To find out more about some of NYC’s most
family-friendly neighborhoods, we decided to call in our greatest resource—our
reader families! Here, eight families share what they love about the areas they
call home, from wonderful children’s libraries to amazing parks and play spaces
to where to get a great glass of wine after a long day.
Battery Park City
“Many of our friends outside New York wonder how we
raise our boys in a city without a backyard. Our response is that we have
some of the most beautiful and action-packed backyards imaginable—Battery Park,
Hudson River Park and the New York Harbor!” say Matt and Priyanka Schneider,
who live in the southern part of Battery Park City with their sons, Max, 5 and
Sam, 2.
1) We’re very lucky that PS 276, a new K-8
school, opened last fall in our neighborhood. The building is beautiful and the
principal has done an outstanding job of hiring top-notch educators.
2) This neighborhood is all about being
outside, and the Battery Park City Parks Conservancy maintains all the parks,
gardens, playgrounds and walkways around the neighborhood. It also hosts
playgroups, soccer and basketball classes, art classes, family concerts and
cultural festivals—often for free.
3) BPC is part of the
larger lower Manhattan community, and we
love being able to enjoy the history of the Financial District and Seaport.
4). Over the past few years, new restaurants
and food shops have been popping up around the neighborhood—we especially
like Inatteso Pizzabar, Inatteso Cafe, and the new Battery Place Market. We’re
looking forward to Shake Shack and Blue Smoke opening here later this year.
Upper East Side
“Tug boats, freight liners and yachts, oh
my! We love living so close to Carl Schurz Park—a favorite place for boat
watching—and many area playgrounds, not to mention Central Park,” says Solana
Nolfo, who lives on the Upper East Side with husband Steve and twin sons Max
and Jonah, 3.
1) Art and music classes—there are so many
great venues. We especially love Rhinelander Children’s Center; it’s a terrific
community resource, and we’ve enjoyed a variety of early childhood (and now nursery school) classes
there.
2) Close to wildlife—there’s always the
Central Park Zoo, but we also love to visit The Art Farm In The City. It’s a great place
for drop-in play time to hang out with a variety of critters including rabbits,
chickens, turtles, and our household favorite: the blue-tongued skink!
3) Bike shops galore—in NYC, your stroller
is often your only set of wheels, and the boys love the excitement of getting
their stroller wheels checked, pumped and replaced by the friendly folks at the
various shops. We often go
to Larry’s Bicycles Plus on 2nd Ave at 88th Street.
4) Crosstown buses—our
boys love a leisurely bus ride, and being able to hold the MetroCard! Not only
does the cross-town bus take us to the little-boy-coveted subway, but also to
our next favorite neighborhood: the Upper West Side!
Upper West Side
“I have never appreciated the Upper West Side more than during
these past few horrible weeks of winter,” says Stephanie Saletan, who lives on
the UWS with husband Jordan and children, Jack, 4 and Harper, 16 months.
“Having Central Park three blocks east and Riverside Park two blocks west, a
great sledding hill is never more than a short walk away. One day I was able to conquer a steep, bumpy slope with my 4-year-old and the
next day a mini hill that my 16-month-old could do alone! Who said NYC
apartments don’t have backyards?”
1) Hippo Playground in Riverside Park—it’s the best on
hot days. There’s so much shade, and the spouting hippos keep the kids
cool.
2) Columbus
Square—we waste hours shopping
at this new complex on Columbus Avenue between 97th and
100th streets. It has a Whole Foods, Michaels, TJ Maxx and coming soon…Home
Goods!
3) American Museum of Natural
History—between the dinosaurs, the stuffed wooly mammoths and the butterflies
landing on your arm, it never gets old! The visit is best topped off with
lunch at Shake Shack across the street.
4) St. Agnes Library—the first floor
of this newly renovated library is a kid haven. There are fun chairs,
computers and a weekly story hour. The best part is, no more impulse buys when hanging out at Barnes and Noble. Everything at the library is free!
East Village
“The East Village really does feel
like a village within the city,” says Samantha Clark, a native of England who calls this
neighborhood home with husband Scott and son Finn, 17 months. “We know the
local deli owner, visit the same restaurants and see the same families at the
playgrounds. I love that I can walk everywhere and there’s so much to do within a short distance. Since having my son, Finn (17 months) I’ve become great friends with so many women in the neighborhood. It couldn’t be more child-friendly, and there’s so much to do at
your doorstep.”
