Architecture And Design

6sqft is no stranger to green design, and more and more buildings throughout New York City are implementing eco-friendly features, from providing electric car chargers to utilizing geothermal energy systems. A major component in sustainable development is the addition of green roofs. Whether they're merely for environmental purposes, or if they provide a usable outdoor space, green roofs are the next big thing in green design. So, we decided to chat with Amy Norquist, CEO and founder of Greensulate, a leader in integrated design, engineering, installation and maintenance of green roof systems for the residential, commercial, and industrial markets.
Read our full interview with Amy here

November 12, 2014

Your Brain on Architecture: Neuroscientific Proof That Design Matters

If there were ever a case to hire an architect and not skimp on design, a new study revealing that certain styles of architecture can have a measurable effect on one's mental state might be a good foundation. The new research, conducted by a team of architects and neuroscientists, uses a fMRI to capture the effects of architecture on the brains of a set of subjects as they thumb through images of "contemplative architecture" such as churches and temples. The fact that architecture can have an impact on well-being may be a "duh" conclusion to you, but for most it is not. And this architectural neuroscience team is making it their goal to turn the way in which individuals experience slight nuances in our built environment into scientific observations that can be applied to the design of buildings and urban planning.
More on the study here

November 11, 2014

QUIZ: Which Starchitect Are You?

By Alyssa Alimurung

Are you an OG architect that doesn’t care what other people think? Or a rising star who cares deeply about design? Or would you rather build structures than design them? This architecture-nerd turned the hallmarks of your favorite starchitects into a fun BuzzFeed quiz. Take it now and find out which starchitect you are. TAKE THE […]

Architecture And Design

November 11, 2014

Stamberg Aferiat Update a 200-Year-Old Farmhouse Using Japanese Palace Architecture

Stamberg Aferiat + Associates was given quite the challenge–to bring together their client's love of Japanese palace architecture, their large-scale modern art collection and the existing architecture of a 200-year-old farmhouse, all while respecting and enhancing the property's 32 acres with two ponds and wooded islands. The resulting Sycamore Creek house maintains the feel and scale of the farmhouse from its primary vantage point, but incorporates Japanese palace architecture to create dynamic spaces among the original structure and a new addition.
More details on the house ahead

Architecture And Design

November 11, 2014

Beautiful Upper East Side Fairytale Mansion Now $2M Less

The fairy tale of New York City is constantly unfolding, and this one-of-a-kind Upper East Side townhouse will surely set the scene for a romantic urban happily ever after. This home, originally built in 1893 by A. B. Ogden and Son, is located at 5 East 93rd Street, a stone's throw away from 5th Avenue and Central Park. Within the last few years the entire property was completely restored, and the elaborate detailing that went into the design of this home is immaculate. The listing price for this property is $17.95 million—and yep, if you’ve been following, it's dropped almost $2 million from its February listing price.
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November 11, 2014

Where I Work: Check out Chip Brian’s design empire (and coffee shop) in Long Island City

Chip Brian may look like he's all business, but he's a builder and a Californian with an inclination for all things sustainable. The founder of Design Development NYC (DD), Best & Co. and a new and experimental venture called Neue Atelier, Chip has managed to build a creative empire that, luckily for his busy clients, is a one-stop design/build shop that brings architecture, renovation and furnishings under one roof. We recently stopped by his Long Island City space where he gave us the grand tour of the studio.
Inside the studio here

November 11, 2014

2,000 More Bioswales Will Help NYC Absorb Stormwater

What's a bioswale? (We know that's what you're saying to yourself.) It's a curbside garden built to absorb stormwater. The city currently has about 255 of them, but will be installing an additional 2,000 throughout Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx to prepare for the possibility of more intense storms in the future. Not only will the bioswales absorb an estimated 200 million gallons of stormwater each year, but they'll therefore mitigate pollution in the Bronx River, Flushing Bay, Gowanus Canal, Jamaica Bay and Newtown Creek.
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November 10, 2014

Architect Steven Harris Builds a Floating Staircase to Heaven in This Tribeca Loft Renovation

