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.

An eclectic vintage vibe runs through this $1.5M Bushwick townhouse

Photos courtesy of Douglas Elliman

October 1, 2020

An eclectic vintage vibe runs through this $1.5M Bushwick townhouse

There's a little something to see at every point throughout this beautiful Bushwick townhouse. The eclectic vibe is a mix of mid-century opulence and vintage steampunk, but it all comes together to create a lovely living space. The $1,489,000 price tag is even sweeter considering the home is made up of a 1,600-square-foot owner's duplex with a rear garden, as well as an 800-square-foot garden apartment that provides rental income.
Look around

Distinctive Homes

Here are the New York zip codes with COVID clusters

COVID outreach in August in Sunset Park, Brooklyn after a spike there. Photo by Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office

October 1, 2020

Here are the New York zip codes with COVID clusters

This week, New York has been closely monitoring a group of 20 COVID hotspots, where as of today, the infection rate has increased from 5.5 to 6.5 percent. Of the top 10 zip codes statewide, six are in Brooklyn with seven-day-average infection rates of 6 and 4 percent, and one is in Queens with a 4 percent infection rate. In Orange County, one zip code has a staggering seven-day infection rate of 18 percent, while two Rockland County zip codes are at 16 and 14 percent. To deal with the issue, the state has employed 200 rapid testing machines to these zip codes.
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Policy

64-year-old favorite Pastrami Queen opening second location on the Upper West Side

Photo of the Upper East Side storefront by Tjeerd Wiersma via Flickr cc

September 30, 2020

64-year-old favorite Pastrami Queen opening second location on the Upper West Side

"If I’m away from New York long enough, I need a correct pastrami sandwich from either Pastrami Queen or Katz’s. And you’re not getting that anywhere else, as far as I’m concerned," said Anthony Bourdain in 2016. And New Yorkers will now have two locations from which to enjoy a Pastrami Queen sandwich, as West Side Rag reports that the 64-year-old business will open a second location (the first is on Lexington Avenue and 78th Street) tomorrow on the Upper West Side at the former Fine & Schapiro space at 138 West 72nd Street.
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Food & Dining

Hotelier Andre Balazs lists his flashy Soho condo for $12M

Photo Credit: Douglas Elliman

September 30, 2020

Hotelier Andre Balazs lists his flashy Soho condo for $12M

Hotelier Andre Balazs, best known for LA's Chateau Marmont, the Mercer Hotel in NYC, and the string of trendy Standard Hotels, unsurprisingly lives a life as lavish as the destination he creates. His personal condo in Soho, taking up the entire top floor at 158 Mercer Street, is no exception. Balazs added plenty of his own panache to the 4,200-square-foot loft, including massive stretches of built-in bookshelves, a custom "wall of light," and a 13th-century Florentine fresco. He also added hotel-quality rooms like a nearly 275-square-foot closet, a personal gym, and a steam room. As the Wall Street Journal first reported, Balazs has decided to list the home for $12 million as he spends much of his time now in Europe.
Check it all out

After almost closing, famous Theater District tourist spot Ellen’s Stardust Diner will reopen tomorrow

Photo (cropped) by Jazzy Guy via Wikimedia Commons

September 30, 2020

After almost closing, famous Theater District tourist spot Ellen’s Stardust Diner will reopen tomorrow

Ellen's Stardust Diner has been a Theater District fixture since 1987, famous for its retro '50s design, subway car entrance, and singing waitstaff. But like so many other restaurants in New York City, Ellen's struggled to reopen due to the pandemic. As Broadway World reported in July, a photo on Facebook showed a notice posted at the diner from the landlord that said Ellen's owed $618,459.22 in back rent. But good news--Time Out NY now reports that the restaurant and landlord seem to have resolved their conflict, and Ellen's will reopen (singing waiters and all!) as of tomorrow.
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Food & Dining

Williamsburg’s beloved City Reliquary museum is in danger of closing for good

Photo via The City Reliquary

September 30, 2020

Williamsburg’s beloved City Reliquary museum is in danger of closing for good

The City Reliquary is a strange place. It's completely cluttered and full of oddities like the bones of a subway rat and schist cores, as well as local memorabilia like the original 2nd Avenue Deli sign and vintage seltzer bottles. But that what makes it so special and so New York. The small-but-mighty Williamsburg museum has been closed during the entire pandemic, as they're completely staffed by volunteers. And in order to reopen, they need to be able to pay their rent and show their financial stability. The Reliquary is asking New Yorkers to help them meet this goal so they can avoid closing their doors for good in November.
Find out how you can help

