All articles by Emily Nonko

Emily is a Brooklyn-based writer who has covered New York City real estate, architecture and design for Brownstoner, The Wall Street Journal, Dwell and other publications. You can follow her on Twitter @EmilyNonko.
Stay in an Adirondack tree house retreat this summer
May 24, 2017

Stay in an Adirondack tree house retreat this summer

By
If you're looking for a unique summer retreat not far from NYC, here's your answer. This cozy treehouse is nestled in the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains, nine miles from the upstate town of Saratoga Springs. In this quiet, remote locale, a winding staircase takes you from a patio up the tree and into a wood cabin. It's outfitted with everything you'd need, including a bathroom, lofted bed, and built-in storage. And right outside the sleeping quarters is a covered porch perfect for reading or writing. For such a quiet, private retreat, it'll cost $179 a night.
See inside the tree house
$2.3M Williamsburg triplex is clad in cedar from NYC’s iconic water towers
May 23, 2017

$2.3M Williamsburg triplex is clad in cedar from NYC’s iconic water towers

By
This expansive Williamsburg triplex was once a part of the flagship retail space for a children's clothing manufacturer--when the cast iron building was constructed in the 1880s, the first floor held retail while the sewing machines, shears and bosses occupied the upper floors. Now the building, located at 138 Broadway, is known as the Smith Gray condominium, and this apartment is asking $2.3 million. Over 2,300 square feet, you'll spot tin ceilings, Corinthian columns and exposed structural brick. While those are pretty typical loft details, this apartment boasts one of the more unique lofts in Brooklyn. It's clad with reclaimed cedar from New York's iconic wooden water towers, which results in a cozy loft enclosure that can be opened via specially-designed casement windows.
See more of the apartment
From shipping hub to waterfront wonder, the history of Brooklyn Bridge Park with Joanne Witty
May 22, 2017

From shipping hub to waterfront wonder, the history of Brooklyn Bridge Park with Joanne Witty

By
134 years ago, the opening of the Brooklyn Bridge transformed the Brooklyn waterfront, not to mention the entire borough, by providing direct access into Kings County from Lower Manhattan. The opening only boosted Brooklyn's burgeoning waterfront, which became a bustling shipping hub for the New York Dock Company by the early 1900s. Business boomed for several decades until changes in the industry pushed the shipping industry from Brooklyn to New Jersey. And after the late 1950s, when many of the warehouses were demolished to make way for construction of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, the waterfront fell into severe decline. New Yorkers today are living through a new kind of Brooklyn waterfront boom, heralded by the Brooklyn Bridge Park. Ideas to transform the abandoned, run-down waterfront into a park seemed like a pipe dream when the idea was floated in the 1980s, but years of dedication by the local community and politicians turned the vision into reality. Today, the park is considered one of the best in the city.
continue reading here
Architect Steven Harris designed a modern retreat for himself on 50 acres upstate
May 21, 2017

Architect Steven Harris designed a modern retreat for himself on 50 acres upstate

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Steven Harris Architects designed this modern upstate retreat for Steven Harris himself and his partner Lucien Rees Roberts, a British interior designer, who together own the 50-acre private estate. The land, known as Kinderhook Retreat, is located atop a hill between the Catskills and the Berkshires. Not to overwhelm the pastoral landscape design, the minimalist buildings were outfitted with a modernist white-shingled design. The design has evolved since the construction of the first building, in 1992, and even includes a croquet stadium and two-acre man-made lake.
Take the tour
$625K Prospect Heights apartment with its own roof access is lovely as can be
May 20, 2017

$625K Prospect Heights apartment with its own roof access is lovely as can be

By
This charming pad comes from the top floor of 786 Washington Avenue, a 16-unit prewar co-op in Prospect Heights. Interior details include 11-foot ceilings, exposed brick, and hardwood flooring throughout. But the real perk is exclusive rights to the portion of the roof directly above the apartment, which is currently outfitted with a deck and custom bench seating. This appealing combo of indoor and outdoor space, plus the nice Brooklyn location, is on the market for $625,000.
This way for a tour
$3M Boerum Hill townhouse is ready for summer with a deck, backyard, and roof deck
May 19, 2017