Made possible by handiwork from the firm Steven Harris Architects, the design and luxury of this Tribeca loft renovation are magnificent. The entirety of the project included the renovation of a huge penthouse located in a converted 1930s office building into a dream home for one family with three teenagers and no budget constraints. What emerged was this multi-level unit that occupies the 27th and 28th floors with nearly 8,000 square feet of living space. The property features a self-contained guest house, a new glass and teak beam rooftop (which also doubles as a recreation room), and fabulous views of Manhattan and Brooklyn. However, within all of this architectural glory our favorite detail is the elegant floating staircase that climbs up the living room wall and almost into the clouds.
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‘Orange is the New Black’ Actress Alysia Reiner Renovates Historic Harlem Townhouse

By Alyssa Alimurung

This Harlem townhouse on 128th Street may look like a sunny respite now, but back in 2007 when actress Alysia Reiner and her husband David Alan Basche bought it, the building was nothing but an abandoned space with some dusty (but beautiful) brick walls. Armed with MontesBuild Green Street Construction and their vision to turn it into […]

November 9, 2014

Tsao & McKown’s Half-Buried Home Tackles the Human Desire for Open and Private Living Space

By Ana Lisa Alperovich

Calvin Tsao and Zack McKown, partners of Tsao & McKown, designed a stunning minimalist home in Wainscott, New York–a community planned by Richard Meier. The Sagaponac House was created for a hypothetical client, and due to an alteration to the terrain the home is partially underground. This roots it in the landscape while offering both privacy and openness toward the young forest around it.
Learn more about this half-buried home

Architecture And Design

November 7, 2014

New Yorker Spotlight: Mark Stumer of Mojo Stumer Takes Us Inside His Architectural World

By Susan Cohen

From an early age, architect Mark Stumer was practicing skills needed for his future craft. He engaged with the world of design through drawing, admiring buildings in Manhattan, and even studying lobbies and courtyards. It's fair to say that Mark wanted to be an architect before he even knew what one was, or what the job entailed. Genetics likely played a role as his great-grandfather, grandfather, and father were all in construction. For almost 35 years, Mark and his partner Thomas Mojo have served as principals of Mojo Stumer & Associates, an architectural firm known for their modern designs and incorporation of architecture and interior design. The firm has received numerous accolades, and recently added another AIA Award to their collection. We recently spoke with Mark about his life-long architectural passion.
Read our interview with Mark here

November 7, 2014

Songpa Micro-Housing: An Apartment That Adjusts to Your Relationship Status

Breaking up is hard to do, especially in New York where shacking up saves you big bucks. And other than mending a broken heart, the worst part is finding a new apartment in a pinch and the dreaded division of belongings. But what if you could just throw a wall in between you and your ex and call it a day? A new design for small-scale housing communities does just that. Songpa Micro-Housing, named for the district of Seoul in which it's located, is a mixed-use building designed by SsD Architecture, a firm based in New York and Cambridge, Massachusetts. It has 14 units that can be combined and rearranged to fit lifestyle changes. So, two lovebirds can rent a place together and if it doesn't work out, they can simply separate the units.
Find out more about the adjustable housing

November 7, 2014

Upcoming Condo-Hotel Overlooking Bryant Park Unveils New Dapper Look

By Ondel Hylton

An updated rendering of a ground-up, mixed-use tower along the south side of Bryant Park has been revealed on HFZ Capital Group's website. The storied site at 20 West 40th Street was acquired by HFZ after Fortieth St. Partners defaulted on a $44 million loan back in 2010. According to HFZ's project page, the development will include a 5-star hotel, restaurant and bar, and residential condominiums. Construction permits filed last month specify that the hotel-design experts Stonehill & Taylor are the architects of record.
Additional details on the project

November 7, 2014

Tenement Talks: Learn About Lowline’s Past and the Underground Park That May One Day Fill It

Ever since architects James Ramsey and Dan Barasch announced their plan to turn a forgotten trolley terminal below Delancey Street into an underground park, design enthusiasts, urban planners, locals, celebs, and, well, just about everyone who’s caught wind of it has been waiting in anticipation for what’s to come. The push to make this cool concept […]

