Real Estate Trends

The QueensWay gets a major endorsement. [NYT] Trinity Church has filed demolition permits for 68-74 Trinity Place, where they plan to erect a 46-story residential building designed by Pelli Clarke Pelli. [CO] The Port Authority is considering selling off its real estate, including One World Trade Center, to fund the agency’s overhaul. [WSJ] Collegiate School, the […]

Real Estate Trends

REVEALED: New East Williamsburg Rental 66 Ainslie Street Aims for Ubiquitous Factory Look

Rendering of 66 Ainslie Street via Slate Property Group

December 29, 2014

REVEALED: New East Williamsburg Rental 66 Ainslie Street Aims for Ubiquitous Factory Look

Here's the first look at 66 Ainslie Street, a seven-story, 50-unit rental building set to rise from the East Williamsburg corner of Ainslie and Keap Streets. According to The Real Deal, the project is being developed by Slate Property Group, led by Martin Nussbaum and David Schwartz, and the site's previous sole owners, Tavolario and Meszaros Realty Corporation. Slate purchased the site for $15 million in an off-market deal in September. Construction permits filed this past November by Aufgang Architects indicate that the building will contain 42,500 square feet of residential and retail space, 23 parking spaces in an underground garage, and a roof deck and fitness center. The site is also around the corner from the Metropolitan-Lorimer G and L train stop. The filing of a "major alteration" application indicates that at least some part of the existing one-story factory building will remain.
More details ahead

Image © Thomas X. Casey, BronxNYC

December 29, 2014

The Bronx Is the Least Affordable County in the U.S. for Renters

Brooklyn may hold the title for most unaffordable place to buy a home in America, but when it comes to affordability for renters, the Bronx is the worst. According to the Daily News, a new report shows that tenants in the borough spend 68% of their earnings on rent, which roughly equates to $2,000 per month for a three-bedroom […]

December 26, 2014

As the Met Prepares to Move into the Whitney’s Old Building, A Madison Avenue Block Is Transformed

All eyes have been on the construction of Renzo Piano's new downtown home for the Whitney Museum, set to open in May. But let's not forget about what's happening to the Whitney's old Marcel Breuer-designed building on Madison Avenue and 75th Street. The Brutalist building opened in 1966 and has since dominated its Upper East Side surroundings. It's set to be taken over as a satellite location for the Metropolitan Museum of Art to showcase their contemporary and modern art collections when it reopens in March 2016. And though the Met will not alter the façade of the landmarked museum building, its surroundings will certainly look different than in the Whitney's days. The biggest changes are happening right next door, where the row of six 19th-century Italianate and Greek Revival brownstones on Madison Avenue and two townhouses on East 74th Street are being reimagined as condos and retail space by developer and healthcare entrepreneur Daniel Straus, who bought the properties from the Whitney in 2010 for $95 million and subsequently was granted approval by the Landmarks Preservation Commission for their new design by Beyer Blinder Belle. According to the Times, who profiled the development, the flurry of construction could be considered "the Met effect."
More on the development here

December 26, 2014

Real Estate Wire: Williamsburg Development Site Sells for Record-Setting $40M; Plaza Condo Drops Price by $15M

Sale of two Williamsburg buildings on Bedford Avenue for $40 million sets a new record. [Crain’s] Extell employs holograms to market its One Riverside Park condominium. [NYT] Google is expanding its footprint in Chelsea, creating a 3.5-million-square-foot urban tech campus. [WSJ] Art Deco Plaza condo drops asking price by $15 million. [Curbed] Images: Rendering of the new […]

Real Estate Trends

December 26, 2014

Steven Harris-Designed West Village Townhouse Sells for $15M

We're big fans of the work of Steven Harris Architects here at 6sqft, so it came as no surprise that this West Village townhouse that features the firm's lovely designs sold for $15 million. According to city records released today, the seller of the home located at 156 West 13th Street is Candida Smith, curator and daughter of the late celebrated artist and sculptor David Smith. The Greek Revival townhouse was built in 1846 for the estate of Peter Remsen, a member of a prominent Knickerbocker family. Steven Harris updated the home to include modern conveniences like an elevator and an industrial-sized kitchen, while retaining its historic charm and grandeur.
Take a look around here

NYC Saw a Spike in Chain Stores in 2014 with Queens Experiencing the Fastest Growth

Image via Flickr

December 23, 2014

NYC Saw a Spike in Chain Stores in 2014 with Queens Experiencing the Fastest Growth

Does it feel like there's either a Starbucks, Chase Bank, or Duane Reade on every corner? Well, that's actually quite a realistic feeling. According to the Center for an Urban Future's seventh annual State of the Chains report, national retailers in New York City experienced a 2.8 percent increase in 2014, the largest jump in four years and the sixth straight year to see a net increase. Queens is experiencing the fastest growth in new stores, and coffee king Dunkin Donuts maintains its top spot for the seventh year running with a total of 536 locations, 21 more than last year.
More on the findings here

Real Estate Trends

December 23, 2014

Real Estate Wire: Community Boards Not Happy with One Vanderbilt; Condos on the Rise in Long Island City

