SoHo

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Soho, New York, is prime shopping and dining territory, SoHo is the neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City, notable for being the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, to movie stars and for the wide variety of stores and shops ranging from trendy boutiques to outlets of upscale national and international chain stores.

SoHo is bounded by Houston Street on the northern side, Canal Street on the south, Crosby Street on the east, and Sixth Avenue to the west, according to The Encyclopedia of New York City. The SoHo Alliance, Manhattan Community Board 2 and the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation (GVSHP)give the western boundary of SoHo north of Broome Street as West Broadway, as does the AIA Guide to New York City.

SoHo boasts the greatest collection of cast-iron architecture in the world.Approximately 250 cast iron buildings stand in New York City and the majority of them are in SoHo. Cast iron was initially used as a decorative front over a pre-existing building. With the addition of modern, decorative facades, older industrial buildings were able to attract new commercial clients. Most of these facades were constructed during the period from 1840 to 1880. In addition to revitalizing older structures, buildings in SoHo were later designed to feature the cast iron.

Now that its impeccably preserved cast-iron industrial facades showcase the wares of Chanel, Prada and numerous other brands, the area south of Houston Street is a far cry from the hardscrabble manufacturing zone that once was. But don’t write off Soho as a mere urban shopping mall; though many of the galleries that made Soho New York's contemporary-art hot spot in the 1970s and ’80s decamped to Chelsea and the Lower East Side, some excellent art spaces—including Peter Blum and Team Gallery—remain. Just west of West Broadway, tenement- and townhouse-lined streets contain remnants of the Italian community that once dominated the area. You’ll still find old-school flavor in local businesses such as Joe’s Dairy, Pino’s Prime Meat Market and Vesuvio Bakery, now occupied by Birdbath Neighborhood Green Bakery, which has kept the old-fashioned facade intact.

Landmark Buildings and Distinguished Addresses

Urban Glass House, 330 Spring Street, between Greenwich Street & Washington Street
66 Crosby
River Lofts 416 Washington Street
Tribeca 424 Washington Street
 

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org
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