“He was able to see the trend coming in the meatpacking district,” she said, at a time when high-end clothing boutiques were beginning to line the street. The landlord offered them a work area, an apartment on another floor and, in 2011, retail space at reasonable rates, said Mr. Nakios, 48, who is also a real estate developer.

“We were definitely happy,” Ms. Nakios said. “We were there when the neighborhood really hit its peak. As a resident, I felt we were on the cusp of something really big.”

It was especially convenient to live and work in the same building after their sons, now 10 and 13, arrived. Then residential living became illegal on their block, so they moved to an apartment around the corner but continue to work on 14th Street. Both enjoy the quieter street now that cars are mostly gone, but Mr. Nakios worries that it may result in fewer pedestrians coming to the area, which is still recovering from several years of construction work that kept some people away.

Ms. Nakios is more optimistic about the lack of congestion: “It has been great. I hope we’ll have more foot traffic in the spring.”

What You’ll Find

Fourteenth Street changes radically from river to river. New condos and high-end conversions of older buildings, mostly on its western side, mix with low-rise buildings that house apartments above stores. On the eastern end, rentals predominate.

Image 345 WEST 14TH STREET, NO. 4A | A two-bedroom, two-bathroom condo in Chelsea with views of Gansevoort Square and the meatpacking district, in an 11-story 1960 building with a full-time doorman, a bike room, a roof deck and a gym, listed for $2.85 million. 212-319-2390 Credit... Stefano Ukmar for The New York Times

On the far west, a small park overlooks the Hudson River, and two more recreational areas are being developed. Pier 57 is being transformed into a mixed-use development with a food marketplace, offices and public open space. To its south, a 2.7-acre man-made island for arts and recreation, to be called Little Island, is scheduled to open in spring 2021; the $250 million public park is funded by Barry Diller and Diane von Furstenberg.