All articles by Dana Schulz

Dana is a writer and preservationist with a passion for all things New York. After graduating from New York University with a BA in Urban Design & Architecture Studies, she worked at the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, where she planned the organization's public programs and wrote for their blog Off the Grid. In her free time, she leads walking tours about the social and cultural history of city neighborhoods. Follow her on Twitter @danaschulzNYC.

How Do Psychics Survive in New York City?; Subway Map of Manhattan Stereotypes

March 12, 2015

How Do Psychics Survive in New York City?; Subway Map of Manhattan Stereotypes

Ever wonder how all those psychics pay NYC rent? You’ll probably never know the real answer. [Vice] Here’s a roundup of New York City’s 38 essential home goods and furniture stores. [Racked] Online retailer With Love, From Brooklyn is crowdfunding to ship the borough’s small batch treats across the country. [DNAinfo] FiDi is full of […]

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Nonprofits Urge the U.S. Treasury Department to Scrutinize Foreign Real Estate Buyers

The Time Warner Center, a hotbed of anonymous foreign investment

March 12, 2015

Nonprofits Urge the U.S. Treasury Department to Scrutinize Foreign Real Estate Buyers

The media has been abuzz lately with talk of international mystery property buyers and the shell companies they use to hide their real names. Tired of the shady tactics, a group of 17 nonprofits is calling upon the U.S. Treasury Department to harder scrutinize foreign real estate buyers by verifying their actual identities and screening them for any risk of money laundering. The request came in the form of a letter sent to the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network on Tuesday that asks for a repeal of a 2002 exemption from the Patriot Act that was granted to the real estate industry. The Patriot Act was signed into law in 2001 following 9/11 to heighten security and allow for broader means of investigation. Under the act, real estate professionals would be required to "conduct due diligence checks on their customers," according to the Times. But after the industry lobbied against this, they were exempted from the regulations.
More details ahead

City Proposes New Zoning Plan to Increase Affordability, Current Height Limits to Be Lifted

March 11, 2015

City Proposes New Zoning Plan to Increase Affordability, Current Height Limits to Be Lifted

On the surface it sounds like a great idea: Adjust zoning regulations to better accommodate the Mayor's goal of preserving and creating 200,000 units of affordable housing. But some are angered that the proposal would lift current zoning protections and height limits by as much as 20 to 30 percent. According to the Department of City Planning, the newly released plan, called Housing New York: Zoning for Quality and Affordability, addresses the city's outdated zoning regulations that don't reflect today's housing needs or construction practices. However, an email from the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation asserts: "The proposal would change the rules for ‘contextual’ zoning districts throughout the city–zoning districts which communities frequently fought hard to secure, to limit the height of new development and keep it in character with the surrounding neighborhood."
More information ahead

Artist Remko Heemskerk’s Graphic Urban Prints Are Inspired by His Personal Experiences in New York

East 10th Street, East Village © 2012 – 2015 Remko Heemskerk

March 11, 2015

Artist Remko Heemskerk’s Graphic Urban Prints Are Inspired by His Personal Experiences in New York

It's pretty common to find photographs or paintings of iconic New York City landscapes and streetscapes, but there's usually not much of a reason behind the artist's choice other than that everyone knows these sites or they'll likely sell well. Netherlands-born artist Remko Heemskerk, however, created this print series from the inspiration of his personal experiences living in the city. Each site has a special meaning to him, whether it be the view from his apartment window or the spot where he and his wife kissed goodbye every morning. The visual element that sets Heemskerk's work apart is its bright, graphic composition. Rather than using realistic colors or traditional black-and-white, he chose a style that he feels reflects the vibrancy of New York City and its residents.
More ahead

Events & Things To Do

Biggie Mural Coming to Clinton Hill; How the NYC Subway Got Its Colors

March 11, 2015

Biggie Mural Coming to Clinton Hill; How the NYC Subway Got Its Colors

Tour a prism- and plant-filled Brooklyn railroad apartment with an old school charm. [Design Sponge] Clinton Hill is getting a Biggie mural outside the Key Food where he once worked. [Brokelyn] Want to know what’s going on with a landmarks application in your neighborhood? The LPC now posts videos of its public hearings and meetings. [GVSHP] Check out […]

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March 11, 2015

POLL: Can #SaveNYC Win the Small Business Battle?

