Hell’s Kitchen, New York, also known as Clinton, has always piqued my curiosity since it is a neighborhood with mostly tenement-style buildings, located right next to one of the most iconic avenues in New York, Broadway, and the Hudson River Piers. Hell’s Kitchen is bounded by 8th Avenue on the East to the Hudson River on the West, and goes from West 57th Street to West 34th Street. It has a very rich history, especially in the way immigration has shaped its reputation. I had moved to Hell’s Kitchen about two years ago during the pandemic, and I have seen Hell’s Kitchen transition from being a “ghost town” to becoming the go-to hot-spot for many individuals to either go to the park, visit the piers, or even dine at the local restaurants in the area. I am also fascinated by the drastic difference in dynamics between Times Square and just a few streets over in Hell’s Kitchen. Hell’s Kitchen has become a large melting pot of a variety of individuals from different cultures, and I continue to be interested in how immigration has shaped Hell’s Kitchen to what it is today.
After determining the history of the development of Hell’s Kitchen, it was important to look at the Census information prior to the COVID Pandemic and during the Pandemic to analyze its impact on migration patterns in the neighborhood. During the COVID pandemic many companies began giving their employees the option of working from home, which led to a large migration movement out of New York City, including Hell’s Kitchen, to other states and cities. It is estimated that Manhattan’s population decreased by 6.9% between July 2020 and July 2021. Although this data is not exclusive to the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood, it is likely that Hell’s Kitchen also experienced a decrease in population size as a result of the migration movement out of the city, however the US Census only occurs every 10 years, which makes it difficult to track the effect of the COVID pandemic had on population size. While the population did increase, it also must be noted that it did not increase as rapidly as before the COVID pandemic.
Hell’s Kitchen still remains a predominantly white neighborhood with a slightly increasing Asian population and decreasing Hispanic and Black population. However, it is important to determine why the demographics are shifting in this direction, to consider the future development of Hell’s Kitchen. With the rise of annual income, there was a decrease in Hispanic and Blacks living in Hell’s Kitchen, and this trend needs to be further studied in order to help increase diversity in Hell’s Kitchen. Also, it is important to get information from the individuals that decided to leave Hell’s Kitchen during the pandemic, as well as getting information from the individuals that decided to stay in Hell’s Kitchen to better understand the individuals’ needs in the neighborhood for future development.
