Riverside–West 105th Street Historic District

The Riverside–West 105th Street Historic District emerged at the turn of the twentieth century as an ambitious attempt to create a millionaire colony that would rival the prestige of Fifth Avenue. Developers constructed these rowhouses between 1899 and 1902, betting that the proximity to the Hudson River and the open, airy feel of the park would draw the city's wealthiest families away from the dense east side of Manhattan. They enforced strict, legally binding covenants that mandated uniform building heights and facade character, which gives the neighborhood its strikingly harmonious and rhythmic appearance today.