On Monday, we took a look at #SaveNYC, a new campaign helmed by Jeremiah Moss of Jeremiah’s Vanishing New York that’s fighting to save the city from the superrich. Moss’ end goal is to get the Small Business Jobs Survival Act passed, “which would give businesses an opportunity to negotiate lease renewals and reasonable rent increases, […]

Renderings, Details Revealed for Massive $1B Industry City Redevelopment in Sunset Park

March 10, 2015

Renderings, Details Revealed for Massive $1B Industry City Redevelopment in Sunset Park

For the past year or so we've heard plenty of chirpings about Industry City, the former Bush Terminal on the Sunset Park waterfront that Jamestown Properties plans to transform into "a dynamic 21st century innovation and manufacturing community that balances existing manufacturing tenants with those centered on creative and innovation economy fields." But now, Jamestown, along with fellow owners Belvedere Capital, and Angelo Gordon, have announced that the overhaul of the 32-acre complex's 16 buildings will cost $1 billion and include a hotel, along with a huge amount of retail and tech start-up space. They also want an additional $115 million in infrastructure improvements like a massive new parking lot, as well as some rezoning concessions.
Find out more about the future of Industry City

Real Estate Trends

New Exhibit Explores the Sounds of Iconic NYC Interiors; An Apple Store Architecture Tour

March 10, 2015

New Exhibit Explores the Sounds of Iconic NYC Interiors; An Apple Store Architecture Tour

Soundscape exhibit, which opens tonight, highlights the actual sounds of iconic New York interiors, such as Grand Central Terminal, the Seagram Building lobby, and the Guggenheim. [MCNY] The MTA wants to turn token booth clerks into subway concierges with eyes on the platforms. [Gothamist] Take a global tour of the 50 most eye-catching apple stores. [Curbed] When […]

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Skyscraper Museum Exhibit ‘Ten Tops’ Explores the Uppermost Floors of the World’s Tallest Buildings

Image via Skyscraper Museum

March 10, 2015

Skyscraper Museum Exhibit ‘Ten Tops’ Explores the Uppermost Floors of the World’s Tallest Buildings

It seems like every other day now we're discussing the latest supertall tower, whether it be 432 Park topping out or the pricing information for visiting One World Trade Center's observatory. These stories always include the basics -- the tower's height, number of stories, and architectural design; but we usually discuss these facts in relation to the building as a whole, not focusing on what it is that really sets these skyscrapers apart–their tops. A new exhibit at the Skyscraper Museum hones in on just that, the uppermost floors of the world's tallest towers. Ten Tops looks at buildings 100 stories and higher, analyzing "the architectural features they share, including observation decks, luxury hotels and restaurants, distinctive crowns and night illumination, as well as the engineering and construction challenges of erecting such complex and astonishing structures."
More on the exhibit ahead

Philip Johnson’s New York State Pavilion Getting the LED Light Treatment

Photo via Wikimedia Commons

March 10, 2015

Philip Johnson’s New York State Pavilion Getting the LED Light Treatment

Last Friday, we journeyed to Flushing Meadows-Corona Park for the Panorama Challenge at the Queens Museum. When the evening of trivia was over, we walked out into the park to find the Unisphere and the Museum, both World's Fair relics, glowing. But in the distance, Philip Johnson's iconic New York State Pavilion was barely visible. That's about to change, though, as electricians and preservationists have been testing new ways to illuminate the "modern ruin" for the first time in decades, according to the Daily News. The update comes thanks to a wave of public support to restore the icon, as well as a renewed interest in its architectural merit and the history of the 1964-65 World's Fair. As we wrote over the summer, the pavilion's restoration task force secured $5.8 million for repairs, $4.2 million of which came from Mayor de Blasio. Now, Queens Borough President Melinda Katz has pledged to get the site illuminated by the end of the year. "We will restore this national treasure into a visible icon befitting 'The World's Borough' for generations of families and visitors to enjoy," she said.
More details on the lighting project

Architecture And Design

Popular Articles

Owner of $100M Apartment at One57 Only Pays $17,268 in Property Taxes

March 9, 2015

Owner of $100M Apartment at One57 Only Pays $17,268 in Property Taxes

Remember the $100 million apartment at One57, the most expensive ever in New York City? Well, the (presumably) billionaire buyer pays just $17,268 in annual property taxes on the unit, or 0.017 percent of its sale price, as if it were worth only $6.5 million, according to the New York Post. In contrast, the owner of a $1.02 million condo nearby at 224 East 52nd Street is paying $24,279, or 2.38 percent of its sale price. This is just one example of the fact that the owners of the city's ten most expensive apartments pay effective rates that are unbelievably lower than those paid on cheaper properties. How is this possible? It's in part due to the 421-a tax abatement, but more so due to the city's convoluted method of assessing market value for condos and co-ops.
More on the tax inequality here

VIDEO: ‘A Couple of Blocks’ Is Really Five Miles, ‘SNL’ Rants About What’s Wrong with City Living

March 9, 2015

VIDEO: ‘A Couple of Blocks’ Is Really Five Miles, ‘SNL’ Rants About What’s Wrong with City Living

