Park Avenue is a wide

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

boulevard A boulevard is a type of broad avenue planted with rows of trees, or in parts of North America, any urban highway. Boulevards were originally circumferential roads following the line of former city walls. In American usage, boulevards may ...

which carries north and southbound traffic in the

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle A ...

s of

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

and the Bronx. For most of the road's length in Manhattan, it runs parallel to Madison Avenue to the west and Lexington Avenue to the east. Park Avenue's entire length was formerly called Fourth Avenue; the title still applies to the section between

Cooper Square __NOTOC__ Cooper Square is a junction of streets in Lower Manhattan in New York City located at the confluence of the neighborhoods of Bowery to the south, NoHo to the west and southwest, Greenwich Village to the west and northwest, the East V ...

and 14th Street. The avenue is called Union Square East between 14th and 17th Streets, and Park Avenue South between 17th and 32nd Streets.

History

Early years and railroad construction

The entirety of Park Avenue was originally known as Fourth Avenue and carried the tracks of the New York and Harlem Railroad starting in the 1830s. The railroad originally ran through an open cut through Murray Hill, which was covered with grates and grass between 34th and 40th Street in the early 1850s. A section of this "park" was later renamed Park Avenue in 1860. Park Avenue's original southern terminus was at 34th Street, and the newly renamed Park Avenue was given its own house-numbering system separate from that of Fourth Avenue. The address 1 Park Avenue was assigned to a house at 101 East 34th Street, at the northeast corner of Park Avenue and 34th Street. The Harlem Railroad was later incorporated into the

New York Central Railroad The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Mid ...

, and a terminal for the New York Central at 42nd Street, the

Grand Central Depot Grand Central Terminal is a major commuter rail terminal in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, serving the Metro-North Railroad's Harlem, Hudson and New Haven Lines. It is the most recent of three functionally similar buildings on the same s ...

, opened in 1871. But the tracks laid to the new terminal proved problematic. There were originally no grade-separated crossings of the railroads between 42nd and 59th Streets. As such, they required railroad crossings along Fourth Avenue, which resulted in frequent accidents; seven people died within 12 days of the Hudson River Railroad's move to Grand Central. In 1872, shortly after the opening of Grand Central Depot, New York Central owner

Cornelius Vanderbilt Cornelius Vanderbilt (May 27, 1794 – January 4, 1877), nicknamed "the Commodore", was an American business magnate who built his wealth in railroads and shipping. After working with his father's business, Vanderbilt worked his way into lead ...

proposed the Fourth Avenue Improvement Project. The tracks between 48th and 56th Streets were to be moved into a shallow open cut, while the segment between 56th and 97th Streets, which was in a rock cut, would be covered over. After the improvements were completed in 1874, the railroads, approaching Grand Central Depot from the north, descended into the

Park Avenue Tunnel A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are green spaces set aside for recreation inside towns and cities. N ...

at 96th Street and continued underground into the new depot. As part of the project, Fourth Avenue was transformed into a boulevard with a median strip that covered the railroad's ventilation grates. Eight footbridges crossed the tracks between 45th and 56th Streets, and there were also vehicular overpasses at 45th and 48th Streets. The boulevard north of Grand Central was renamed Park Avenue in 1888.

Grand Central and Terminal City

A fatal collision between two trains occurred under Park Avenue in 1902, in part because the smoke coming from the steam trains obscured the signals. The New York state legislature subsequently passed a law to ban all steam trains in Manhattan. By December 1902, as part of an agreement with the city, New York Central agreed to put the approach to Grand Central Station from 46th to 59th Streets in an open cut under Park Avenue, and to upgrade the tracks to accommodate electric trains. Overpasses would be built across the open cut at most of the cross-streets. The new electric-train terminal, Grand Central Terminal, was opened in 1913. After the electric trains were buried underground, the area around Park Avenue in the vicinity of Grand Central was developed into several blocks worth of prime real estate called Terminal City. Stretching from 42nd to 51st Streets between Madison and Lexington Avenues, it came to include the

Chrysler Building The Chrysler Building is an Art Deco skyscraper on the East Side of Manhattan in New York City, at the intersection of 42nd Street and Lexington Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. At , it is the tallest brick building in the world with a steel fra ...

and other prestigious office buildings; luxury apartment houses along Park Avenue; and an array of high-end hotels that included the Marguery, Park Lane, and Waldorf Astoria. In 1929, New York Central built its headquarters in a 34-story building (now called the

Helmsley Building The Helmsley Building is a 35-story skyscraper at 230 Park Avenue between East 45th and 46th Streets in New York City, just north of Grand Central Terminal, in Midtown Manhattan. It was built in 1929 as the New York Central Building and was d ...

