Curbed Cup Elite Eight: (4) Yorkville vs. (5) Dumbo

The Curbed Cup, our annual award for the neighborhood of the year, is kicking off with 16 neighborhoods vying for the prestigious (fake) trophy. We’ll reveal each of the neighborhoods this week, and polls will be open for 24 hours so you can cast your vote as to which ones should advance. Let the eliminations commence!

(4) Yorkville

The much-anticipated opening of the Second Avenue subway helped boost Yorkville to the Elite Eight this year: The new subway line is major for neighborhood residents and real estate interests alike.

And just as ridership rises, so too have real estate prices in the area—though it’s too soon to tell whether it’s the Second Avenue subway or the forward march of New York real estate that’s at its root. The neighborhood’s newfound connection to the subway seems to have inspired a residential building boom in the area. Hundreds of new apartments are now rising on the Upper East Side, with a major concentration of those buildings in Yorkville.

(5) Dumbo

Meanwhile, Dumbo was defined by several large openings in 2017, beginning with Empire Stores, which—after years of renovation and build-up—finally opened in full to the public. It’s since become a bona fide destination, with an outpost of the Brooklyn Historical Society and buzzy restaurants like Cecconi’s and Celestine among its many draws.

And thanks to the Jehovah’s Witnesses exodus from New York City, plenty of Dumbo real estate has recently come onto the market—and been snapped up by savvy investors. One of those parcels, at 85 Jay Street, will eventually bring more than 700 apartments to the neighborhood, and new mixed-use developments like Dumbo Heights set the tone for similar projects (ahem, Panorama) to come.

Which neighborhood should advance to the Final Four? Cast your vote below, and may the best neighborhood win!