City Living

ODA’s Eran Chen on why ‘inclusive amenities’ are overplayed, and the need for better public spaces
November 7, 2016

ODA’s Eran Chen on why ‘inclusive amenities’ are overplayed, and the need for better public spaces

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Some architects just consider the building they are working on. But Eran Chen, the founder and executive director of ODA, Office for Design and Architecture, takes a broader view. Not only does he focus on the specific architecture for each building project but he considers the spaces the building creates, the way the architecture can […]

The closing of neighborhood grocery stores is leaving local shoppers stranded
November 4, 2016

The closing of neighborhood grocery stores is leaving local shoppers stranded

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An important must-have when apartment hunting often involves the presence of a grocery store within a few blocks. A local food market, regardless of how harsh its fluorescent lighting or how narrow its aisles, is often the key to feeling part of civilization, especially when you've run out of milk for breakfast. The familiar branches of local chains–from Key Food to D'Agostino to the corner deli–are closing down across the city, in some cases leaving New Yorkers in something of a "grocery desert" surrounded by restaurants but without access to fresh ingredients and emergency baby supplies. According to the New York Times, the landscape is definitely shifting: Between 2005 and 2015, about 300, or eight percent, of the city's greengrocers–defined as "family-owned stores of less than about 7,000 square feet"–closed up shop and left the neighborhood.
What's causing the shift?
MAP: NYC has more than 666,000 street trees, up 12 percent since 2006
November 4, 2016

MAP: NYC has more than 666,000 street trees, up 12 percent since 2006

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The last time the city catalogued its street trees was back in 2005-2006, when they found about 592,130 trees on public streets, including their species, trunk thickness, and condition (you can explore a map of all this info). In the summer of 2015, the Parks Department put out a call for volunteers to help with the next round of data collection, and they received help from 2,241 individuals who completed a third of the work. They've now released the results of the 2015-2016 census, which shows an increase of 12.5 percent to 666,134 trees covering 209 species, and compiled their findings into an interactive map.
Learn more about the city's street trees
100 Barclay: Restoring and reinventing a historic Tribeca landmark
November 2, 2016

100 Barclay: Restoring and reinventing a historic Tribeca landmark

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This post has been sponsored by 100 Barclay. To learn more about available condos or to schedule a tour, visit the official 100 Barclay website. Finished in 1927, 100 Barclay is one of New York City's most pivotal structures. Designed by one of our country's most esteemed architects, Ralph Walker, while he was an associate at McKenzie Voorhees & Gmelin, the tower began construction in 1923, during a time marked by a dramatic shift in architecture and the beginning of the Roaring Twenties. Originally known as the Barclay-Vesey Building, the 32-story building ascends to a height of nearly 500 feet, which made it one of the globe's tallest towers upon completion. The voluminous building was also built as the largest telephone company building in the world, encompassing more than 1.2 million square feet of office and telecommunication space. Its Hugh Ferris-inspired massing, and nature-influenced ornamentation stands as a monument to man's prowess and the machine age, and is widely recognized by architects and historians to be the first Art Deco skyscraper, a prototypical example of the style in its finest form.
hear from the architects who have worked on this project
For New York City rats, getting here is easy, surviving is tough
October 28, 2016

For New York City rats, getting here is easy, surviving is tough

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To investigate the question, “What is a New York City rat, and where did it come from?” the New York Times checks in with researchers at Fordham University, led by Jason Munshi-South, who have embarked on a rat-tracking study to find the answer to that very question (among others). It turns out that–much like the city's millions of two-legged inhabitants–the answer is "everywhere," from Galapagos and Brazil to New Zealand and Japan.
We're all immigrants at some point
‘Judgmental Maps’ unleash culture on the geography of modern cities
October 27, 2016

