The Uptown Manhattan neighborhood of Harlem is located just north of Central Park, bordered by Frederick Douglass Boulevard, St. Nicholas Avenue, and Morningside Park on the west, the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north, Fifth Avenue on the east, and Central Park North on the south.
Harlem has a long history of being a center of arts and culture, as well as a vital hub for Black artists, home to landmarks like the legendary Apollo Theatre, the National Jazz Museum, the National Black Theatre, and the Marcus Garvey Park. The neighborhood is also a thriving dining and shopping district and a top-notch academic center, with Columbia University close by and the City College of New York public school located at 106 Convent Avenue. The district’s continuous growth and a 2008 rezoning plan meant to boost development in the area have attracted numerous business to Harlem, eager to benefit from the lower asking rents compared to Midtown or Downtown.
A 2008 rezoning plan proposed for Harlem aimed to encourage the development of 125th Street as the neighborhood’s main business and cultural artery. The plan included the creation of mixed-use housing and cultural spaces, as well as 1.8 million square feet of commercial office, hotel and retail space. The plan spurred interest for office space in Harlem, and various business operate office space in the area today, including Infrastructure Engineering Inc., FreshDirect, Lumiode, CO-Office, Harlem Properties, Admit.me, SoHarlem, and Aetna at 55 West 125th Street.
Harlem is becoming increasingly appealing for commercial tenants, and for rising startups in particular. Companies seeking reasonably-priced office space within a well-established, culturally-relevant community will find a wide range of options in Harlem. Office average asking rents hovering below $50 per square foot make Harlem an attractive and cost-effective destination for businesses, compared to the over-priced Midtown Manhattan, where asking rents are well above $80 per square foot.
Public transport in the area is provided by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, including the New York City Subway and the MTA Regional Bus. A plethora of bus and subway lines are accessible in Harlem, including the 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, A, B, C, and D trains, 5 Bronx bus lines and 18 Manhattan bus lines. The Metro North Railroad operates a commuter rail station at Harlem-125th Street, connecting the borough to Connecticut and the Lower Hudson Valley.
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