Manhattan Progress

December 18, 2013

This week, Mayor Bloomberg will visit one of the five boroughs each day to highlight where each borough stood in 2001 and where it stands today in key areas. Today, the Mayor discussed the progress in Manhattan at a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services naturalization ceremony, where he also released a new report on the changing immigration patterns in New York City.

Population Growth

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, more people are moving into the city than moving out now for the first time since before 1950.

• Since 2001, Manhattan has grown by more than 56,755 people, bringing its population to 1,619,090.
• The population of Lower Manhattan has increased by 77 percent since 2000, even following the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, when some predicted that families and businesses would never return to the area.
• Manhattan is home to more than 461,000 immigrants, a four percent increase since 2000, with Dominicans, Chinese, and Mexicans as the largest groups.

Public Safety

Manhattan has become a safer place to live, work and visit than ever before:

• Through December 15th, overall crime is down by 36.8 percent since 2001 – 26,166 in 2013 compared with 41,414 at the same time in 2001.
• Through December 15th, murders have fallen by 64.6 percent – 35 in 2013 compared with 99 at the same time in 2001.
• Through December 15th, shooting incidents have decreased by 52.6 percent since 2001 – 110 in 2013 compared with 232 at the same time in 2001.
• Through December 15th, traffic fatalities are down by 13.7 percent since 2001 – 51 in 2013 compared with 44 at the same time in 2001.

Education

• In Manhattan, 129 new schools have been created and more than 20,000 new school seats have been added.
• In the 2012-2013 school year, two-thirds of Manhattan high school students graduate within four years, an increase of 12.8 percent from 2005, when the State started its calculation.

Economic Development

As a result of the diversification of the City’s economy and growth in industries like the tech, tourism and film sectors, Manhattan’s economy has continued to grow:

• Since 2002, private sector jobs in the borough have increased by more than 156,595 to over 1,947,000 – an increase of 8.7 percent, compared to less than three percent growth nationally.

The Leisure and Hospitality industry remains strong in Manhattan:

• For example, 135 new hotels have opened in Manhattan since 2002 – with another 29 under development.
• In addition, the number of leisure and hospitality jobs has increased by 37 percent since 2001.

Affordable Housing

• Over the last 12 years, the City has financed the preservation and construction of more than 58,319 units of affordable housing for Manhattan residents.

Parks

During the past twelve years, the Administration has invested more than $5 billion in capital improvements in city parks:

• This is the biggest investment for parks made by any administration in history.
• Across the city, approximately 1,755 parks and recreation facilities have been redesigned and upgraded.

The City also dramatically increased the size of the biggest and best municipal park system in the nation by adding more than 870 acres of parkland and more than 490 acres of new waterfront park land across the city.

• In Manhattan, 75 new parks have been added, as well as 94 acres of parkland and 74 acres of waterfront acquisitions.
• As part of the MillionTreesNYC initiative, more than 66,000 new trees have been planted in the borough.

Now, approximately 76 percent of New Yorkers live within a 10-minute walk of a park or playground – an increase of a quarter-million people in just the past six years.

Arts & Cultural Affairs

The City has invested more than $3 billion for cultural capital projects in all five boroughs since 2001.

• In Manhattan, more than 390 projects have been completed, including the Lincoln Center campus redevelopment; the Harlem Stage Gatehouse; the Pershing Square Signature Center; the Museum of Modern Art expansion; and locations for multiple cultural organizations on the Fourth Arts Block in the East Village.

Attendance at city-owned cultural institutions in Manhattan increased by more than 1.2 million visitors from 11,728,597 in 2001 to 12,948,282 last fiscal year.

Compared with 2001, annual regrant support for individual artists and small arts groups in the borough has increased more than three-fold to over $300,000.

Public Health

Over the last 12 years, Manhattan’s quality of life – and length of life – have both improved:

• On average, men in the borough live more than four years longer than they did in 2001, and women now live more than three years longer.
• Between 2002 and 2012, the smoking rate in Manhattan fell from 21.1 percent to 15.3 percent – a decrease of 27.5 percent.

Contact: Marc La Vorgna (212) 788-2958