‘Judgmental Maps’ unleash culture on the geography of modern cities

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Residents of today's cities and neighborhoods are acutely aware of the cultural histories and social nuances that shape them almost as much as their streets and bridges, architecture and businesses. A few years ago Trent Gillaspie's "judgmental maps," from his site by the same name, hit a nerve and went viral; the totally unserious (but not necessarily inaccurate) maps pair geography with a snapshot of real life in modern cities, towns and neighborhoods. Gillaspie's "Judgmental New York City" was spot on in many ways with its Manhattan of "amply rich people," "super rich people," "aging punks" and the "worst train station ever" and a Brooklyn that went from Jay-Z to Zombies. Now, Gillaspie is releasing a book (h/t Untapped) of his signature reality-check maps, including an updated New York City map and the city's neighborhoods, decoded.
Your city, judged
Home aroma: Signature scents are the newest NYC building amenity

Image: John Watson via flickr.

October 24, 2016

Home aroma: Signature scents are the newest NYC building amenity

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Something is in the air at luxury apartment buildings looking for new ways to charm residents. The idea of “aromatizing” building common spaces to entice buyers and renters with seductive scents is gaining popularity among developers, according to The New York Times. A growing number of the city's rental and condo buildings have begun to infuse their halls with fragrance via building ductwork or standalone scent machines. With any luck, the result will be something far, far away from the smell of your subway stop in August.
It smells good, but is it working?
Life in New York City before indoor toilets  

Image: The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1902 – 1914

October 24, 2016

Life in New York City before indoor toilets  

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If you’ve ever bemoaned the fact that you share a bathroom with several family members or housemates, you’re not alone. Most New Yorkers live in apartments and most units have just a single bathroom. A hundred and fifty years ago, however, the situation was much worse. At the time, New Yorkers had just a few choices when it came to taking care of their lavatory needs and by modern standards, none of the options were appealing—visit an outhouse or use a chamber pot. Nevertheless, indoor toilets proved slow to gain popularity when they were first introduced in the second half of the nineteenth century. Initially, many residents feared the newfangled invention would bring poisonous gases into their homes, leading to illness and even death.
learn more here
NYC launches new guide geared towards families living in the city
October 21, 2016

NYC launches new guide geared towards families living in the city

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A new digital hub created by the NYC Children’s Cabinet offers a one-stop shop of city events, programs and services designed to support the health, development and safety of children and families. “Growing Up NYC is a wonderful digital how-to resource to help parents navigate raising children in New York City —which we all know can […]

Public Advocate’s office releases watchlist of NYC’s 100 worst landlords
October 14, 2016

Public Advocate’s office releases watchlist of NYC’s 100 worst landlords

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New York City Public Advocate Letitia James released this year's annual "Worst Landlords Watchlist" Thursday at a tenants' rights rally in lower Manhattan. The interactive database lists the top 100 building owners who have racked up the most violations (like rats, roaches and dirty elevators, to name just a few) relative to the number of buildings they own. This data is gathered from the Department of Buildings and Department of Housing. Three of the city's five worst landlords according to the list have been on it for two years in a row. The top three offenders–Harry D. Silverstein, Allan Goldman, and Efstathios Valiotis–own buildings throughout the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens. Silverstein received 2,032 HPD violations and 50 DOB violations over 575 units in eight buildings.
Find out if your landlord is on the list
‘City of Women’ turns the subway map into an homage to the city’s greatest females
October 13, 2016

‘City of Women’ turns the subway map into an homage to the city’s greatest females

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Modern cities are filled with signs that mark history, and that history often bears men's names. In New York City, for example, we have Astor Place, Washington Square, Lincoln Center, Columbus Circle, Rockefeller Center, and Bryant Park, just to name a few. In introducing a new book that addresses this status quo, The New Yorker points out that history-making women, on the other hand, "are anonymous people who changed fathers’ names for husbands’ as they married, who lived in private and were comparatively forgot­ten, with few exceptions," and that their names are notably missing from our streets. In their forthcoming book “Nonstop Metropolis: A New York City Atlas,” Rebecca Solnit and Joshua Jelly-Schapiro offer us a New York City subway map that attempts to set the record right. “City of Women” pays homage "to some of the great and significant women of New York City" in the places they lived and made a difference.
See the full-size map here
Peek into the rooms of millennials around the world (PHOTOS)
October 12, 2016

