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125th Street BID
360 West 125th Street, #11
New York, New York 10027
212-662-8999 |
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 Harlem Highlights of 2011
Happy New Year! As we begin 2012, the 125th Street BID looks back on some of the exciting events that happened in Harlem in 2011. The year started out on a promising note as Harlem won the coveted neighborhood of the year award on Curbed.
2011 in Harlem was as exciting as the Curbed article predicted. Harlem continued to develop and grow, and the major development boom in Harlem continued to garner media attention all year. Tons of stores, restaurants, and retail establishments opened in 2011, including Aloft Hotel, IHOP, Harlem Yoga, Chillberry, Planet Fitness, National Dance Institute, and Lenox Coffee.
We also saw some major cultural events and initiatives in the area. In the spring, President Obama visited 125th Street, Vy Higginsen's "Mama I Want to Sing" opened, and a Jazz Festival took place in Harlem.
 In June, at the 125th Street BID's 18th annual meeting, the winners of the "BID On Culture" banner competition were announced. The banners were hung on 125th Street soon after, and continue to decorate the street. Almost all summer long, Harlem Week celebrated Harlem's culture and life with events, music, and performances. The 28th National Night Out against crime drew a huge crowd and helped raise awareness and deter crime.
 As winter began, 2011 ended with a Joyous Display of Sounds and Lights as 2011's Harlem Holiday Lights illuminated the street for the second year in a row. 125th Street enjoyed a spectacular event with live music, performances, and appearances by elected officials and celebrities. The new Map & Guide of the 125th Street Business Improvement District was also distributed at the Lighting Event. For the rest of the year, in addition to the beautiful lights above the street, Harlem enjoyed tons of holiday activities as well as sales and promotions in the area.
2011 was an incredible, historic year in Harlem, and we look forward to 2012 being just as memorable!
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| This Week in Harlem
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District Management Association
The 125th Street BID has been preparing for its second full Board Meeting of FY 2011-2012, which will be held on January 25th, 2012.
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Harlem Holiday Lights 2011:
Merchants' Spotlight
This month, the 125th Street BID would like to acknowledge the businesses who decorated their windows for the holidays. Your decorations truly enliven the 125th Street business corridor and complement the Harlem Holiday Lights wonderfully. President's Pick #1: New York Hotel Trades Council The 125th Street BID is sending a special Thank You to The New York Hotel Trades Council and Hotel Association of New York City, Inc. Health Benefits Fund, Health Center, Inc for putting the effort forward to create an extraordinary holiday window display. We are always working to encourage our members to get involved. We are happy to announce that this holiday season; we are seeing more participation than in previous years. When our businesses put forth a little effort, it complements the work that we do and helps to create a clean, safe and in this case, a festive environment for people to shop, visit and work in. If you have not already had the opportunity to view this display, it will be up until Friday, Jan 6th, 2012.   Holiday Window Display Location: 125th Street at Morningside Avenue About NY Hotel Trades Council: The New York Hotel Trades Council and Hotel Association of New York City, Inc. Health Benefits Fund, Health Center, Inc. (HCI) has a proud history of over 60 years of continuous service. The Harlem Health Center is one of 5 Health Centers in New York City that exclusively serve unionized hotel and motel workers, their dependents and retirees pursuant to collective bargaining agreements between hotel employers in New York City and the Hotel Trades Council. As an organization, HCI believes that continued success will come from being proactive about health. It is a transformation from the past - focused on managing illness and costs - to something vastly different. HCI envisions health care designed around members who have common, predictable health care needs, and creating a system that understands and manages the health risks and behaviors of our population. President's Pick #2: Nicole Boutique
Another BID member who deserves a special thanks is Nicole Boutique, located at 324 West 125th Street. Nicole Boutique has been open for approximately two years and the owners are already diving in and showing their appreciation for the community. Nicole Boutique has created a lovely holiday window display that incorporates fashion, style, light and color. The store's holiday decorations complement the streamers and pole decorations that are provided throughout the 125th Street BID. With participation from our businesses we can create a holiday ambiance that is comparable to other great retail corridors in the city. Thank you for your participation. We look forward to working with you throughout the year, Nicole Boutique. We look forward to increased participation from our members.   Holiday Window Display Location: 324 West 125th Street
About Nicole Boutique: Nicole Boutique specializes in discounted name brand outerwear such as Nautica, Buffalo, Laundry, Esprit, Hillary Radley and more. All prices for coats range from $39.99-59.99. Nicole Boutique also carries suits; jackets; blouses; trousers and sweaters, all at reasonable prices. The staff at Nicole is always friendly, ready, willing and able to assist with any questions you may have while shopping. Centrally located near the 125th Street A, B, C, D Subway Station, Nicole Boutique is easily accessible. The 125th Street BID would also like to thank the following 125th Street businesses for decorating this year: Little Caesars Pizza; Chase Bank; Gem Pawnbrokers; Harlem Jewelers Mall; Shoe Fetish; Joanne; All Eyes on Us; Lazarus; Harlem NYC; LaScala; Jimmy Jazz; Portabella; Children's Place; Pay Half; Lane Bryant; Ashley Stewart, Dr. Jay's; Orva Shoes; Karma; CVS; Avenue; Lady Love; Carol's Daughter; Boost Mobile; Delancey Leather |
Springboard
The 125th Street BID recently installed a pedestrian counter on the corner of 125th Street and Frederick Douglass Boulevard using a technology called Springboard. This enables us to see which days of the week, and even which hours of the day, are the busiest, so that you can structure certain aspects of your business around the data from the pedestrian counts. For more information on Springboard, visit http://www.spring-board.info/.
