Article snapshot taken from Wikipedia with creative commons attribution-sharealike license.
Give it a read and then ask your questions in the chat.
We can research this topic together.
(Redirected from Central Park South)
West-east street in Manhattan, New York
The portion of the street forming the southern boundary of Central Park from Columbus Circle on the west to Fifth Avenue on the east is known as Central Park South. Central Park South is largely bidirectional, except for the short block between Grand Army Plaza and Fifth Avenue, which is one-way eastbound. The block between Sixth Avenue and Grand Army Plaza contains a dedicated lane for westbound equestrian traffic. Entry into Central Park can be made at the Scholars' Gate at Fifth Avenue, the Artists' Gate at Sixth Avenue, the Artisans' Gate at Seventh Avenue, and the Merchants' Gate at Columbus Circle.
The section between Fifth Avenue and Second Avenue is one-way eastbound. At Second Avenue, 59th Street branches off onto the Ed Koch Queensboro Bridge, which is often referred to as the 59th Street Bridge. 59th Street continues east to York Avenue and Sutton Place, just short of the East River. The remaining two and a half blocks are bidirectional traffic; the westbound lane of 59th Street is funneled onto the Queensboro Bridge just east of the intersection with Second Avenue.
History
59th Street was created under the Commissioners' Plan of 1811 as one of the minor east-west streets across Manhattan. The "59th Street" name initially applied to the entirety of the street between the Hudson and East Rivers. The addresses on Central Park South follow those of what had been West 59th Street.
The construction of Central Park in the 1860s and 1870s led to the development of upscale hotels, apartments, and other institutions on this section of 59th Street in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The Spanish Flats, at Seventh Avenue, was the first such luxury apartment, having been built in 1883. The original Plaza Hotel, the Hawthorne, and the Navarro Flats were all developed in the 1880s and 1890s, though all were subsequently demolished. Even after a city zoning law was passed in 1885, banning residential structures over 80 feet (24 m) tall, residential hotels and standard hotels continued to be developed on this part of West 59th Street, as they were exempted from the zoning codes. The three blocks of 59th Street bordering Central Park were renamed after the park in 1896.
Historically, West 59th Street ran from Ninth/Columbus Avenues to Columbus Circle as well. In 1954, that city block of 59th Street was decommissioned to make way for the New York Coliseum complex. The Coliseum, in turn, was demolished and replaced with Time Warner Center in the early 2000s.
Looking west along Central Park South
NY 9A / West Side Highway