), straddling Park Avenue north of the terminal. The Park Avenue Viaduct reroutes Park Avenue around Grand Central Terminal between 40th and 46th Streets, allowing Park Avenue traffic to traverse around the building and over 42nd Street without encumbering nearby streets. The western (now southbound) leg of the viaduct was completed in 1919, but congestion developed soon after the viaduct's opening, so an eastern leg for northbound traffic was added in 1928.

Later years

The developer Henry Mandel acquired the lots on the eastern side of Fourth Avenue between 32nd and 33rd Street in 1923 under the name "One Park Avenue Corporation". To ensure his corporate name was accurate, Mandel asked the New York City Board of Aldermen to move Park Avenue's southern terminus to 32nd Street. The change went into effect on December 1, 1924, and address numbers along Park Avenue were changed accordingly. The previous house numbered 1 Park Avenue was occupied by Martha Bacon, widow of diplomat Robert Bacon, who led the opposition to the renumbering. The Board of Aldermen summarily overturned the name change, but Mayor John Hylan vetoed the move in April 1925. This prompted Bacon to appeal the decision to the

New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division The Appellate Divisions of the Supreme Court of the State of New York are the intermediate appellate courts in New York State. There are four Appellate Divisions, one in each of the state's four Judicial Departments (e.g., the full title of the ...

, which overturned Hylan's veto in November 1927, on the basis that the extension of Park Avenue to 32nd Street had been made for the benefit of a developer. Mandel's development at 32nd Street was thus known as 461–477 Fourth Avenue, and the developers of that building sued to reverse the appellate ruling. The New York Court of Appeals, the state's highest court, reversed the appellate ruling in February 1928. Bacon contemplated bringing up the matter with the

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

, but she ultimately relented, changing her address to "Park Avenue at 34th" by 1930. In 1927, the medians on Park Avenue north of Grand Central were trimmed to add one lane of traffic in each direction. This project eliminated the pedestrian path on the medians, as they became much narrower. The median was extended by one block from 96th Street to 97th Street in 1941, creating the only remaining median on Park Avenue with a pedestrian path and seating. In the 1920s the portion of Park Avenue from Grand Central to 96th Street saw extensive apartment building construction. This long stretch of the avenue contains some of the most expensive real estate in the world. Real estate at

740 Park Avenue 740 Park Avenue is a luxury cooperative apartment building on the west side of Park Avenue between East 71st and 72nd Streets in the Lenox Hill neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It was described in ''Business Insider'' in 2011 as "a l ...

, for example, sells for several thousand dollars per square foot. In October 1937, a part of the Murray Hill Tunnel was reopened for road traffic. Efforts to promote a Grand Park Avenue Expressway to Grand Concourse in the Bronx were unsuccessful. A tradition was introduced in 1945 as a memorial to American soldiers killed in action, whereby Christmas trees are placed in the median and lit up on the first Sunday in December at Brick Presbyterian Church. On May 5, 1959, the New York City Council voted 20–1 to change the name of Fourth Avenue between 17th and 32nd Streets to Park Avenue South. The renaming, along with a ban on overhanging signs along the newly renamed Park Avenue South, was intended to improve the character of the avenue. Unlike with the earlier renamings of Park Avenue, the address numbers of Park Avenue South continued from those on the remaining section of Fourth Avenue. The

Pan Am Building The MetLife Building (also 200 Park Avenue and formerly the Pan Am Building) is a skyscraper at Park Avenue and 45th Street (Manhattan), 45th Street, north of Grand Central Terminal, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Desi ...