$3M Boerum Hill townhouse is ready for summer with a deck, backyard, and roof deck

By
With the weather heating up and summer around the corner, it's time to start drooling over private outdoor spaces up for sale. A deck, backyard and roof deck designed by a landscape architect adorn this Boerum Hill townhouse at 459 Pacific Street, now on the market for $2.996 million. The 19th-century townhouse was gut renovated into a modern owner's triplex, with a separate one-bedroom apartment with its own entrance under the stoop. An open floorplan, built-in shelving, and fancy appliances complete the interior.
Check it all out
Rare Italianate townhouse in Long Island City comes with a sunroom and lush backyard
May 17, 2017

Rare Italianate townhouse in Long Island City comes with a sunroom and lush backyard

By
Long Island City isn't known as a neighborhood of historic townhomes--especially considering all the new development--but it does boast the impressive Hunters Point Historic District, lined with incredible residential architecture. One such building in the historic district is the Italianate townhouse at 21-20 45th Avenue built by developers Root and Rust in 1870. It's now on the market for $3.5 million. According to the listing, the exterior use of Westchester stone--a durable sandstone resembling marble--"has allowed this and other townhouses along the row to survive almost 150 years looking almost as good as the day they were built." Inside, there's tin ceilings, marble mantels and exposed brick, as well as a sunroom that leads out to a truly incredible backyard.
Go see it
French-inspired townhouse asks $8.5M on Sutton Place
May 15, 2017

French-inspired townhouse asks $8.5M on Sutton Place

By
This $8.5 million townhouse at 19 Sutton Place boasts an interesting backstory dating to the 1920s. The home--like most others in the area--was built as an unassuming brownstone in the late 1800s. In 1920, the wealthy literary agent Elisabeth Marbury, with her partner Elsie de Wolfe, a well-known decorator, moved to the block and hired an architect to transform a nearby townhouse into a neo-Georgian townhouse. Millionaires followed suit, moving in and redesigning the homes of Sutton Place. At 19 Sutton, banker B. Stafford Mantz transformed the brownstone into a "provincial Louis XVI townhouse of grey and brown brick" according to Daytonian in Manhattan. And today, the interior boasts elegant spaces with high ceilings, five wood-burning fireplaces, and its own elevator.
Take a look around
Brick archways and timber beams decorate this $2M Tribeca co-op
May 13, 2017

Brick archways and timber beams decorate this $2M Tribeca co-op

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This apartment comes from the gorgeous Tribeca co-op building 165 Duane Street, also known as the Duane Park Lofts. The Romanesque Revival-style, 11-story warehouse was designed by Stephen Decatur Hatch in 1880 and converted in 1980 to 36 co-ops. This one bedroom is all exposed brick, with some timber beams, and it's now asking $2.15 million. Large eastern windows look out over Tribeca's rooftops and other great buildings, like the landmarked Western Union Building and FiDi skyscrapers to the south.
See the inside
Stanford White-designed chapel, once part of the Edwin D. Morgan estate, is now a home asking $3.25M
May 12, 2017

Stanford White-designed chapel, once part of the Edwin D. Morgan estate, is now a home asking $3.25M

By
Talk about a living arrangement that's holier than thou. This chapel is part of the former Edwin Denison Morgan III estate in Old Westbury, Long Island. The impressive estate, complete with gardens and fountains, was designed by the great Stanford White in the late-19th century, and now its chapel is on the market for $3.25 million. (It's a price decrease from last year, when it hit the market for $4.3 million.) Amazingly, the chapel was once connected to the estate’s other buildings by tunnels, though it was converted a while back to a four-bedroom home. Cathedral ceilings, stained-glass windows designed by John La Farge--the stunning space has got everything, not to mention a heated gunite pool and putting green outside.
Take a look inside
Extravagant limestone mansion asks a whooping $13.25M in Park Slope
May 12, 2017

