INWOOD MANHATTAN Commercial District Needs Assessment
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INWOOD MANHATTAN Commercial District Needs Assessment in partnership Washington Heights BID with ABOUT INWOOD Background Inwood sits at the northern tip of Manhattan, at the confluence of the Harlem River, the Hudson River, the Spuyten Duyvil Creek, and some of Manhattan’s most beautiful parks. A plaque in Inwood Hill Park, the only remaining natural forest in Manhattan, marks the spot where Dutch colonists purchased the island from the Lenape tribe in 1626. Today, Inwood The Neighborhood 360° is home to a diverse community of residents, small businesses, and cultural and medical program was created by the NYC institutions. The neighborhood is connected to the rest of Manhattan and the Bronx by the A Department of Small Business and 1 subway lines, as well as the University Heights, Broadway, and Henry Hudson bridges. Services to identify, develop, and launch commercial revitalization projects in partnership with Dyckman Street forms the southern boundary of the neighborhood, connecting a lower- local stakeholders. Through proactive planning and targeted density, mixed-use area along the Harlem River waterfront with a dense residential investments, Neighborhood 360° neighborhood across to the Hudson. Along Dyckman, longstanding bodegas, restaurants, supports projects that strengthen clothing stores, and salons mix with newer restaurants and lounges to form one of Northern and revitalize the streets, small businesses, and community- Manhattan’s most popular commercial strips. The street is also home to Dyckman based organizations that anchor Houses, the neighborhood’s only NYC Housing Authority development, alongside many New York City neighborhoods. quintessential prewar apartment buildings. This diverse mix of residents and storefronts The Neighborhood 360° extends north from Dyckman along Broadway, 10th Avenue, and the streets in between. Commercial District Needs Assessment (CDNA) highlights a neighborhood’s existing Along Inwood’s western edge, parks and open spaces stretch from Fort Tryon Park around business landscape and to the northern tip of the island. Just south of Inwood, the Met Cloisters brings visitors from consumer characteristics. around the world to its exhibits of medieval Europe. Farther north, Inwood Hill Park’s rolling This CDNA features the main hills expose residents and visitors alike to scenic views of the Hudson River Palisades. At commercial corridors in the northern tip of Inwood lie institutional anchors such as Columbia University’s athletic Inwood and was conducted in partnership with the facilities and NewYork-Presbyterian / The Allen Hospital. Washington Heights Business Improvement District between February and June 2016. The Harlem River waterfront, meanwhile, includes a mix of commercial, residential, Key issues and opportunities utility, educational, and industrial uses alongside a partially accessible waterfront. In identified through this the Sherman Creek area (named for an inlet along the river), retail, wholesale, and auto assessment will help prioritize businesses share the streets with Con Edison facilities, public schools, and a Metropolitan SBS-supported local Transportation Authority rail yard. Despite the heavy rail and utility presence along investments, and serve as an informational and marketing significant frontage of the Harlem River, Inwood community members have worked hard to resource for the neighborhood. revitalize the waterfront for parks, recreation, and wildlife preservation. Neighborhood Demographics See more on page 13 In This Report Existing conditions, business A diverse population of workers, entrepreneurs, and residents contributes to Inwood’s data, and qualitative depictions of thriving commercial and cultural life. Inwood’s population of more than 40,000 residents the neighborhood were gathered represents a broad mix of ethnicities, national origins, and socioeconomic positions. Half from more than 220 surveys, as well as numerous interviews and of the population was born outside of the United States, largely in the Dominican Republic workshops, with neighborhood and Mexico, and about 75% identify as Hispanic or Latino. merchants, shoppers, workers, community leaders, property owners, and residents. Future Opportunities See more on page 5 Jump to... Key Findings 4-5 Business Inventory 6 A growing, culturally-rich population of residents, long-standing businesses, new What Merchants Say 7-8 entrepreneurs, and active community organizations position Inwood for continued Business Outlook 9 vibrancy. Community members continue to invest in their local businesses, open spaces, What Shoppers Say 8, 10 and natural assets in partnership with institutional anchors and the City. New investments Physical