Events & Things To Do

$2.6M Park Slope townhouse is family-friendly and full of mid-century inspo

Photo Credit: Travis Mark

September 30, 2020

$2.6M Park Slope townhouse is family-friendly and full of mid-century inspo

As soon as you enter this Park Slope townhouse, it feels like you might've just stepped into the page of a West Elm catalog. The three-bedroom home, which has been thoughtfully renovated, is full of clean lines, open spaces, and mid-century-modern design inspiration, including a Noguchi lamp and a David Weeks chandelier. The $2,595,000 price tag also gets you a second-floor terrace and gorgeous rear patio and garden.
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Distinctive Homes

Everything you need to know about indoor dining in NYC

Photo by Fábio Alves on Unsplash

September 29, 2020

Everything you need to know about indoor dining in NYC

After being shut down for more than six months, indoor dining in New York City returns tomorrow. The biggest difference is that restaurants can only operate at 25-percent capacity, but there is also a long list from the state of rules and regulations. Plus, Governor Cuomo has instituted a compliance component that will deploy 400 enforcement personnel and allow New Yorkers to fill out online complaint forms. If you're thinking about partaking in indoor dining, we've put together a guide that outlines everything you need to know.
All the info

Built into a rock ledge, this $7.7M Hudson Valley estate has guest pods, a treehouse, and a pond

All renderings by S3 Architecture, courtesy Corcoran Country Living

September 29, 2020

Built into a rock ledge, this $7.7M Hudson Valley estate has guest pods, a treehouse, and a pond

Sylvan Rock is a new micro compound being designed in partnership by S3 Architecture and Aston Martin. Located in the Dutchess County town of Milan, the 55-acre property was conceptualized as a nature-first retreat that focuses on sustainability and wellness with an eye towards self-contained living. To that end, there is the nearly 6,000-square-foot main house, three guest pods, a treehouse, two reflecting pools, a pool house with a wellness pavilion, a pond, and an agricultural food garden.
Tour the whole property

This $5M modern glass home in Sagaponack is architect Shigeru Ban’s only work on Long Island

Photo credit: Compass

September 28, 2020

This $5M modern glass home in Sagaponack is architect Shigeru Ban’s only work on Long Island

Editor's Note: At the time of publication, a contract was signed for the home. Pritzker Prize-winning Japanese architect Shigeru Ban is known for his use of unconventional materials such as paper and corrugated plastic, as well as his humanitarian efforts. He's also known for his clean, modernist lines, which are fully on display at this Sagaponack home that he designed, the only work he's ever completed on Long Island. The six-bedroom, 8,000-square-foot residence also boasts Ban's signature melding of indoor/outdoor spaces with a gorgeous pool and outdoor patio serving as a courtyard for the home.
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Distinctive Homes

Popular Articles

In Noho, a furnished alcove studio with lots of storage for $650K

Listing photos by Kitty Dadi

September 28, 2020

In Noho, a furnished alcove studio with lots of storage for $650K

Though technically an alcove studio, this co-op at 77 Bleecker Street in Noho feels a lot larger thanks to an unusual layout, high ceilings, a separate dining area, and a skylight. Plus, it's got a ton of storage space to help keep things tidy. The lovely home is on the market for $650,000 and is being offered fully furnished.
See more here

Distinctive Homes

Waterline Square’s amenities include an indoor skate park, full tennis court, and a rock-climbing wall

All amenity photos credit: Evan Joseph

September 25, 2020

Waterline Square’s amenities include an indoor skate park, full tennis court, and a rock-climbing wall

Waterline Square is often known for the starchitects who designed its three glassy towers--Richard Meier & Partners (One Waterline Square), Kohn Pedersen Fox (Two Waterline Square), and Rafael Viñoly (Three Waterline Square)--but another accolade the Upper West Side development holds is its incredible amenity package, which has been fully unveiled today. At 100,000 square feet and spread over three floors, it's one of New York City's largest indoor private amenity spaces and includes everything from an indoor skate park and full tennis court (both a first in NYC) to a 30-foot rock climbing wall to a gardening studio to an entire pet suite.
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New Developments