Extravagant limestone mansion asks a whooping $13.25M in Park Slope

By
This 1890s limestone and brick mansion at 45 Montgomery Place, in Park Slope was built--and renovated--to impress. It's also asking an impressive $13.25 million after last selling a few years back for $10.775 million. (The last asking price, in 2013, was set at $14 million.) An impeccable renovation covers all 7,500 square feet of the 30-foot-wide home; everything from a refurbished, classic Otis elevator to restored stained glass to a wine cellar awaits in this townhouse, which was featured in the April issue of the French publication Marie Claire Maison.
Now see it for yourself
INTERVIEW: Urban archaeologist Joan Geismar on the artifacts she’s dug up across New York
May 12, 2017

INTERVIEW: Urban archaeologist Joan Geismar on the artifacts she’s dug up across New York

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Joan Geismar boasts a job that'll make any urban explorer jealous. For the past 32 years, she's operated her own business as an archaeological consultant, digging underneath the streets of New York City to find what historical remnants remain. Her career kicked off in 1982, with the major discovery of an 18th-century merchant ship at a construction site near the South Street Seaport. (The land is now home to the 30-story tower 175 Water Street.) Other discoveries include digging up intact remnants of wooden water pipes, components of the city’s first water system, at Coenties Slip Park; studying the long-defunct burial ground at the Brooklyn Navy Yard; and working alongside the renovation in Washington Square Park, in which she made a major revelation about the former Potter's Field there. With 6sqft, she discusses what it felt like unearthing a ship in Lower Manhattan, the curious headstone she found underneath Washington Square Park, and what people's trash can tell us about New York history.
The full interview ahead
Resolution: 4 Architecture designed this ‘white, bright, light, and tight’ duplex for a young family
May 9, 2017

Resolution: 4 Architecture designed this ‘white, bright, light, and tight’ duplex for a young family

By
This 3,000-square-foot, four-bedroom duplex loft was totally transformed by Resolution: 4 Architecture, who sums up their Manhattan project as "white, bright, light, and tight." To house a young family of four, the firm renovated the upper level into a communal space, lined with hidden storage and centered by a sculptural spiral staircase that leads to the bedrooms below. The striking, modern interiors may not necessarily look family friendly, but the firm says "the home was designed with family, play, and the production of art in mind."
Take a look at the stunning space
Freestanding home in Fiske Terrace Historic District asks $1.6M
May 9, 2017

Freestanding home in Fiske Terrace Historic District asks $1.6M

By
This charming property comes from the Fiske Terrace-Midwood Park Historic District, where historic, freestanding homes are the norm. Fiske Terrace is an enclave of Flatbush, a Brooklyn neighborhood located just east of Ditmas Park. (Ditmas is also known for its freestanding beauties.) Here at 819 East 19th Street, which is now on the market for $1.595 million, there are historic details throughout formal living and dining rooms, as well as an enclosed porch, backyard, private driveway and garage.
Take a peek inside
Raad Studio gut renovated this sleek Tribeca condo, now asking $3.7M
May 8, 2017

Raad Studio gut renovated this sleek Tribeca condo, now asking $3.7M

By
Raad Studio left its touch on this two-bedroom Tribeca condo, from the 1920s building 39 White Street. A gut renovation from the New York design firm, which has stunning projects all over the city and is behind the Lowline proposal, left this lofty apartment with both custom design elements and 19th-century details intact. From a 300-bottle wine rack to a customized floor-to-ceiling door to the master suite, this $3.7 million apartment is worth gawking over.
So take the interior tour
Parlor floor of an 1800s Park Slope brownstone is now a $1.5M two-bedroom co-op
May 7, 2017