Environment 11 to organize merchants, enhance the neighborhood’s retail diversity, and beautify its Data Appendix 12-15 commercial corridors stand to make Inwood’s streets even more attractive places for all residents and visitors to shop, work, live, and play. 2 Neighborhood 360° Commercial District Needs Assessment NEIGHBORHOOD CONTEXT Inwood W 228 ST Notable Places HENRY HUDSON BRIDGE Spuyten Duyvil Creek 1 Muscota Marsh Hudson River NewYork-Presbyterian / The Allen Hospital BROADWAY Columbia University Baker Athletics Complex 1 BRIDGE W 218 ST Columbia University Baker Athletics Complex Inwood Hill Park 9 AV CUNY in the 2 Heights 10 AV Isham Park W 215 ST Dyckman 5030 AV Farmhouse N Broadway A M 2 A W 207 ST E S MTA 207th St BROADWAY Rail Yard The Met Inwood Dyckman Farmhouse Cloisters Library 3 DYCKMAN ST UNIVERSITY 3 POST AV HEIGHTS A 1 Dyckman BRIDGE W FORDHAM RD Playground Fort SHERMAN AV Tryon NYCHA 10 AV Park Dyckman 9 AV Houses W 183 ST HENRY HUDSON PARKWAY NAGLE AV Sherman Creek HILLSIDE AV Park MAJOR DEEGAN EXPY The Met Cloisters UNIVERSITY AV Harlem River 4 Highbridge W 187 ST Park 0 0.175 0.35 Miles AUDUBON AV WADSWORTH AVST NICHOLAS AV Inwood Hill Park Current and Planned Developments Merchant & Business Groups Washington Heights Business Improvement District Inwood Commercial Arts & Culture Corridors Destinations Northern Manhattan Improvement Corporation Public Facilities Co-Working Spaces Sherman Creek Business Owners NYCHA Dyckman Houses National Supermarket Association Neighborhood Events Northern Manhattan Restaurant and Lounge Association #WHIN and Dine Uptown Retaurant Week Community League of the Heights Dyckman Basketball Tournament Washington Heights and Inwood Inwood Film Festival Development Corporation Broadway Bridge Medieval Festival at Fort Tryon Park Chamber of Commerce of Washington Heights and Inwood Uptown Arts Stroll Inwood 3 KEY FINDINGS & OPPORTUNITIES Strengths Abundant parks and open spaces surrounding Premier cultural attractions, including the Met Cloisters the neighborhood and Dyckman Farmhouse, in or immediately around the neighborhood Beautiful rivers and waterfronts surrounding the residential and commercial area, with large untapped Large number of entrepreneurs and small businesses, potential for activity including a significant number of long-standing businesses Busy, well-known commercial corridors that attract Vibrant and growing artist community invested in the residents as well as visitors from Manhattan, the Bronx, neighborhood and looking for opportunities to contribute and beyond and grow in place Diverse collection of neighbors actively involved in community organizations and causes Challenges Public safety and noise concerns along commercial Lack of retail diversity, especially in arts, entertainment, corridors, especially at night healthy food options, and recreation Graffiti and sidewalk issues reduce the walkability and Limited affordable commercial space for local small appeal of the corridors for shoppers and residents businesses to start and grow in Traffic congestion, limited parking, and safety concerns Lack of recreational and cultural activities for youth negatively affect both the pedestrian and driving and families experience along the corridors Social and spatial boundaries that limit full use of the neighborhood by all residents Sherman Creek Park Guadalupe Restaurant Compare Foods Supermarket Dyckman Street Restaurants 4 Neighborhood 360° Commercial District Needs Assessment Patacon Pisao Food Truck Good Shepherd Church 215th Street 1 Train Station Characteristic Prewar, Mixed-Use Housing Opportunities Activate Inwood’s parks, sidewalks, and vacant Leverage Inwood’s growing artist community to storefronts with diverse cultural and arts attractions support local business through public art initiatives Attract new businesses to vacant storefronts that meet the Support local small business owners’ efforts to neighborhood’s demand for healthy food, family-friendly organize, promote, and advocate collectively, including restaurants, arts, and entertainment exploring the feasibility of a Business Improvement District (BID) Bring the natural beauty of Inwood’s parklands into its commercial district by beautifying the streets and Enhance lighting on key commercial streets to address expanding family-friendly outdoor activities in open safety concerns spaces Market Inwood’s diverse array of restaurants and Invest in sanitation services to address litter and graffiti retailers with a unified, bilingual website, advertising, and make Inwood’s commercial corridors more inviting and social media strategy to residents and visitors alike Connect more local business owners to business support services that help them attract customers and thrive in place What’s Next? To address these key findings and opportunities,