From Canal to Houston streets, the Lower East Side (formerly known as Loisaida) is a neighborhood in New York City’s borough of Manhattan that lies roughly between the Bowery and the East River, from Canal to Houston streets. The Lower East Side is commonly shortened as LES. This historically immigrant and working-class neighborhood began experiencing fast gentrification in the mid-2000s, prompting the National Trust for Historic Preservation to include it on their list of America’s Most Endangered Places.
The Lower East Side (LES) in New York City is a diverse neighborhood with a rich historical legacy. It was a popular destination for European immigrants in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, as evidenced by the large number of ancient tenement structures in the area. The Lower East Side (LES) is a thriving neighborhood with tons of terrific live music, fashionable bars, fantastic nightlife, art galleries, and a strong Jewish presence in the area. When it comes to apartments, the neighborhood is primarily comprised of low- and mid-rise walk-ups, with a large number of ancient buildings. In addition to being in close proximity to areas such as Chinatown, Little Italy, and Soho, it is a convenient location for visiting other parts of the city, with Brooklyn only a few subway stops away.
The Lower East Side is a diverse neighborhood where dirty lanes and tenement-style structures coexist with affluent flats and fashionable businesses. The fashionable bars, music venues, and restaurants in the region attract hip, young clientele throughout the evening hours. The Lower East Side Tenement Museum, located on Orchard Street, and old-world fabric merchants, as well as traditional delis such as Katz’s and Russ & Daughters, preserve the neighborhood’s Jewish legacy.
To the west, the Bowery, to the north, East Houston Street, to the east, the FDR Drive and the East River, and to the south, Canal Street form an approximately rectangular boundary with the Lower East Side. Off of the Bowery, the western boundary below Grand Street takes an easterly direction until it reaches approximately Essex Street. South and west of the area is Chinatown, which continues north to roughly Grand Street. To the west is Nolita, and to the north is the East Village, which is surrounded by the East Village and Nolita. For a long time, the term “Lower East Side” referred to a section of Manhattan that stretched along the East River from about the Manhattan Bridge to Canal Street and up to 14th Street, and was roughly bordered on the west by Broadway.
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