Peek into the rooms of millennials around the world (PHOTOS)

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While it's certainly fun to admire listing photos for pristine homes dressed up by famous designers, those images are nowhere near as interesting or insightful as getting a raw, unstaged look at how people really live. In a news series called "My Room Project," French filmmaker and photographer John Thackwray takes us into the private spaces of one of the world's most misunderstood groups: millennials.
inside 21 rooms this way
New research says Sandy-like storms could occur in NYC every 20 years by the year 2100

Hurricane Sandy damage in Breezy Point, Queens

October 11, 2016

New research says Sandy-like storms could occur in NYC every 20 years by the year 2100

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With the fourth anniversary of Hurricane Sandy approaching, many New Yorkers are still reeling from its devastation; in fact, the city recently allocated another $500 million in taxpayer money for repairs due to storm damage. And though this seems grim, a new study from a group of researchers at Princeton and Rutgers universities and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is even more troubling. Based on a storm-related computer simulation of flooding, "Hurricane Sandy’s Flood Frequency Increasing From Year 1800 to 2100" predicts that in a worse-case scenario, by the year 2100, such powerful storms will occur every 20 years, an increase of 17 times the current state, reports Phys.org.
Find out more details
Young singles make up 60 percent of lower Manhattan, but they’re spending their cash elsewhere
October 11, 2016

Young singles make up 60 percent of lower Manhattan, but they’re spending their cash elsewhere

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A report released Monday by the Downtown Alliance shows that the area south of Chambers Street in lower Manhattan is chock full of young New Yorkers with plenty of disposable income; the development advocacy group hopes the news will result in the creation of more options for them to spend it. Crains reports on the survey, which found that 60 percent of apartments in a growing residential sector that includes the Financial District, Battery Park City and the South Street Seaport are home to single tenants and roommates with no children, one of the highest concentrations of young singles–defined as 18- to 44-year-olds, in the city. This spendy demo hits the town every other night on average, blowing about $1,000 a month, adding up to $356 million a year. But according to the report, half of that is spent in other neighborhoods due to a lack of "appealing options" in the area.
Tap a keg, stat
Half of all working New Yorkers are foreign born

Photo: Flickr/Kevin Case

October 7, 2016

Half of all working New Yorkers are foreign born

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Immigrants make up half of New York City’s workforce and 70 percent in 37 different occupations, according to a new study, which also found that the city’s working poor tend to be foreign born. The report, released Thursday by the Center for an Urban Future, focuses on the impact that foreign-born workers have on the city’s […]

You could squeeze the population of 8 states into NYC’s 5 boroughs
October 7, 2016

You could squeeze the population of 8 states into NYC’s 5 boroughs

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New York City is crowded, but if you needed any more proof that you're being packed into a urban sardine can, just have a look at this map from Metric Maps which ushers out the city's current inhabitants for those elsewhere in the United States. As the illustration reveals, to bring NYC's population from zero back to its mind-boggling 8.5 million, you could pull in the populace of eight different states.
more here
The Urban Lens: Attis Clopton documents New York’s fleeting moments and faces
October 7, 2016

The Urban Lens: Attis Clopton documents New York’s fleeting moments and faces

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6sqft’s ongoing series The Urban Lens invites photographers to share work exploring a theme or a place within New York City. In this installment Brooklyn resident Attis Clopton offers us a look at his stunning portraits. Are you a photographer who’d like to see your work featured on The Urban Lens? Get in touch with us at tips@6sqft.com. If you ask Attis Clopton what his day job is, he'd quickly respond "musician." However, the drummer, who's travelled the world recording and performing, would be remiss not to mention his impressive photography skills. Though not formally trained, Attis has developed an eye and the ability to capture subjects in a way that many professional photographers struggle with throughout their career. But what may set Attis apart from his contemporaries is his openness, his curiosity and his unpretentious disposition, all of which help him lock into the moment and keep his photos from looking overthought or overdone. Ahead he shares some of his recent favorites with 6sqft.
more this way
Macro Sea’s David Belt takes us inside New Lab, an 84,000-square-foot thinkspace in the Navy Yard
October 5, 2016