(now MetLife Building), in between the Park Avenue Viaduct's legs north of Grand Central Terminal, was opened in 1963. On March 12, 2014, two apartment buildings near 116th Street, 1644 and 1646 Park Avenue, were destroyed in a gas explosion. Eight people were killed and many others were injured.

Route

Manhattan

The road that becomes Park Avenue originates at the

Bowery The Bowery () is a street and neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City. The street runs from Chatham Square at Park Row, Worth Street, and Mott Street in the south to Cooper Square at 4th Street in the north.Jackson, Kenneth L. ...

. From

at 8th Street to

Union Square Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

at 14th Street, it is known as Fourth Avenue, a road carrying northbound traffic. At 14th Street, it turns slightly northeast to align with other avenues drawn up in the

Commissioners' Plan of 1811 The Commissioners' Plan of 1811 was the original design for the streets of Manhattan above Houston Street and below 155th Street, which put in place the rectangular grid plan of streets and lots that has defined Manhattan on its march uptown ...

. From 14th Street to 17th Street, it forms the eastern boundary of Union Square and is known as Union Square East; its southbound lanes merge with

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

south of 15th Street, and the thoroughfare divides into two distinct portions in the one-block section between 14th and 15th Streets. From 17th Street to 32nd Street, it is known as Park Avenue South. Address numbers on Park Avenue South are a continuation of those on Fourth Avenue; for example, 225 Park Avenue South was originally known as 225 Fourth Avenue. Above 32nd Street, for the remainder of its distance, it is known as Park Avenue, a boulevard. The address numbers for Park Avenue are reset above 32nd Street; for example, the address 1 Park Avenue would ordinarily have been numbered 461 Fourth Avenue. Between 33rd Street and 40th Street, the leftmost northbound lane descends into the Murray Hill Tunnel. North of 40th Street, the center lanes of Park Avenue rise onto an elevated structure that goes around Grand Central Terminal and the

MetLife Building The MetLife Building (also 200 Park Avenue and formerly the Pan Am Building) is a skyscraper at Park Avenue and 45th Street, north of Grand Central Terminal, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Designed in the Internation ...

(formerly the Pan Am Building), carrying each direction of traffic on opposite sides of the buildings. The bridge, one of two structures in Manhattan known as the Park Avenue Viaduct, returns to ground level at 46th Street after going through the

(also referred to as the New York Central Building or 230 Park Avenue). The

IRT Lexington Avenue Line The IRT Lexington Avenue Line (also known as the IRT East Side Line and the IRT Lexington–Fourth Avenue Line) is one of the lines of the A Division of the New York City Subway, stretching from Lower Manhattan north to 125th Street in Eas ...

runs under this portion of the street. Once the line reaches Grand Central–42nd Street, it shifts east to Lexington Avenue. Park Avenue NB past 51st Street Manhattan

Park Avenue NB past 51st Street Manhattan

As Park Avenue enters Midtown north of Grand Central Terminal, it is distinguished by many glass-box skyscrapers that serve as headquarters for corporations and investment banks such as

Société Générale Société Générale S.A. (), colloquially known in English as SocGen (), is a French-based multinational financial services company founded in 1864, registered in downtown Paris and headquartered nearby in La Défense. Société Générale ...

JPMorgan Chase JPMorgan Chase & Co. is an American multinational investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered in New York City and incorporated in Delaware. As of 2022, JPMorgan Chase is the largest bank in the United States, the ...

at 270 Park Avenue and 277 Park Avenue, UBS at 299 Park Avenue, Citigroup at 399 Park Avenue, Colgate-Palmolive, and MetLife at the MetLife Building. Prior to July 2010, the eleven intersections between 46th Street and 56th Street lacked the city's usual pedestrian crossing signals and overhead gantry-mounted traffic lights, because the railroad tunnel ceiling, which is also the street, was not thick enough for their poles' foundations. (These intersections did, however, have upright pole-mounted traffic lights prior to 2010, but there were no pedestrian signals. After 2010, standard gantry-mounted traffic lights and pedestrian "countdown" signals were installed.) From 47th to 97th Streets, the tracks for Metro-North Railroad's Park Avenue main line run in the Park Avenue Tunnel underneath Park Avenue. At 97th Street, the tracks come above ground, rising onto the other Manhattan structure known as the Park Avenue Viaduct. The first street to pass under the viaduct is 102nd Street; from there to the