November 7, 2014

Bush Terminal Piers Park Opens on the Sunset Park Waterfront

Sunset Park has gotten people's attention in recent months–ours included–thanks to an influx of creative and commercial opportunities, as well as the major Industry City development. Located in the former Bush Terminal, the 16-building, 6.5 million-square-foot complex is being remodeled with the intent of creating “a dynamic 21st century innovation and manufacturing community that balances existing manufacturing tenants with those centered on creative and innovation economy fields.” And adjacent to the site is Liberty View Industrial Plaza, an eight-story, 1.2 million-square-foot warehouse that will offer work space. These waterfront developments are touting Sunset Park as a walk-to-work neighborhood, and now residents will have a new park to stroll through on their way in to the office. Bush Terminal Piers Park opened this week after being in the works since the '90s. Extending from 45th to 50th Streets along the waterfront, Brooklyn's newest park sits atop a former toxic waste site, but was cleaned up over the past decade and now offers an esplanade overlooking tide ponds and restored wetlands.
More on the park and its surrounding neighborhood

Architecture And Design

November 6, 2014

New York City’s Residential Skyscraper Boom: Living in the Sky Part II

By Ondel Hylton

You've probably realized that New York is in the midst of a skyscraper boom, but if the ubiquitous scaffolding and sidewalk detours haven't given it away, we bring you further proof — with part two of our series detailing the tallest residential towers set to rise high above the city, forever changing New York's skyline. Compared to the previous 26 projects — the tallest of the tall that included ultra-luxury and super-tall towers such as 432 Park Avenue and 125 Greenwich Street — this second batch is composed of smaller buildings ranging from 500 to 700 feet tall and features greater geographical diversity and lots more rentals. With developers scouring the city for less expensive areas to assemble properties, these often-controversial projects are slated to rise in some of our more human-scaled 'hoods such as East Harlem, South Street Seaport, and Williamsburg.
Will they all get built? Unlikely, but in any case here's our list

November 6, 2014

Artist Transforms Decrepit Woodstock Property into a Psychedelic Playground and Home

We know Woodstock, New York is an upstate haven for creative types, but we still had to look twice when we saw this rainbow-colored house gracing its woodsy landscape. Artist Kat O'Sulllivan, also know as Katwise, is the mastermind behind the psychedelic transformation of this barn-home. When she first purchased the property it was a decrepit looking house from the 1840s, far from the graphic masterpiece that it is today. The exterior of her home boasts a vibrant spectrum of colors and patterns, and the interior is equally spectacular and whimsical.
Take a look around the colorful abode

Architecture And Design

November 6, 2014

KAPOW! A Punching-Bag Keyboard for the Disgruntled Cubicle Worker

We've made it past hump day but now here we are counting down the seconds until the clock strikes six. For those who find themselves grumbling over long days and irksome coworkers, this amazing punching-bag keyboard by German design studio Bless is exactly what you need to relieve some of that work-induced stress.
We've got a video of the keyboard being used here

November 6, 2014

Lauren Bacall’s Dakota Apartment Will Go for a Jaw-Dropping $26 Million

Since Lauren Bacall passed away this summer, many have been watching the iconic actress’s longtime Dakota home in hopes of catching a glimpse of the interior—and a chance at owning Hollywood history. Now word has it that the residence will hit the market any minute now with Warburg Realty brokering what is expected to be a $26 million listing. […]

November 5, 2014

Andrew Franz Transforms an Old Soap Factory into a Tranquil Tribeca Oasis

Architect Andrew Franz is known for his nature-inspired designs, and he has successfully infused his signature aesthetic into the tranquil interior of this Tribeca home. Franz transformed a 19th century Manhattan soap factory into what is now a gorgeous example of adaptive reuse. The designer's goal for this project was to create the feeling of being outdoors when inside the walls of the Romanesque Revival building, while also maintaining as much of the original structure as possible. By combining modern clean lines and open spaces with rustic wooden columns and raw brick walls, Franz creates a visual narrative celebrating the preservation of something old in the creation of something new and beautiful.
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November 5, 2014

$3.58M Forsyth Revitalization Project Will Bring an Elevated Park Off the Manhattan Bridge

If you've ever walked or biked across the Manhattan Bridge, or simply tried to make your way past the off-ramp on foot, you know that it can be a heart-thumping jaunt that often requires expert maneuvering to avoid collision. A new design proposed for a triangular section of land beside the Manhattan Bridge along Forsyth Street could bring some much-needed calm to the frenetic energy of this area. Tomorrow, the Department of Design and Construction will present their plan to transform this elevated space into a public green space that's being likened to the High Line Park.
Find out more here

Architecture And Design

November 5, 2014

Live Like Hamptons Royalty in the $4.3M Red-Brick Castle