We've all been there–an out-of-town visitor asks us how far of a walk it is to dinner and we tell them, "Oh, just a few blocks," but by the time they arrive they're famished, their feet are blistered, and they want to scream at us for our skewed sense of distance. This is just one aspect of living in NYC that comedian Leslie Jones addressed in a hilarious rant on this week's "SNL." Others include the difference in length between avenues and blocks ("I've been on Fifth Avenue for ten hours!"), the east side versus the west side ("The last East/West thing I understood was Biggie and Tupac."), and the grime of the subway ("Did rat feces dust just fly into my mouth?").
Watch the hysterical video here

City Living

City Launches Educational Website to Mark the 50th Anniversary of the Landmarks Law

March 9, 2015

City Launches Educational Website to Mark the 50th Anniversary of the Landmarks Law

In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the creation of the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, and thereby the Landmarks Law, the city has launched a new educational website, landmarks.nyc, that will grow its content throughout the year. The site offers digital features, a schedule of free- and low-cost events at landmarked sites throughout the city, slide shows from the agency's historic photo archives, various blog posts, and walking tours.
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Master Ruin Porn Photographers; Do You Have Better Navigation Skills Than a Taxi Driver?

March 9, 2015

Master Ruin Porn Photographers; Do You Have Better Navigation Skills Than a Taxi Driver?

Samsung’s new smart home for dogs has a hydrotherapy pool, treadmill, and built-in tablet. But it’ll cost you $30,000. [Treehugger] Take a look at the 20 top ruin pornographers on the internet. [Architizer] Thanks to GPS, NYC taxi drivers are no longer tested on their geography skills. See if you’re smarter than your iPhone technology with this New York geography […]

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$3M Hamptons Home Was Designed by Robert A.M. Stern in an Unorthodox Shingle Style

March 8, 2015

$3M Hamptons Home Was Designed by Robert A.M. Stern in an Unorthodox Shingle Style

Starchitect Robert A.M. Stern certainly made headlines last week, with floorplans for two of his supertall billionaire's row towers coming to light (520 Park Avenue and 220 Central Park South). And it's these type of ground- and record-breaking urban projects that we've come to associate with the architect, who favors stately and classic buildings over the zig-zagging glass towers of his peers. But long before the days of 15 Central Park West, Stern was beginning his architecture career with much humbler projects, like this Hamptons home, an unorthodox take on the shingle style that he completed just a few years after architecture school. The 3,000-square-foot, postmodern vacation house is on the market for $2.95 million, offering architecture buffs the chance to own a piece of history.
Take a tour around the Stern-designed residence here

Weekly Highlights: Top Picks from the 6sqft Staff

March 7, 2015

Weekly Highlights: Top Picks from the 6sqft Staff

Upstate Greek Revival Beauty Dating to the 1700s Can Be Yours for under $500K REVEALED: Asking Prices, Floorplans for 520 Park Avenue, the Next Billionaire’s Row Blockbuster Your Suspicions Are Correct, Subway Service Is Really Getting Worse Ikea Releases Furniture Collection That Will Wirelessly Charge Your Phone 220 Central Park South Penthouse Could Set a […]

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Loathed and Lauded Robert Moses Gets His Own Anti-Hero Graphic Novel

Robert Moses and Jane Jacobs squaring off

March 6, 2015

Loathed and Lauded Robert Moses Gets His Own Anti-Hero Graphic Novel

Love him or hate him, Robert Moses left an indelible mark on New York City's urban infrastructure. Most of us formed our opinions on the city's master planner after reading Robert Caro's Pulitzer Prize-winning book "The Power Broker." But if you're looking for a lighter (in both senses of the word; Caro's book weighs 3.3 pounds) read on Mr. Moses, you may want to check out the new graphic novel "Robert Moses: The Master Builder of New York City." Created by French writer Pierre Christin and Chilean artist Olivier Balez, the "anti-hero comic" is the perfect dramatic portrayal of Moses, both celebrating and criticizing his contributions to the city.
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Inside the Five Loew’s Wonder Theatres; The City’s Most Photogenic Building Numbers

March 6, 2015

Inside the Five Loew’s Wonder Theatres; The City’s Most Photogenic Building Numbers

This video by the Office of NYCMedia takes us inside the city’s five Loew’s Wonder Theatres. [Untapped] Get your kicks this summer at the Brooklyn Museum with a new “Sneaker Culture” exhibit. [DNAinfo] Here’s the oldest film showing NYC being destroyed by a monster. [Gothamist] Check out this video about the inspirational art inside One World Trade Center‘s lobby. […]

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March 6, 2015

Your Suspicions Are Correct, Subway Service Is Really Getting Worse

The platform pileups, the sick passengers, everyone's favorite recording, "we're delayed because of train traffic ahead of us"–subway service in New York City is getting worse, and it's not just in your imagination. In 2014, delays increased by a whopping 45.6 percent, and on the worst lines, the 4, 5 and 6, that number grows to 57 percent. The main culprits are right-of-way delays (caused by malfunctions of switches, signals, and rails) and overcrowding, the latter of which caused more than double the amount of delays in 2014, up from 6,942 to 14,843.
More details ahead