Harlem River The Harlem River is an tidal strait in New York, United States, flowing between the Hudson River and the East River and separating the island of Manhattan from the Bronx on the New York mainland. The northern stretch, also called the Spuyt ...

the railroad viaduct runs down the middle of Park Avenue. Park Avenue in Manhattan ends north of 132nd Street, with connections to the

Harlem River Drive The Harlem River Drive is a 4.20-mile (6.76 km) long north–south limited-access parkway in the New York City borough of Manhattan. It runs along the west bank of the Harlem River from the Triborough Bridge in East Harlem to 10th Avenue ...

. The flowers and greenery in the median of Manhattan's Park Avenue are privately maintained, by the Fund for Park Avenue. The begonia was specifically chosen by the Fund's gardeners because there is no automatic watering system and the floral variety is resilient under hot sun rays.

The Bronx

The avenue is continued on the other side of the river in

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

. In the Bronx, Park Avenue begins at East 135th Street in the

Mott Haven Mott Haven is an American primarily residential neighborhood in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of the Bronx. Its boundaries, starting from the north and moving clockwise, are East 149th Street to the north, the Bruckner ...

neighborhood. The entire avenue is divided by Metro-North's own right of way in the borough. Between East 135th Street to East 173rd Street, Park Avenue is one way only in either direction in most sections. North of East 173rd Street it is a two way avenue continuing to Fordham Plaza where it ends.

Businesses

The following institutions are either headquartered or have significant business presences on Park Avenue: *

Arconic Arconic Corporation is an American industrial company specializing in lightweight metals engineering and manufacturing. Arconic's products are used worldwide in aerospace, automotive, commercial transportation, packaging, building and constructio ...

American Airlines American Airlines is a major airlines of the United States, major US-based airline headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the world when measured ...

at 2 Park Ave. * Americas Society * Asia Society * Bankers Trust *

The Blackstone Group Blackstone Inc. is an American alternative investment management company based in New York City. Blackstone's private equity business has been one of the largest investors in leveraged buyouts in the last three decades, while its real estate b ...

at 345 Park Ave. * Bristol Myers Squibb *

British Airways British Airways (BA) is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London, England, near its main hub at Heathrow Airport. The airline is the second largest UK-based carrier, based on fleet size and passengers ...

at 2 Park Ave. *

Cantor Fitzgerald Cantor Fitzgerald, L.P. is an American financial services firm that was founded in 1945. It specializes in institutional equity, fixed income sales and trading, and serving the middle market with investment banking services, prime brokerage, an ...

at 499 Park Ave. * Citigroup at 399 Park Ave. * Colgate-Palmolive at 300 Park Ave. * Council on Foreign Relations * Credit Suisse at 324 Park Ave. * C. V. Starr at 90 Park Ave. *

Deutsche Bank Deutsche Bank AG (), sometimes referred to simply as Deutsche, is a German multinational investment bank and financial services company headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany, and dual-listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the New York Sto ...

Digitas Publicis Groupe is a French multinational advertising and public relations company. One of the oldest and largest marketing and communications companies in the world by revenue, it is headquartered in Paris. After 1945, the little-known Paris ...

Environmental Defense Fund Environmental Defense Fund or EDF (formerly known as Environmental Defense) is a United States-based nonprofit environmental advocacy group. The group is known for its work on issues including global warming, ecosystem restoration, oceans, and hu ...

* EXL Service * FactSet at 90 Park Ave. * Ferrari *

Heineken International Heineken N.V. () is a Dutch multinational brewing company, founded in 1864 by Gerard Adriaan Heineken in Amsterdam. , Heineken owns over 165 breweries in more than 70 countries. It produces 348 international, regional, local and speciality be ...

