but not on the "west side" as you say in #22. It was named Central Park, and not Westside Park, for a reason.

Central Park was not named Central Park, because it is located between the east and west side. In any event, how something is named does not in and of itself prove a point. Next time you are on 5th Avenue between 59th and 110th note how hwhn there is a srteet sign on the Park side (e.g., 72nd St.) it has a "W" while on the east side of 5th it has an "E."

It was named Central park because it is located in the center of Manahttan. From centralpark.com (the official website of CP): "After three years of debate over the park site and cost, in 1853 the state legislature authorized the City of New York to use the power of eminent domain to acquire more than 700 acres of land in the center of Manhattan." The park later added another 100+ acres.

So, Ducky, please explain why UWS house numbers start at 1, not 300. Why CP has its own police precinct, not an east side one. Why all the cultural institutions in CP use UES zip codes, why CP doesn't fall into any one community board's district . . . a lone street sign (if it exists) isn't much to stand on (plus you'd get cited for disorderly conduct).

Note that Central Park is in the center of Manhattan along the north/south axis not east/west. Note that on the east/west divide at that portion of Manhattan, the distance from the East River to 5th Avenue is roughly the same as from the Hudson River to 5th Ave.. That is why the residential portion of the UWS is considerably smaller than that of the UES: Compare the Riverside Drive/Blvd to CPW versus East End Ave to 5th.

Yes, it's simply majestic! So what?

Ducky - get over it . . .you are way to invested.