Apply for 28 middle-income units in Prospect Lefferts Gardens, from $2,000/month

Photo via CityRealty

September 24, 2020

Apply for 28 middle-income units in Prospect Lefferts Gardens, from $2,000/month

An affordable housing lottery has launched for those earning 130 percent of the area median income. There are 28 units up for grabs at 50 Clarkson Avenue, a new Prospect Lefferts Gardens rental with convenient amenities like a gym, a dog-washing station, and a parking garage. The available units include $2,000/month studios, $2,150/month one-bedrooms, and $2,500/month two-bedrooms.
See if you qualify

Affordable Housing

This big, beautiful Victorian in Newburgh is asking just $650K

Photo by Roy Savage

September 24, 2020

This big, beautiful Victorian in Newburgh is asking just $650K

The city of Newburgh, about an hour-and-a-half drive from Manhattan, often gets a bad rap for its past crime statistics. But in recent years, shops and restaurants have been sprouting up, the arts scene is booming, preservation groups are working to save the wealth of historic mansions, and the relatively affordable housing stock is enticing buyers. Take, for example, this 1875 Victorian home. It's over 3,500 square feet, is beautifully preserved, and overlooks the Hudson River and Washington's Headquarters State Historic Site. And it's asking just $650,000.
See inside

Metropolitan Opera announces it will stay closed for another year

Photo by Seth Hoffman on Unsplash

September 23, 2020

Metropolitan Opera announces it will stay closed for another year

In an announcement that is sure to reverberate throughout the theater and performing arts worlds, the Metropolitan Opera said today that it will extend its COVID-inflicted closure and cancel its entire 2020-2021 season, not reopening until September of next year. As the New York Times, who first reported the news, said, the decision "sends a chilling signal that American cultural life is still far from resuming."
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City Living

Lottery launches for 185 affordable apartments at Long Island City’s Hunter’s Point South

Rendering via TF Cornerstone

September 23, 2020

Lottery launches for 185 affordable apartments at Long Island City’s Hunter’s Point South

A year-and-a-half ago, developer TF Cornerstone broke ground on their two-building, 1,194-unit project at Hunter's Point South, located along the East River in Long Island City. Anchored by a new half-acre public park, the pair of ODA-designed towers will be 60 percent affordable. Today, a lottery launched for 185 of these low- and middle-income units, available to those earning 50, 130, and 165 percent of the area median income. The available homes range from $698/month studios to $2,704/month two-bedrooms.
See if you qualify

Affordable Housing

Futuristic tower proposed for Roosevelt Island is 2,400 feet and covered in 10,000+ plants

All renderings via Rescubika Studio

September 23, 2020

Futuristic tower proposed for Roosevelt Island is 2,400 feet and covered in 10,000+ plants

In response to the idea of the "city of tomorrow," one that will become carbon neutral by 2050, French architecture firm Rescubika created a proposal for a 2,418-foot tower on Roosevelt Island. With wood construction materials, 36 wind turbines, 8,300 shrubs, 1,600 trees, 83,000 square feet of plant walls, and nearly 23,000 square feet of solar panels, it would be the world’s tallest "carbon sink" tower--one that absorbs more CO2 than it releases.
See more here

$800K Washington Heights two-bedroom has beautiful George Washington Bridge views

Image Credit: Warburg Realty

September 23, 2020

$800K Washington Heights two-bedroom has beautiful George Washington Bridge views

Not only does this Washington Heights apartment have a unique view of the George Washington Bridge, but the two-bedroom/two-bathroom home is priced at a very buyer-friendly $799,000. Located at 825 West 179th Street, the completely renovated unit is part of a beautiful pre-war co-op just a block from the Hudson River.
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Distinctive Homes

Art Deco P.S. 48 becomes the first historic landmark in South Jamaica, Queens

Photo courtesy of the Landmarks Preservation Commission

September 22, 2020

Art Deco P.S. 48 becomes the first historic landmark in South Jamaica, Queens

The NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission voted today to designate Public School 48 in South Jamaica, Queens as an individual landmark. Built in 1936, PS 48 was an early example of a school building serving as a "monumental civic structure" in the community. "Its Art Deco style details, which are quite striking in person, make it unique, and it is one of the first elementary schools New York City to incorporate this architectural style," said LPC Chair Sarah Carroll, who also noted that it's the neighborhood's first historic landmark.
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Policy