* Hilb, Rogal & Hobbs Co. *

Hachette Book Group USA Hachette Book Group (HBG) is a publishing company owned by Hachette Livre, the largest publishing company in France, and the third largest trade and educational publisher in the world. Hachette Livre is a wholly owned subsidiary of Lagardère Gro ...

at 237 Park Ave. *

Houlihan Lokey Houlihan Lokey, Inc., is an American multinational independent investment bank and financial services company. Houlihan Lokey was founded in 1972 and is headquartered at Constellation Place in Century City, Los Angeles, California. The firm adv ...

at 245 Park Ave. * Hunter College * JPMorgan Chase & Co. at 270 Park Ave. *

KPMG KPMG International Limited (or simply KPMG) is a multinational professional services network, and one of the Big Four accounting organizations. Headquartered in Amstelveen, Netherlands, although incorporated in London, England, KPMG is a net ...

Leucadia National Jefferies Financial Group Inc. is an American financial services company based in New York City and listed on the Fortune 1000. Investments The company's major holdings are as follows: Financial Services * Jefferies Group (100%) - investment ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

* Maserati *

Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...

* MetLife at 200 Park Ave. *

M&T Bank M&T Bank Corporation (Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company) is an American bank holding company headquartered in Buffalo, New York. It operates 1680 branches in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts ...

* Mutual of America at 320 Park Ave. *The

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

* Needham & Company * New York Life *

Oneworld Oneworld (stylised as oneworld; CRS: *O) is an airline alliance founded on 1 February 1999. The alliance's stated objective is to be the first choice airline alliance for the world's frequent international travellers. Its central alliance offic ...

at 2 Park Ave. *

Piper Jaffray Piper Sandler Companies is an American independent investment bank and financial services company, focused on mergers and acquisitions, financial restructuring, public offerings, public finance, institutional brokerage, investment management a ...

at 345 Park Ave. *

Reed Elsevier RELX plc (pronounced "Rel-ex") is a British multinational information and analytics company headquartered in London, England. Its businesses provide scientific, technical and medical information and analytics; legal information and analytics; ...

Sanofi-Aventis Sanofi S.A. is a French multinational pharmaceutical and healthcare company headquartered in Paris, France. Originally, the corporation was established in 1973 and merged with Synthélabo in 1999 to form Sanofi-Synthélabo. In 2004, Sanofi-Syn ...

* Seligman *

Tata Consultancy Services Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is an Indian multinational information technology (IT) services and consulting company with its headquarters in Mumbai. It is a part of the Tata Group and operates in 150 locations across 46 countries. In July ...

* Twitch Interactive, Inc. * Vivendi SA * UBS at 299 Park Ave. *

The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel The Waldorf Astoria New York is a luxury hotel and condominium residence in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. The structure, at 301 Park Avenue between 49th and 50th Streets, is a 47-story Art Deco landmark designed by architects Schultze ...

at 301 Park Ave. *

Warner Bros. Discovery Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (WBD) is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at 230 Park Avenue South in New York City. It was formed after the spin-off of WarnerMedia by AT&T, and its merger with Di ...

at 230 Park Ave.

Notable structures

In north-south order: * Daryl Roth Theatre * 44 Union Square * Everett Building, 200 Park Avenue South * W New York Union Square, 201 Park Avenue South * 225 Park Avenue South * Church Missions House, 281 Park Avenue South * United Charities Building, 287 Park Avenue South * 300 Park Avenue South * Metropolitan Life North Building, 324 Park Avenue South * New York Life Building, 364–378 Park Avenue South * 2 Park Avenue –designed by

Ely Jacques Kahn Ely Jacques Kahn (June 1, 1884September 5, 1972) was an American commercial architect who designed numerous skyscrapers in New York City in the twentieth century. In addition to buildings intended for commercial use, Kahn's designs ranged throug ...

* 3 Park Avenue * 4 Park Avenue, formerly the Vanderbilt Hotel * Robb House, 41 Park Avenue *

Scandinavia House – The Nordic Center in America Scandinavia House – The Nordic Center in America is the American-Scandinavian Foundation's cultural center at 58 Park Avenue (between East 37th Street and East 38th Street), in Murray Hill, Manhattan, New York City. It is dedicated to preser ...

, 58 Park Avenue * Our Saviour Roman Catholic Church, 59 Park Avenue * Union League Club *

101 Park Avenue 101 Park Avenue is a tall skyscraper at 41st Street and Park Avenue in the Murray Hill neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City, New York. It was completed in 1979 to 1982 and has 49 floors. Eli Attia Architects designed the tower. The buildi ...