Secrets of the Flatiron Building; Meet NYC’s Engagement Photographer

March 5, 2015

Secrets of the Flatiron Building; Meet NYC’s Engagement Photographer

Did you know the Flatiron Building was once referred to as the Cowcatcher? Find out about this and other secrets of the iconic building. [Untapped] The “engagement photographer” makes his living sneaking around parks, hiding in bushes, and secretly photographing New Yorkers’ romantic moments. [BI] We’re not sure if this engagement was photographed, but one man proposed […]

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$19.05 Is the Perfect Amount to Load on a MetroCard so You Won’t Have Leftover Change

March 5, 2015

$19.05 Is the Perfect Amount to Load on a MetroCard so You Won’t Have Leftover Change

If you don't get an unlimited weekly or monthly MetroCard, you probably put random amounts on your card each time, or you might select one of the MTA's payment prompts–a $9.00 MetroCard with a $.45 bonus, a $19.00 card with a $.95 bonus, or a $39.00 card with a $1.95 bonus. If you fall into one of these two camps, you're likely always left with a useless amount of change on the card that will never add up to the $2.50 it costs for a single train ride. All of that leftover change going unused on thousands of MetroCards each day is being collected by the MTA, in what seems like a purposeful tactic. But now, thanks to statistician Ben Wellington, we have the solution to one of NYC life's biggest dilemmas–$19.05 is the is the perfect amount to load on your MetroCard so that you'll get eight subway rides without a penny left over.
Find out how Wellington arrived at this number

The History of Symphony Space: From the Astor Market to the Leonard Nimoy Thalia

March 4, 2015

The History of Symphony Space: From the Astor Market to the Leonard Nimoy Thalia

We were saddened here at 6sqft to hear about the passing last week of Leonard Nimoy, an extraordinary actor, director, poet, singer, and photographer, known worldwide for his role as Mr. Spock in "Star Trek." Closer to home, though, Nimoy was also known as a dedicated philanthropist who adored the Upper West Side's Symphony Space. In fact, in 2002 the multi-disciplinary performing arts organization renamed its historic Thalia Theater the Leonard Nimoy Thalia to reflect their patron's generosity. Just like the storied career of Nimoy, Symphony Space has its own eclectic past, from its beginnings as a food market funded by Vincent Astor to the Crystal Palace skating rink and, finally, to a neighborhood institution frequented by the likes of Stephen Colbert and Cynthia Nixon.
Learn about this history of Symphony Space here

History

New Website Will Help New Yorkers Find Out if Their Apartment Is Rent Stabilized

March 4, 2015

New Website Will Help New Yorkers Find Out if Their Apartment Is Rent Stabilized

Let's face it, we all feel that we're paying too much for our tiny NYC apartments, and while for most of us that's just the name of the game, for others who are living in a rent-stabilized unit but being charged market-rate rent, it's actually true. Want to know if you fall into that boat? A new website called amirentstabilized.com will help you find out. The site allows renters to search their building to see if it's on the city's list of addresses with rent stabilized units. Unfortunately, it can't tell you if your specific apartment is one of them, but it's a great first step and provides resources for confirming your unit's status, as well as filing a complaint if you're being overcharged.
Find out more here

‘Built by Women NYC’ Showcases the Work of Female Architects and Engineers

Fulton Center, one of the many female-led projects at the exhibit

March 4, 2015

‘Built by Women NYC’ Showcases the Work of Female Architects and Engineers

To mark Women's History Month, a new exhibit at the Center for Architecture will showcase the work of more than 100 female architects, landscape architects, and engineers across the five boroughs. Built by Women New York City (BxW NYC) is a project of the Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation, which started accepting nominations for outstanding female-led design last fall and received 350 submissions. Among the 98 sites celebrated at the show are the Pepsi Cola Corporate Headquarters on Park Avenue, designed in the 1960s by Natalie de Blois of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill; the new Fulton Center, the work of more than two dozen women; and the High Line, another collaborative effort of many females.
More on the exhibit

Rockaway May Get a New Pedestrian Greenway; The Most Popular Cuisines in Manhattan Neighborhoods

March 4, 2015

Rockaway May Get a New Pedestrian Greenway; The Most Popular Cuisines in Manhattan Neighborhoods

Watch a video profile of starchitect Robert A.M. Stern, exploring his life, career, and noted accomplishments. [PBS] The Rockaway Waterfront Alliance is proposing an ambitious park under the elevated A tracks called Project Underway. [Brownstoner Queens] Video “Down Orchard Street” looks for the remaining bargain district vendors. [Bowery Boogie] Hell’s Kitchen residents dig hot dogs, and Upper […]

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