Why does Manhattan’s West Side feel nicer than the East Side?

Let me start off by saying that I love all these East Side neighborhoods.

But.. It seems to me that the neighborhoods on the West Side tend to be much nicer than those in the East Side. A few examples are: West Village vs East Village. Chelsea vs. Kips Bay. Tribeca vs LES. Even midtown, with the Hudson Yards development, seems like a a West Side investment.

I was genuinely curious if there are any historical reasons for this, why did the island develop the way it did?

Note: I think that, arguably, it flips in Upper Manhattan, but you’d need to go back half a century to make that case.

Edit: as I mentioned, I love the East Side neighborhoods. But although “nicer” is subjective, I think that rent prices could be considered a better indicator. Anyone who has looked for apartments will know that rent is higher in the West Village compared to the East Village, higher in Chelsea than Kips Bay, same with LES vs Tribeca. I’m honestly not familiar with the prices in Upper Manhattan, so I can’t really speak to it