Pershing Square Building The Pershing Square Building, also known as 125 Park Avenue or 100 East 42nd Street, is a 25-story office building in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is located on the eastern side of Park Avenue between 41st and 42nd streets, across fro ...

, 125 Park Avenue * Grand Central Terminal (actually in Park Avenue, between the Park Avenue Viaduct's two roadways) *

, 200 Park Avenue *

, 230 Park Avenue * 245 Park Avenue * 270 Park Avenue * 277 Park Avenue * 299 Park Avenue * Waldorf Astoria New York, 301 Park Avenue * St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church * 345 Park Avenue *

Racquet and Tennis Club The Racquet and Tennis Club, familiarly known as the R&T, is a private social and athletic club at 370 Park Avenue, between East 52nd and 53rd Streets in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. History The Racquet Court Club opened in 1876 at 55 We ...

, 370 Park Avenue * Park Avenue Plaza *

Seagram Building The Seagram Building is a skyscraper at 375 Park Avenue, between 52nd and 53rd Streets, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe with minor assistance from Philip Johnson, Ely Jacques Kahn, ...

, 375 Park Avenue –designed by

Mies van der Rohe Ludwig Mies van der Rohe ( ; ; born Maria Ludwig Michael Mies; March 27, 1886August 17, 1969) was a German-American architect. He was commonly referred to as Mies, his surname. Along with Alvar Aalto, Le Corbusier, Walter Gropius and Frank Lloyd ...

Lever House Lever House is a office building at 390 Park Avenue in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. The building was designed in the International Style by Gordon Bunshaft and Natalie de Blois of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) as ...

, 390 Park Avenue –designed by

Gordon Bunshaft Gordon Bunshaft, (May 9, 1909 – August 6, 1990), was an American architect, a leading proponent of modern design in the mid-twentieth century. A partner in Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), Bunshaft joined the firm in 1937 and remained with ...

* 399 Park Avenue *

425 Park Avenue 425 Park Avenue is an office building in New York City redeveloped by L&L Holding and GreenOak Real Estate, with a design by architectural firm Foster + Partners. Work on the new structure began in 2016, and the building was completed in October ...

432 Park Avenue 432 Park Avenue is a residential skyscraper at 57th Street and Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, overlooking Central Park. The tower was developed by CIM Group and Harry B. Macklowe and designed by Rafael Viñoly. A part o ...

Ritz Tower The Ritz Tower is a luxury residential building at 465 Park Avenue on the corner of East 57th Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. It was built from 1925 to 1926 as an apartment hotel and was designed by Emery Roth an ...

, 465 Park Avenue * Halstead Property, 499 Park Avenue * 500 Park Avenue * Trump Park Avenue, 502 Park Avenue *

Central Presbyterian Church Central Presbyterian Church may refer to: ;in Canada: * Central Presbyterian Church (Hamilton) ;in the United States: * Central Presbyterian Church (Little Rock, Arkansas), listed on the NRHP in Arkansas * Central Presbyterian Church (Denver, ...

, 593 Park Avenue *

620 Park Avenue 620 Park Avenue is a luxury apartment building on the Upper East Side of Manhattan on Park Avenue between East 65th and 66th Streets. History 620 Park Avenue was designed by J.E.R. Carpenter, who also designed 625 Park Avenue across the avenue; ...

Seventh Regiment Armory The Seventh Regiment Armory, also known as Park Avenue Armory, is a historic National Guard armory building located at 643 Park Avenue in the Upper East Side neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. The building is a brick and stone structure b ...

, 643 Park Avenue *

655 Park Avenue 655 Park Avenue is a Georgian-style co-op residential building on Manhattan's Upper East Side, located on Park Avenue between 67th Street and 68th Street, adjacent to the Park Avenue Armory. It was developed in 1924 by Dwight P. Robinson & Company ...

* Harold Pratt House, 58 East 68th Street (corner of Park Avenue) *

Park Avenue Houses The Park Avenue Houses in New York City were built in 1909. ''See also:'' They were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. The Park Avenue Houses are listed together on the National Register of Historic Places and individua ...

