Lafayette St, NoHo

As far as big streets go, Lafayette isn't bad at all. It's way too busy to want to live on -- it's more like an avenue than a street. There's a lot going on here and there are people everywhere twenty four hours a day. There are a lot of restaurants, shops and theatres on this street, though, so it has more of a community feel to it than any of the big avenues. And, there are some really cool buildings on Lafayette.
The top of Lafayette holds the massive Kmart in the Wanamaker Building and the Astor Subway Platform that holds the most crazy people I have ever seen in a concentrated area. This area is seriously the apex of all that is weird. It's not dangerous, but it's definitely always interesting around 8th - 9th and Lafayette.
The block at Astor Place and Lafayette is comprised of massive buildings that are a pretty even mix of old and new. The east side of the block has a big, glass apartment building that is ugly as sin next door to one of my favorite places in Manhattan: The Public Theatre. I love this theatre more than any of the other big players. It's just a lovely experience from start to finish every time. Although, sadly, the last thing I saw here was the new Kushner Play and that was horrific. I still don't hold it against this place. It used to be a private library for John Jacob Astor (built in 1854) and then was part of the New York Public Library before becoming the theatre. It's one of the big guns in New York Theatre as far as launching plays into Broadway. And, this is the theatre company responsible for Shakespeare in the Park. It's very prestigious and the building is massive and gorgeous. There's a bar attached to the space so you can, honestly, not leave here for hours if you don't want to. Across the street from the Public is Collonade Row. It's the remains of mansions for all of the well to do which are now apartment buildings. The roof of this building is gorgeous and I hear the apartments are exquisite. The Astors and the Vanderbilts both lived here and Edith Wharton did as well for a time after they became apartments. There's a real haunting quality to the architecture that makes the building creepy in a good way. Next door to the Collonade is the Astor Place Theatre which is where Blue Man Group has been running for some time. It's funny that such a tourist and show is directly across the street from a very New York Theatre. The shows get out and both worlds collide. There's an awful nightclub called Butter next door to the Public that used to be really trendy and was even awful when it was popular. Don't go there. The end of the block has the big Yoga center that's name I can't recall. It's the biggest in the country and has a lot of celebrity clients.
The rest of Lafayette as it runs through Noho is comprised of big, new buildings that have long since replaced the old, grand homes. This area has always been a center for the wealthy. It's just that now its a commercial center instead of a residential one.