When Natalie Weiss talks about her childhood on Pomander Walk, she admits “there’s really nothing to compare it to.” She isn’t kidding: Weiss is one of the lucky few New Yorkers to have lived on one of this bustling city’s “secret streets” — the mews, alleys and lanes that jut off the regular street grid.
Such tucked-away blocks were typically designed to hold carriage houses and horse stables; those buildings have since been transformed into prime residential real estate that feels charmingly exclusive. Most don’t require impressing a snobby co-op board to move in. But there are only so many available — with a few even gated off from the public — which makes these elusive streets some of the most coveted real estate in Gotham.
Pomander Walk, which is set between 94th and 95th streets just east of West End Avenue, is one such enclave. “I was raised in the ’70s and ’80s in New York, when you couldn’t just go outside and play,” Weiss says.
“This was like a gated community that made it safe to be on the street.” Developer Thomas Healy built this mini Upper West Side neighborhood, consisting of 27 Tudor homes, in 1922. He was inspired by the play “Pomander Walk,” a romantic comedy based in London.
“When I was growing up, people had been there for decades,” Weiss says. “There was not a lot of transience.” Since the 2000s, she says, the Walk has seen the arrival of younger buyers and families. “But still, it’s close-knit.”
Read full article here: http://nypost.com/2016/03/10/what-its-like-to-live-on-one-of-nycs-secret-streets/
Related article: http://variety.com/2016/dirt/real-estalker/sean-diddy-combs-alpine-mansion-price-cut-1201729752/
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