** Percy R. Pyne House, 680 Park Avenue (now the Americas Society) ** Oliver D. Filley House, 684 Park Avenue (now the Queen Sofía Spanish Institute) **

William Sloane House The William Sloane House (also known as the William and Frances Crocker Sloane House) is a mansion located on 686 Park Avenue between 68th and 69th Streets in the Upper East Side of New York City. It was constructed for the industrialist William ...

, 686 Park Avenue (now the Italian Cultural Institute of New York) ** Henry P. Davison House, 690 Park Avenue (now the Italian Consulate General) * Asia Society, 725 Park Avenue *

* 778 Park Avenue *

970 Park Avenue 970 Park Avenue is a luxury residential housing cooperative in Manhattan, New York City. 970 was designed by the New York architectural firm of Schwartz & Gross and built by the developers Bing & Bing. It is located on Park Avenue Park Av ...

Church of St. Ignatius Loyola The Church of St. Ignatius of Loyola is a Catholic parish church located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York City, administered by the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). The parish is under the authority of the Archdiocese of New York, and wa ...

, 980 Park Avenue *

1000 Park Avenue 1000 Park Avenue is an apartment building on the Upper East Side of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is located at the northwest corner of the intersection of Park Avenue and East 84th Street. It was built in 1915–16 by the developers ...

Park Avenue Christian Church The Park Avenue Christian Church is located at 1010 Park Avenue at 85th Street, on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. The building houses the Park Avenue Christian Church (The Park) congregation of the Disciples of Christ and United Church of Christ ...

, 1010 Park Avenue * Brick Presbyterian Church, 1140 Park Avenue

Transportation

Rail transit

Metro-North Railroad's Grand Central Terminal, serving the

Harlem Line The Metro-North Railroad Harlem Line, originally chartered as the New York and Harlem Railroad, is an commuter rail line running north from New York City to Wassaic, in eastern Dutchess County. The lower from Grand Central Terminal to Sou ...

, Hudson Line, and

New Haven Line The Metro-North Railroad New Haven Line is a commuter rail line running from New Haven, Connecticut to New York City. It joins the Harlem Line at Mount Vernon, New York and continues south to Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan. The New Haven ...

, is at 42nd Street and Park Avenue. The MNR's Park Avenue main line runs along Park Avenue in both boroughs between Grand Central and Fordham station, with stations in between at 125th Street, 162nd Street, and Tremont Avenue. The New York City Subway's adjacent

Grand Central–42nd Street station The Grand Central–42nd Street station (also signed as 42nd Street–Grand Central) is a major station complex of the New York City Subway. Located in Midtown Manhattan at 42nd Street between Madison and Lexington Avenues, it serves trains on ...

serves the . The

additionally runs under Park Avenue and its extensions from 41st to 8th Streets. The 33rd Street, 28th Street, 23rd Street, and Astor Place stations are served by the , while the 14th Street-Union Square station is served by the .

Bus service

The southbound M98 Limited runs on Park Avenue between

and 120th Street, stopping at the Harlem-125th Street station. The northbound M1, M2, and M3 serve Park Avenue between 8th Street and 25th Street. The southbound SIM1, SIM3, SIM4, SIM33, X27 and X28 express bus routes serve Park Avenue during off-peak hours. No buses run along Park Avenue in the Bronx, although Fordham Plaza Bus Terminal is located at the northern end of the road.

In popular culture

* In the 2020 miniseries

The Undoing ''The Undoing'' is a 2020 American Mystery fiction, mystery psychological thriller television miniseries based on the 2014 novel ''You Should Have Known'' by Jean Hanff Korelitz. It was written and produced by David E. Kelley and directed by S ...

* In the 2012 film '' The Avengers'', the climax takes place on the Park Avenue Viaduct. * In the TV series '' The Odd Couple'', Felix Unger and Oscar Madison live at 1049 Park Avenue. * In the TV series ''

Diff'rent Strokes ''Diff'rent Strokes'' is an American television sitcom, which aired on NBC from November 3, 1978, to May 4, 1985, and on ABC from September 27, 1985, to March 7, 1986. The series stars Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges as Arnold and Willis Jackso ...

'', Phillip Drummond, with his daughter, Kimberly and adopted sons, Willis and Arnold Jackson live at 697 Park Avenue. * In ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer Simpson, Homer, Marge ...

