upperclassmen! what's it like moving into Union Square?

<p>oh mah lord, i'm actually posting a question for myself this time. shock.</p>

<p>so while i'm moving in early for welcome week, i still have to move into Palladium for the fall. (roomie and i swallowed our pride and we're doing Explorations as seniors so we can be in Palladium, hah.)</p>

<p>the only thing i'm worried about is that i know the traffic around there can be horrendous.</p>

<p>is there room outside Palladium to stop and unload? or is it just too crazy to be able to stop there for any long periods of time? </p>

<p>i know there's a busy bus stop on that block (14th between 4th and 3rd) and trader joe's is RIGHT THERE so there will be taxis constantly stopping there. </p>

<p>i'm not moving in on the actual move in day so i don't know if the 13th street exit will be propped open. i know that on Lafayette move in day, they open the back fire exit and let carts go in and out and just station an extra guard there.</p>

<p>any tips from upperclassmen (or parents of upperclassmen?) that moved into Union Square without getting ticketed or hit by a cab?</p>

<p>thanks!</p>

<p>Good questions, D will be moving into Palladium as well. I am curious to the answers to your questions. I want to know if she has the whole previous week to move in like last year.</p>

<p>yes, she has the whole week to move in. move in is on the 30th and then there’s welcome week for the freshmen and classes start the next week. </p>

<p>classes don’t start until september 8th. that first week of classes is also usually ‘back to the square’ week for upperclassmen and there’s events for non-freshmen.</p>

<p>@milk </p>

<p>if i don’t get an answer here, i’ll ask on the nyu livejournal community and see what they have to say and then link their answers.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>There is room to stop and unload, despite the craziness of the area. You may not find a spot your first time around the block, but it’s definitely doable. You may have to double-park, though, so do not try to move in alone - you will want to have someone with you who’s comfortable driving in NYC traffic.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>It’s not like there’s ever a huge long line of taxis in front of TJ’s. And I believe the bus stop is further west long the block - it’s more in front of University Hall rather than Palladium.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>It’s not really that hard. It takes perseverance, but at NYU, what doesn’t?</p>

<p>I don’t think you need to worry about the bus stop, since it’s about 200-300 feet away from the entrance to Palladium (and there’s a stoplight between the two). I also don’t think you need to worry about cabs. Take it from someone who drives through NYC regularly: if you’re assertive, they will back off because they’re shocked to find a non-cabbie who drives like them. They might yell, but then again, that’s nothing unexpected.</p>

<p>What you do have to worry about is parking anywhere. Since you’re not moving in on move-in day, you won’t have the fortune of having the street blocked off directly in front of Palladium, and double-parking on 14th Street is always a risky affair since there’s constant traffic right there. If there aren’t any cars already parked in front of Palladium, park there, turn on the hazard lights, leave someone in the car to avoid getting a ticket (since you can’t get a parking ticket if there’s someone still in the car), and just move in as quickly as possible. (Though you can really stand there indefinitely with someone in the car, it’d be kind of rude to do so, hence why I advise moving everything in quickly.) If you do park on 14th, make sure you park well enough away from the corner, too, to keep anyone from possible side-swiping your car. Otherwise, your best bet is finding a side-street, parking there, and rolling the big bins quite some distance. It doesn’t sound like fun, but I did it down at Water Street on those sloping streets, and it wasn’t too bad.</p>

<p>The 13th Street entrance has those wide double-doors, but I’m almost certain you’d have to go all the way around to the front with the bin anyway since the entrance to the actual dorm is only a turnstile (this may have changed though).</p>

<p>And @milkandsugar</p>

<p>Yes, your daughter can move in any day after dorms open and before classes start (or even after, though I don’t recommend that).</p>

<p>@shades and nyu</p>

<p>you’re right, that bus stop is in front of U Hall. it’s been a while since i’ve been on that block and i just remembered exactly where it is. </p>

<p>i actually NEVER drive into Manhattan. my dad, on the other hand, refuses to use public transportation (with 7am rounds every day, i don’t blame him!) so he drives into Manhattan every day. i’ll be the one in the passenger seat getting mildly carsick. i swear he could moonlight as a cabbie if he wanted to. </p>

<p>thanks, nyux2. this post helped ease my mind. i’m accustomed to having “easy” move in days. i moved into Lafayette twice and Goddard during the summer. both of those were straightforward. i was actually able to move into Lafayette at 6 o’clock on a Saturday night last summer, so it was ridiculously easy.</p>

<p>missamericanpie and nyux2,
Thank you for the information.
Yes, 14th street is wildly crazy,you do have to act crazy and quickly.</p>

<p>@missamericanpie</p>

<p>FYI, my dad, who also drives into the city on account of all the job sites he has around the boroughs, HATED getting me from Palladium. The drive on 14th Street is absolutely horrendous in either direction, so it’s better to even drive up, over, and down again than get stuck on 14th. What we tended to do was take the Holland Tunnel, exit, get onto Spring off that exit street, get onto 6th Avenue, go right on Houston, go left on Lafayette, cut through Astor Place onto 4th Avenue, and finally turn right on 14th. And yes, all that complication was very worth it.</p>

<p>I’m trying to think of the traffic patterns there, but I feel like it was always really packed with cars (or at least always incredibly noisy) except very late at night. It’s honestly a terrible place to try to move into, but if you have patience, resolve, and a healthy dose of humor, you’ll be all right.</p>