Macro Sea’s David Belt takes us inside New Lab, an 84,000-square-foot thinkspace in the Navy Yard

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The Brooklyn Navy Yard has since its inception acted as a pole for the cutting edge and creative, from its time as the "The Can-Do Shipyard" where U.S. warships assembled, to present day as urban farmers, photographers and filmmakers carve out spaces for themselves on the campus' more than 300 acres. But the latest most notable addition to the Navy Yard is most certainly New Lab. New Lab is the creation of Macro Sea (who many will remember brought dumpster pools to NYC a few years ago) and is a revolutionary hub that turns an 84,000-square-foot former shipping building into a thinkspace for nearly 300 engineers and entrepreneurs working in advanced hardware and robotics. Here, members whose work include everything from designing nano microscopes to using synthetic biology to engineer cities can take their ideas from concept to prototype to production under one roof. It's what the founders are calling "a breakthrough ecosystem of shared resources." In this 6sqft feature, we speak to New Lab's co-founder and Macro Sea Executive Director and founder David Belt. David is also the founder and Managing Partner of DBI, which is currently managing the realization of the Performing Arts Center at the World Trade Center, amongst other high-profile projects around the city. Ahead, he takes us through the new facility and gives us some intel on what inspired the design, the cutting edge companies that have taken up space, and what he ultimately hopes to achieve with New Lab.
Learn more about New Lab with David here
Spotlight: Maya Valladares helps artists copy famous works at The Metropolitan Museum of Art
September 30, 2016

Spotlight: Maya Valladares helps artists copy famous works at The Metropolitan Museum of Art

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If you've ever visited The Metropolitan Museum of Art and watched an artist working at a canvas or sculpting amongst the museum's larger than life pieces, then you've seen the Copyist Program in action. Founded in 1872, two years after The Met first opened, the program has provided countless artists the opportunity to copy the great works that fill the museum's numerous galleries. The Copyist Program is overseen by The Met’s Department of Education, and Maya Valladares, an artist focusing on textiles, serves as the its Assistant Educator for Public Programs and Creative Practice. Her role requires her to create holistic experiences through the museum’s public programming, and through the Copyist Program, she works to enhance the experience of copying for the students and cohorts that come through the museum's doors. 6sqft recently spoke with Maya, who shared details about the program’s rich history, what copying offers artists, and what it’s like to duplicate the works of a world-class museum.
Read the interview here
Interactive map shows when and where to find fall foliage at its peak
September 29, 2016

Interactive map shows when and where to find fall foliage at its peak

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If you want to know when and where you can experience autumn in all its glory, look no further than this incredible map from SmokyMountains.com. The predictive map is the ingenious creation of Wes Melton, an engineer who developed a complex algorithm that can compute several million data points—ranging from historical temperatures to historical precipitation and forecast temperatures—to forecast exactly when fall will reach its fiery perfection in any given county across the United States.
Give the interactive map a try here
New startup TheGuarantors helps renters qualify for apartments and protects landlords
September 28, 2016

New startup TheGuarantors helps renters qualify for apartments and protects landlords

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For NYC renters who don't have a parent or well-to-do friend who can guarantor their apartment, getting on a lease can be a challenge. In addition to wanting a credit score of at least 700 and looking at bank statements, landlords usually want to see that a prospective tenant's annual income is 40 times greater than one month's rent. If that's not the case, their guarantor must earn a whopping 80 times the monthly rent. Aware of this hardship in a country where rents have risen 20 percent over the last five years, a new financial startup hopes to help clear these hurdles. As noted by the Wall Street Journal, TheGuarantors sells payment insurance to tenants, which gives landlords a guarantee that they'll still be paid if the tenant fails to meet rent.
More info ahead
Inside the mind of Ernest Burden, one of New York’s preeminent architectural renderers
September 27, 2016