Parlor floor of an 1800s Park Slope brownstone is now a $1.5M two-bedroom co-op

By
There's nothing lovelier than the parlor floor of a brownstone, and this one at the historic 201 Saint Johns Place townhouse in Park Slope, is up for sale asking $1.5 million. The floor was converted into a two-bedroom co-op with some outdoor space, but it's still dripping with details like the wood-burning fireplace mantle, original doors, moldings, ceiling medallions, window shutters, archway details and hardwood floors. It's a long list of historical goodies, and they've all been well preserved within this four-unit cooperative townhouse, in which shareholders are expected to participate in taking care of the building.
Now it's time to take a look
For just $450K, a charming Connecticut cottage with a unique musical history
May 6, 2017

For just $450K, a charming Connecticut cottage with a unique musical history

By
This Connecticut home, which is beyond quaint and has been dubbed the "Sunset cottage," comes with a musical backstory dating from more than a century ago (h/t CIRCA). In 1900, the former farmhouse served as a summer dormitory and reading room for students at the Greene School of Music. Sixty years after the school shuttered in 1924--and after a full renovation into a home--musician Paul Fenick snatched it up. He often used the space to perform with his bluegrass band, The Still River Ramblers. The school's library was converted to a practice space, and framed album covers, concert posters, and artist photographs were hung on the walls. Now the cozy house, located in the heart of Brookfield’s Historic District, is up for sale asking $449,900.
Tour the house right this way
$2.25M Windsor Terrace townhouse with front porch and landscaped backyard looks perfect for summer
May 5, 2017

$2.25M Windsor Terrace townhouse with front porch and landscaped backyard looks perfect for summer

By
This Brooklyn townhouse is unique in that it comes with a south-facing front porch. It's large enough to place some chairs and a small table and looks down over the front garden. And out back, there's a charming backyard with custom wood fencing and lighting, specially designed by a landscape architect to bloom flowers from spring into fall. All this excellent outdoor space--just as the weather starts to heat up--comes from the Windsor Terrace home at 225 Windsor Place. The interior isn't bad either, as it boasts a modern, renovated kitchen alongside some restored historic details. After last selling in 2008 for $1.497 million, the home is now asking $2.25 million.
Check it all out
$1.25M loft-like apartment comes from a landmark townhouse on West End Avenue
May 4, 2017

$1.25M loft-like apartment comes from a landmark townhouse on West End Avenue

By
This apartment boasts lofty vibes inside but comes from a historic landmarked townhouse of the Upper West Side. Located at 357 West End Avenue, a Lamb and Rich-designed corner property, this two-bedroom apartment sits on the top floor. Bad news: it looks like it's a walk-up. There's also good news, as the high ceilings make way for open loft space with a window and an operating skylight--the perfect bonus space for an office or library. After last selling in 2013 for $914,500, the apartment is now trying its hand asking $1.25 million.
More photos this way
$3M home in the urban suburb of Prospect Park South is a freestanding beauty
May 3, 2017

$3M home in the urban suburb of Prospect Park South is a freestanding beauty

By
Want to live in a gorgeous suburban enclave that's attracted the likes of Michelle Williams? Then look no further than Prospect Park South, a neighborhood designed, as developer Dean Alford put it, to "illustrate how much natural beauty can be incorporated within the rectangular limits of the city." The landscaping and the homes have remained intact since this area was constructed more than 100 years ago, including this home built in 1907. Designed by the architect Arlington Isham, it's a Simplified Free Colonial style house with an enclosed porch and plenty of period details. For this escape into the finer pastures of Brooklyn, it will cost a cool $3 million.
This way for interior pictures
This quaint worker’s cottage could be your upstate retreat for just $165K
May 2, 2017