Pedestrian counts for week of January 2nd - January 8th: Corner of 125th Street & Frederick Douglass Boulevard
Total: The total customer count for the Week beginning 02-JAN-2012 is 146,445.
Daily: Saturday had the highest customer count at 31,271 for the Week beginning 02-JAN-2012, which was 4,052 more than any other day during that Week. The day with the greatest increase in its customer count from the previous Week was Sunday (1,224).
Weekly: The total customer count for the Week beginning 02-JAN-2012 changed by -34,631 from the previous Week. Total count for portfolio as a whole changed -19.13%.
Hourly: The highest hourly customer count for the Week beginning 02-JAN-2012 were achieved on Saturday at 12pm.
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Sanitation and Street Maintenance
December Sanitation Focus: Trash receptacle cleaning; scrubbing/disinfecting of corners; and removal of graffiti on light poles and USPS mail boxes
Illegal Dumping
In December, the BID Sanitation team was hard at work gathering up illegally dumped garbage in the district. During the month of December, we encountered numerous commercial cardboard boxes and plastic trash bags containing commercial garbage. Beginning this month, the 125th Street BID will be visiting businesses who continue to dump in the area to request cooperation.
311 Reports
The BID submits service requests via 311, which has been very responsive. In the month of December, the BID reported a defective streetlight, a streetlight base with exposed wires, a damaged payphone booth, and an exposed wire on a lamp pole to 311. All conditions have been repaired.
Posting Violations
On an ongoing basis, the BID Sanitation Team removes handbills, posters, notices, signs, and advertisements on any curb, sidewalk, gutter, tree, lamppost, telephone pole, public garbage bin, or any other public item in the district. During the month of December, the BID Sanitation Team removed approximately eighty flyers that were illegally posted in the district.
Protests/Demonstrations
There were three protests/demonstrations in the district during the month of December. Protesters demonstrated once against joblessness in the U.S. and twice against killings organized by Mission Society.
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| Public Safety
The 125th Street BID Public Safety Ambassadors work hard to keep 125th Street safe. Throughout the month of December, the BID Public Safety Ambassadors responded to an unresponsive male outside a store, two individuals appearing emotionally disturbed in public, and a car accident. In each case, the BID Public Safety notified the appropriate authorities, who arrived on scene to handle the situation.
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Retail Updates
Store Openings: - Orva Shoes - 148 West 125th Street
Store Closings:
- Christmas Store - 3 West 125th Street
- King Party - 66 West 125th Street
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Harlem in the News
Reminder: The Manhattan Borough President's Office is accepting new applications for Community Board membership until this Friday, January 13. The application can be downloaded here. Apply if you are interested in making a difference in your community! January 6th, 2012 - Sidewalk Shed up at the Victoria January 2nd, 2012 - A Wedding Industry Grows, Slowly, in Harlem December 27th, 2011 - The Bearden Project, Studio Museum, Harlem December 27th, 2011 - Google Backs IncubateNYC to Create Potential Harlem Tech Hub December 23rd, 2011 - City Councilwoman Melissa Mark-Viverito makes acting debut with East Harlem group December 16th, 2011 - Save Money and Stay Warm This Winter December 9th, 2011 - Harlem Draws a Restaurant Crowd December 5th, 2011 - One On 1 Profile: Vy Higginsen Goes From Trailblazing To Helping The Youth December 4th, 2011 - Kids Jump for Joy at the Apollo for Double Dutch Classic Visit the 125th Street BID online to learn about what 125th Street has to offer. Events, Shopping, Entertainment, Dining, and more... Visit us on Twitter and see many more store sales and offerings from our businesses. Check out our Calendar of Events. Events in Harlem just about every day of the week. |
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