Inside the mind of Ernest Burden, one of New York’s preeminent architectural renderers

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The art of architectural illustration paints a window into the future and intends to portray a designer's vision or work in its purest, most ideal light. As the art form has progressed from hand mediums to digital, Ernest Burden III and his studio Acme Digital have straddled the industry's dramatic transformation using both computer and manual approaches to inform and improve what they produce. As a renderer with more than 30 years in the industry, Ernest's roster of clients include some of the country's biggest real estate heavyweights, such as the Trump Organization, Related Companies and Tishman-Speyer Properties; and renowned architectural clients like I.M. Pei, Robert A.M. Stern and Kohn Pedersen Fox. Recently, Ernest completed a collection of renderings and detailed vignettes for Toll Brothers' and Barry Rice Architects' 100 Barrow Street. In the series, he effortlessly juxtaposes the timeless intent of the new structure with the energy of the surrounding West Villlage. In fact, Ernest's renderings played a considerable role in the Landmarks Preservation Commission's vote to approve the project in 2014. To learn more about Ernest's unique style and his thoughts on the evolving business and craft of architectural rendering, 6sqft sat down with him for a chat.
read our interview with ernest here
Spotlight: The Museum of Math’s Cindy Lawrence on making math a fun and interactive endeavor
September 23, 2016

Spotlight: The Museum of Math’s Cindy Lawrence on making math a fun and interactive endeavor

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In a city with a museum in an elevator shaft and another all about transit history, it should come as no surprise that there's a museum dedicated to math. Located across from Madison Square Park, the National Museum of Mathematics is an institution devoted to the numerous possibilities that numbers hold. Since opening in 2012, MoMath has been a place for visitors of all ages to gets hands on with the subject through interactive exhibits that explore conundrums like how it's possible for a square-wheeled tricycle to pedal on a circular, curved surface. And as of last week, the museum offers the chance to drive remote-controlled cars on either a Möbius strip or a trefoil track in the newly opened Twisted Thruway. 6sqft recently visited the museum to speak with Executive Director and CEO Cindy Lawrence about the importance of making math interactive and most importantly, fun.
Read the interview ahead
The Urban Lens: A walk through the 90th annual Feast of San Gennaro in Little Italy
September 21, 2016

The Urban Lens: A walk through the 90th annual Feast of San Gennaro in Little Italy

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6sqft’s ongoing series The Urban Lens invites photographers to share work exploring a theme or a place within New York City. In this installment, award-winning authors and photographers James and Karla Murray introduce us to the faces and food vendors that make up the 2016 Feast of San Gennaro in Little Italy. Are you a photographer who’d like to see your work featured on The Urban Lens? Get in touch with us at tips@6sqft.com. 2016 marks the 90th anniversary of the Feast of San Gennaro, which is held in the "Little Italy" neighborhood of lower Manhattan from Thursday, September 15 through Sunday, September 25th. The Feast is an 11-day salute to the Patron Saint of Naples, Saint Januaries, and it is the longest and most popular street fair in New York City (anticipated to bring in one million tourists and New Yorkers this year). Little Italy was once known for its large population of Italian immigrants and is now centered on Mulberry Street between Broome and Canal Streets. Italians first began to settle in the area during the 1850s, but by the 1960s, wealthy Italians began to move out and Chinese merchants for the first time began to move north of Canal Street—the traditional boundary between Chinatown and Little Italy. Observing the changes in the neighborhood, Italian merchants and restaurateurs formed an association dedicated to maintaining Mulberry Street north of Canal as an all-Italian enclave, which it still largely remains. Ahead we document some of the longtime New Yorkers, tourists, and decades-old Italian vendors who've added their own flavor to this year's festivities.
our account and more photos here
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