After 21 years, Tribeca’s Amish Market will close

Photo of Amish Market by Paul Sableman via Flickr cc

September 22, 2020

After 21 years, Tribeca’s Amish Market will close

Photo of Amish Market by Paul Sableman via Flickr cc Amish Market opened in Tribeca in 1999 but after 21 years as a neighborhood staple, they, too, have fallen victim to COVID-19. Tribeca Citizen reported the news that the grocery story-meets-bodega (where Cardi-B was famously a cashier during high school) will likely close its doors by the 26th after a 90-percent drop in business.
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City Living

There’s an indoor pool and a rooftop yoga studio at this $8M Brooklyn Heights house

Listing photos via Duplex Imaging

September 22, 2020

There’s an indoor pool and a rooftop yoga studio at this $8M Brooklyn Heights house

This $7,995,000 townhouse in Brooklyn Heights is truly one of the most unique homes we've seen. From the street, it looks like your average wood-frame house, but a modern addition in the rear is quite the surprise. Other unexpected perks include a two-car driveway, a 22-foot-long indoor pool, and a greenhouse that's currently set up a glass-box yoga studio.
Take the tour

Distinctive Homes

Help save the historic neon sign at the Bronx’s 64-year-old Palomba Academy of Music

Photo © James and Karla Murray

September 21, 2020

Help save the historic neon sign at the Bronx’s 64-year-old Palomba Academy of Music

Palomba Academy of Music has been teaching music lessons from its storefront in the Williamsbridge section of the Bronx for 64 years, but they've sadly had to close due to COVID-19. However, there's a piece of this business that photographers James and Karla Murray hope to preserve. They are working with iconic NYC neon shop Let There Be Neon to remove Palomba's historic, 25-foot neon sign and have it relocated to the American Sign Museum in Cincinatti, Ohio. But they need your help...
Here's how you can contribute

City Living

Indoor pools at NYC residential buildings and gyms can open next week

Photo by Richard R. Schünemann on Unsplash

September 18, 2020

Indoor pools at NYC residential buildings and gyms can open next week

On September 30, the same day that indoor dining resumes, indoor pools in New York City will be able to reopen at 33 percent capacity, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Friday. "Swimming pools are a community anchor, an exercise center, and an oasis in their neighborhoods—both literally and figuratively. New Yorkers have worked hard to fight back COVID-19. As transmission rates remain low, we’re proud to offer more ways to slowly return to business as usual," said the mayor in a statement.
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Policy

Shuck yeah! The Billion Oyster Project is throwing a virtual party next week

Photo by Viviana Rishe on Unsplash

September 18, 2020

Shuck yeah! The Billion Oyster Project is throwing a virtual party next week

Did you know that when Henry Hudson first arrived on the shores of New York Habor in 1609, he encountered 220,000 acres of oyster beds--nearly half the oyster population of the entire world! In recent years, however, that number had almost entirely diminished, which is where the Billion Oyster Project came in. Since 2014, they've been working to restore oyster reefs to the harbor with the goal of adding one billion oysters by 2035. Their work hasn't stopped during COVID, and this year, the nonprofit's annual party is going virtual. Next Thursday, join the Billion Oyster Party for a shucking lesson (don't worry, you'll get your mollusks in the mail!), food demonstrations, timely discussions, and more.
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Events & Things To Do

$16.5M Upper East Side townhouse has a magical roof garden with a mini pool

Photos courtesy of The Corcoran Group

September 18, 2020

$16.5M Upper East Side townhouse has a magical roof garden with a mini pool

All five stories of this Upper East Side townhouse are just as classic and formal as the stately exterior might suggest. But on the roof, an enchanting garden complete with a small pool, Central Park views, and an outdoor kitchen add a welcome dose of fun. Located at 11 East 93rd Street, just off the park, the home underwent a renovation and restoration by architect and designer Reza Nouranian and is now asking $16,500,000.
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Distinctive Homes

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