'' episode " E-I-E-I-D'oh", Homer is ridiculed by two farmers outside Sneed's Feed & Seed (Formerly Chuck's) for having a "Park Avenue manicure". Homer responds by saying "I'm sorry, I believe in good grooming". * The

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

documentary ''Park Avenue: Money, Power and the American Dream'' sheds light on the gap between the impoverished people living on Park Avenue in the South Bronx and the extremely wealthy living at

in Manhattan. * In the multi-platinum 1989 hit single "Youth Gone Wild" by American band

Skid Row A skid row or skid road is an impoverished area, typically urban, in English-speaking North America whose inhabitants are mostly poor people " on the skids". This specifically refers to poor or homeless, considered disreputable, downtrodden or fo ...

, Park Avenue is mentioned in the lyrics: "I said 'Hey man, there's something that you oughta know. / I tell ya Park Avenue leads to Skid Row.'" * The stage and film musical ''

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'' may refer to: * ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'' (book), a 1952 book written by Shepherd Mead and the inspiration for the musical of the same name. * ''How to Succeed in Bu ...

'' takes place in the fictional "Park Avenue office building of World Wide Wicket Company, Inc." * General Motors borrowed the name of the street for the

Buick Park Avenue The Buick Park Avenue is a full-size luxury car built by Buick. The nameplate was first used in 1975 for an appearance option package on the Electra 225 Limited. It became an Electra trim level in 1978 and its own model starting in the 1991 mode ...

, a large luxury sedan that was produced first as the premium trim line for the Buick Electra from 1977 to 1990, and as a standalone model from 1991 to 2005. * In the intro to the late 1960s - early 1970s TV show '' Green Acres'', Eva Gabor's character sings "Darling I love you, but give me Park Avenue!", where she lived before moving to rural

Hooterville Hooterville is a fictional agricultural community that is the setting for the American situation comedies ''Petticoat Junction'' (1963–70) and ''Green Acres'' (1965–1971), two rural-oriented television series created or produced by Paul Henning ...

with her husband, the lawyer-turned-farmer. * The song " Puttin' On the Ritz", from the film '' Blue Skies'' (1946), refers to affluent people strutting "up and down Park Avenue". * In the 2017 video game ''

Sonic Forces is a platform game developed by Sonic Team and published by Sega. It was produced in commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the '' Sonic the Hedgehog'' franchise. The story sees Sonic the Hedgehog joining a resistance force to stop Docto ...

'', one of the main stage takes place on Park Avenue, the stage re-imagined as a war zone. * In the second season of '' Riverdale'', one of the main characters from the show,

Veronica Lodge Veronica Cecilia Lodge is one of the main characters in the Archie Comics franchise, and is the keyboardist and one of the three vocalists of rock band The Archies. She is from New York but currently resides in the town of Riverdale, with her ...

is said to have lived on Park Avenue when she was back in New York City. * In an episode in the second season of '' Seinfeld'', " The Chinese Restaurant", one character that cuts in front of the main characters Jerry, Elaine, and George at a restaurant in Manhattan is said to live there, implying that he is incredibly wealthy and deserving of the special treatment.

Gallery

File:690park.jpg, Henry P. Davison House, Percy Rivington Pyne House, Oliver D. Filley House and

is one of the original house ensembles left on Park Avenue File:A Rolls Royce 1981 at 230 Park Avenue - in front The Helmsley Building.jpg, Park Avenue and 47th Street, adjacent to the

File:10 Park Avenue.jpg, 10 Park Avenue, at the corner of East 34th Street File:57 Park Avenue.jpg, The Adelaide L. Townsend Douglas House, currently the Guatemalan U.N. Mission at 57 Park Avenue, between East 37th and 38th Streets

References

Explanatory notes Citations Further reading *

External links

New York Songlines: Fourth Avenue with The Bowery and Park Avenue
a virtual walking tour
Classic Apartments Buildings and Architecture of Park Avenue Images & History
{{Authority control Streets in Manhattan Streets in the Bronx East Harlem Gramercy Park Kips Bay, Manhattan Murray Hill, Manhattan Midtown Manhattan Upper East Side Union Square, Manhattan