This quaint worker’s cottage could be your upstate retreat for just $165K

By
This humble cottage could be your upstate escape this summer for just $165,000. It's located in Kinderhook, a town known for its charming downtown and historic sites that include the Martin Van Buren National Historic Site. The home, a former cottage built for the town's cotton mill workers, is located at 4 Railroad Avenue--a short walk from Kinderhook's downtown. It's a modest abode with two bedrooms, one bathroom, and some lovely interior details.
Take a look inside
Recently renovated three-bedroom pad in an 1844 West Village townhouse asks $2.7M
May 1, 2017

Recently renovated three-bedroom pad in an 1844 West Village townhouse asks $2.7M

By
Morton Street--a five-block stretch between Bleecker and the Hudson River Greenway--is one of the best streets of the West Village. It's full of great architecture and historic townhouses, like this one at 44 Morton. The Greek Revival townhouse, built in 1844 and now landmarked, sits at the "turn" in the middle of street as it approaches Seventh Avenue. (According to the Landmarks Preservation Commission, it's the earliest house built on this side of the block.) The property has been broken up into four condos, and this one is asking $2.7 million. Once occupied by the Nobel Prize laureate Josef Brodsky, it was recently renovated into quite the charming three-and-a-half-bedroom pad.
Take a look around
$1.095M duplex in a Park Slope brownstone boasts intricate stained glass and inlaid wood floors
April 30, 2017

$1.095M duplex in a Park Slope brownstone boasts intricate stained glass and inlaid wood floors

By
This Park Slope duplex is located just one block from Prospect Park and Grand Army Plaza, and chock full of prewar details inside. Taking up two floors of a historic brownstone at 85 8th Avenue, the rooms are lined with detailed stained glass, the original moldings, hardwood floors with an incredible walnut inlay, and painted brick walls. In the wintertime there's a working fireplace, and for the summer there's a private deck. For such a dreamy Park Slope offering, something that's sure to make old house lovers swoon, it'll cost $1.095 million.
Now see inside
Bakery-turned-condo in Williamsburg holds an incredible apartment lined with exposed brick and beams
April 26, 2017

Bakery-turned-condo in Williamsburg holds an incredible apartment lined with exposed brick and beams

By
At the Sophia Lofts, a bakery warehouse in Williamsburg converted to 11 apartments in 2007, you could pick up this one-bedroom condo for $995,000. (It last sold in 2009 for $555,000.) For a hair less than $1 million the pad offers one bedroom, lots of exposed brick, wood beam ceilings, and those big warehouse windows. Although the apartment still has a bit of warehouse grittiness left to it, spaces like the bathroom and kitchen were modernized, while plenty of shelving was added to hold the owner's quirky collection of stuff.
Right this way for more of the interior
New Jane Jacobs documentary spotlights her achievements in NYC and lessons to be carried forward
April 26, 2017

New Jane Jacobs documentary spotlights her achievements in NYC and lessons to be carried forward

By
One of the most iconic battles to decide the fate of New York City was waged, in the 1950s and '60s, by Jane Jacobs and Robert Moses. He, a Parks Commissioner turned power broker, was known for his aggressive urban renewal projects, tearing tenements down to build higher, denser housing. She, often dismissed as a housewife, emerged as his most vocal critic—not to mention a skilled organizer with the ability to stop some of Moses' most ambitious plans. A new documentary, Citizen Jane: Battle for the City, takes a close look at the groundbreaking work of Jane Jacobs and its importance in our urbanizing world today. Matt Tyrnauer, the director behind Valentino: The Last Emperor, compiled footage of both Jacobs and Moses alongside 1950s and '60s New York, which is paired with voiceovers of Marissa Tomei and Vincent D’Onofrio as the battling duo. Experts in urban planning—everyone from Paul Goldberger to Robert A.M. Stern—also discuss Jacobs’ massive influence on housing policy and urban planning, as the film makes a convincing argument that Jacobs' planning philosophies are needed now more than ever.
Read our review of the film
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