It’s a bit of a hike, but the new Wegman’s supermarket at Astor Place is worth a visit because it is so huge and so suburban. Prices are competitive across the board, and the variety of items beats any other store in the area. The sad and tired Gristedes on University Place should be worried.
In case you didn’t notice, Aristion Flowers at 78 5th Ave. now includes a lovely cafe with fancy expensive coffee just like everywhere else in this neighborhood.
Next up in the new retail strip on the west side of University Place between 12th and 13th is Glaze, which will offer vaguely Asian fusion bowls, like this:
Now taking reservations, the latest location of Serafina, at University and 12th.
Free flu shots from Mount Sinai will be offered at Paragon Sports on September 28.
Exemplifying a “15-minute neighborhood,” Union Square offers a wealth of local amenities including dining, shopping, culture, entertainment, and healthcare, all within walking distance or a short bike-ride. A true mixed-use neighborhood, Union Square’s residents, offices, retail, and institutions help sustain a vibrant public realm, with recent visitor traffic reaching 98% of 2019 levels. Office leasing remains active, with over 450K sf of office space leased since January 2022 across tech, finance, publishing, and other sectors.
Union Square’s 126 new businesses are comprised of 54% eateries, 28% retail, and 18% neighborhood services such as health and wellness. USP and creative partners work year-round to bring unique cultural, food, and art experiences to the square. Events like the eight-week Summer in the Square series, Urbanspace’s Holiday Market, and seasonal pop-ups draw foot traffic and support local business and arts communities.
Union Square-14th Street is home to high-profile institutions and headquarters across a range of sectors including technology, media, finance, and design. This rich mix of commercial tenants continues to be a major draw. Additionally, Union Square is center of gravity for live entertainment, arts, and culture. According to the data platform Replica, spending on entertainment doubled between 2019 and 2023 and visits in the district rose by 10% between 2022 and 2023, reaching a high of 98% compared to August 2019, a 10% higher average than Midtown Manhattan.
“Industry leaders like Microsoft, Sequoia Capital, and Wellington Management are choosing Union Square for their newest offices. Coupled with strong leasing activity at the ground floor, these new tenancies demonstrate the area’s appeal across sectors,” says Julie Stein, Executive Director, Union Square Partnership. “National retailers including Parachute, Crate & Barrel and Target are joining local favorites ABC Carpet, Fishs Eddy and Design Within Reach to solidify Union Square as a retail destination for interior design and home essentials.”
Union Square is a job center with 144K+ workers across sectors. Top employers include Con Edison, Mount Sinai Downtown, New York University, and The New School. In the coming year, the addition of national brands, and new and renovated hotels in the area will bring additional retail and hospitality job opportunities. This summer, Microsoft moved into its new 150K sf office space at 122 Fifth Avenue. The building’s ground floor is nearly fully leased with prominent brands Allbirds, Parachute, and Pandora, and Levain Bakery planning to open in early 2024.
Zero Irving (124 East 14th Street) has made headlines for leasing nearly 100% of its office space to major tech and finance firms including GameChanger (25K sf) and Sequoia Capital (13K sf). Additionally, the 10K sf Urbanspace food hall introduced 13 vendors to the 14th Street food scene. Over 65K sf of retail space has been leased since January 2022 to national brands, such as Petco’s 30k sf flagship location on Union Square East, and NYC favorites such as Hex & Co board game café, Sweet Chick, and Kazunori.
“Because we’re located in the heart of the NYC tech community, Civic Hall @ Union Square’s six floors of state-of-the-art training and conference center space at the new Zero Irving building will drive sustainable pathways to high-tech jobs. Civic Hall will help supply the tech workforce and spur innovation for industry leaders, the community, the City of New York, and beyond.” Seema Shah, Executive Director, Civic Hall
Looking ahead into the Fall, we are excited to welcome Upright Citizens Brigade, Crate & Barrel, Saatva, Mission Ceviche, and many more businesses to the neighborhood.
FÖRENA, a 50-unit luxury condominium development at 540 Sixth Avenue featuring 6K SF of new retail space for lease, finished construction in July 2023.
NYU is relocating the Wagner Graduate School of Public Service to 105 East 17th Street in Fall 2024, bringing over 860 students and over 200 faculty to Union Square.
Target will open a 33K SF store at 10 Union Square East, establishing over 75 new jobs and creating a retail anchor and local amenity for 14th Street.
Expanded pedestrian space and more cycling lanes are central to a planned redesign of Manhattan’s Broadway between E. 17th and E. 21st streets, city officials announced on Monday.
The changes are subject to public outreach — but Department of Transportation officials said they could mimic a change to other areas of Broadway between Union Square and E. 50th Street, where crews in recent years have added more pedestrian plazas, outdoor dining space and wider crosswalks designed to keep pedestrians safe from crashes.
DOT officials also said they’re considering adding a two-way bike lane between E. 17th and E. 21st streets, which already has a one-way southbound lane for cyclists.
The city earlier this year completed an overhaul of Broadway between E. 25th and E. 32nd streets, adding more space for pedestrians, another two-way bike lane and other infrastructure designed to make motorists drive slower.
“This next phase of Broadway Vision will provide the same kind of vibrant public spaces connecting Union Square and Flatiron, just like our administration is doing with incredible success across the entire city,” Mayor Eric Adams said in a statement.
The latest planned improvements are just north of Union Square — and just south of where a taxi driver jumped a sidewalk last year, sending several pedestrians to the hospital.
Beacon’s Closet has a competitor. 2nd St., a Japanese company, is now selling high-end vintage clothing at 110 University Place.
If you like Thai food, Pranakhon on University Place is VERY good.