1) There are lots of great playgrounds, but the
ones we love are Tompkins Square, especially in the summer when
there are so many free concerts, and the new Hester Street playground, which
has sprinklers and sand, a great baby area and lots of musical equipment that
my son loves. It’s right on the edge of China Town, so we get to take home great Chinese food afterward!
2) I’m a member of an amazing group called
Bowery Babes, which has been my savior as a new mom. When I became a volunteer in this organization I had no idea what it would mean
for me and Finn. We organize weekly playgroups, charity drives, Halloween and
Christmas events, summer picnics, lectures on topics such as sleep (or lack of
it!) and pre-schools. As they say, it takes a village to raise a child. With my
family in England, the Bowery Babes became my village.
3) Active 17-month-olds need places to run
off some steam. We joined ABC Gym Kids, which
just opened a location on 10th Street. The configuration changes every week so there’s always a new challenge for the
kids whether it be swinging from a bar, or rolling down a hill. The children get
to run, slide, swing and bounce on an obstacle course, and there’s also
bubbles, singing and the famous parachute!
4) There are great libraries in the neighborhood on 8th Street and Houston. But the
one we love is the Ottendorfer on 2nd Avenue. There is a great space upstairs
for children to run around. They have toys, a wonderful selection of books and
story times during the week. When it’s raining and cold you need a great indoor
space to go to, and this is ours. And it’s free!
Sunnyside
“Taking the 7 train home to Bliss Street while still living
in NYC? Pretty cool,” says Elyse Orecchio, who lives in this Queens neighborhood with
husband Joe and children Theo, 7 and Melody, 2.5. “Sunnyside is a nice mix of
urban and suburban, and an eclectic place to raise a family.”
1) We’re a community of moms. By day, we take our kids to Sunnyside Gardens Park, and by night we
sip wine at Claret or sing karaoke at Bliss Street Station. Many of us have
formed a babysitting co-op, so we even get to—gasp!—date our husbands, for
free.
2) We have wonderful, authentic ethnic
cuisine. Within blocks we’ve got a real Irish market, Colombian bakeries,
Romanian restaurants and Peruvian chicken joints—it’s good eats over
here.
3) It’s a treat to have culture right
around the corner. My son is in a local production of “Annie,” my daughter
and I take ballet at the Sunnyside Arts Cooperative, and my friends a few
blocks away bring free Shakespeare to Queens every summer.
4) Being close to the city is key. My husband is a photographer and sometimes makes trips to and from Manhattan two or three times in one day; we’re only 10 minutes away from Grand Central.
5) Perhaps the above sounds posh, but
Sunnyside is not. The heart of the ‘hood beats in the form of immigrant
families, inexpensive establishments and friendly faces.
BoCoCa
“BoCoCa is the perfect walking
neighborhood,” says Angela Johnson, who resides in this Brooklyn quarter (made up
of the Boerum Hill, Cobble Hill and Carroll Gardens neighborhoods)
with husband Dean and daughter Hana, 9 months. “We walk the stretch of Atlantic between 4th Avenue and Henry
regularly, and we always find a new restaurant or shop to explore.”
1) Baby & Me yoga classes at Mala Yoga
are a fantastic way to work out the kinks that come with toting a tot around
the city.
2) Betty Bakery has a tasty selection of
treats—perfect for a play date when you don’t have time to bake.
3) Joya is the place for yummy, inexpensive
Thai food. And there’s plenty of noise, so my daughter can have a ball.
4) Acorn Toy Shop carries a beautiful
selection of handcrafted toys and games made of 100% natural materials.
Hudson Heights
“We loved Hudson Heights the minute we saw
it,” says Alice Lee, who lives in this sub-neighborhood of Washington Heights with husband Mike
and daughter Emma, 10. “Coming up out of the 190th street subway station, all you see are trees and sky. Being up on a cliff overlooking the Palisades,
our neighborhood
is quiet, with little traffic and many young families. We have two
playgrounds filled with joy and laughter. It’s a lovely place to
live.”
1) Fort Tryon Park is a lovingly
maintained park with views of the Hudson River and the New Jersey
Palisades. It offers great sledding on Billings Lawn in wintertime and fabulous
sunsets all year long.
2) The Medieval Festival—every fall, Fort Tryon Park is transformed
into a Medieval Fair with costumes, jousts and activities for the whole family.
3) Ahn’s Vegetables—Mr. Ahn has a cheerful
word for everybody and loves to banter with the kids. Plus, his fruit is the
best!
4) Bennett Park—the highest natural point in Manhattan! A massive rock
juts out of the center creating a great platform for fun. (Photo credit: Kevin
McCormick.)