Manhattan Community Boards 5 and 6 want to redesign SL Green’s 67-story One Vanderbilt tower. [NYP] Fresh Direct breaks ground for its South Bronx headquarters, but locals protest that it will further damage the area’s air quality. [NYT] An opinion on why the proposed megatower on the pier would ruin the South Street Seaport. [NY Mag] Long Island […]

Real Estate Trends

December 23, 2014

170 Amsterdam Avenue: NYC’s First Concrete Diagrid Nears Completion

Final touches are being added to the Upper West Side's exoskeletal rental building at 170 Amsterdam Avenue. The 20-story mid-rise between 67th and 68th Streets will be the first residential building in the city to feature a concrete "diagrid" structural system. Developed by Chicago-based Equity Residential, the tower will house 239 luxury rental units and is slated to begin leasing early next year. Rental pricing may be similar to the Aire next door, where available units range from $3,375 for a 25th floor studio to $15,000 for a three-bedroom penthouse. According to the New York Post, Equity signed a 99-year lease for the site from the American Properties Group for $76.5 million back in 2011.
More details here

Real Estate Wire: Those in Favor of One WTC’s Design; World’s Tallest Modular Tower Back on Track

Critics may hate One World Trade Center, but the public loves it. [NYP] The world’s tallest modular tower, the B2, is back on track as Forest City rehires its 150 workers to finish construction. [NY1] The historic Renaissance Theater and Casino in Harlem is slated for demolition, but preservationists are set on stopping the wrecking ball and the […]

Real Estate Trends

Halstead Brings High-Definition Digital Walk-Throughs to the Market

Tour real estate listings at home with Halstead’s 3D Walkthru

December 22, 2014

Halstead Brings High-Definition Digital Walk-Throughs to the Market

House hunting can be quite the time suck, but you can now peruse real estate listings in a whole new way from the comfort of your couch. A new offering from Halstead Property called 3D Walkthru uses 3D technology similar to Google Street View that allows clients to tour an available property online. The digital platform is so advanced that users can get right into a room, peeking out windows and checking out the kitchen appliances.
More details ahead

December 19, 2014

REVEALED: 290-Foot Cantilevering Condo Coming to Hudson Square/West Soho

A development site at Greenwich and Charlton Streets promises to be among the first to bear fruit from Hudson Square's 2013 rezoning. Images uncovered on the website of Fernando Romero EnterprisE (FR-EE) detail a 26-floor, 116-unit condominium along the quiet commercial edge of the neighborhood. The L-shaped lot is owned by the developer Cape Advisors, whose forward-thinking projects include 100 Eleventh Avenue and One Kenmare Square.
More details ahead

December 19, 2014

Real Estate Wire: Top 10 Residential Renderings of 2014; BIG-Designed Residential Coming to Harlem

Architecture critic Carter B. Horsley shares his top 10 picks for best renderings of the year. Chuckle-worthy commentary included. [CityRealty] An 11-story, 235,000-square-foot Bjarke Ingels-designed residential project is coming to Harlem. But will BIG’s tower be as bold as their 57th Street project? [TRD] The $1.75B sale of the Crown Building at 730 5th Avenue sets a […]

Real Estate Trends

December 19, 2014

REVEALED: NoMad Tower by FR-EE; Is It a Cowbell, Exclamation Point, or Cheese Grater?

Another exclamation point in a year of seemingly endless skyscraper unveilings has appeared on the city's "to-build list" with a possible rendering of a long-proposed mixed-use tower slated for the heart of NoMad. This exclamatory statement comes from the Mexico-based office of Fernando Romero EnterprisE (FR-EE). Never heard of them? Then check out their website and browse the bold work we New Yorkers too often miss out on. If the selection of FR-EE is official, Ziel Feldman’s HFZ Capital would join a growing list of New York developers bitten by the design bug. Developers like Hines, Rosen, Related, and Extell have led the way in commissioning big name, often foreign, architects to pen skyline-shifting projects aimed at the top of the market. HFZ also commissioned British-based David Chipperfield Architects to design a dignified 30-story tower along the southern edge of Bryant Park.
More details on the 50-story tower here

December 19, 2014

Announcing 6sqft’s 2014 Building of the Year!

DRUMROLL PLEASE… You came, you voted, and now we’re pleased to announce the winner of our first-ever Building of the Year competition! Congratulations to the Kohn Pedersen Fox-designed, Continuum Company-developed 45 East 22nd Street tower which won the hearts of 29 percent of over 3,500 readers who came to cast a vote. We’re not sure if it was the champagne flute-like design that sold […]

December 18, 2014

Real Estate Wire: Downtown Brooklyn Landmark for Sale; All The Ways You Can Describe One57

The Dime Savings Bank has just hit the market. The building, located next door to Junior’s diner and owned by JP Morgan, could fetch more than $100M. [Crain’s] An ongoing struggle… Here are all the ways the New York Times has tried to describe One57’s sales. [NYO] Developer Ben Shaoul sells his West Chelsea townhouse for $8.5M. He […]

Real Estate Trends

Davis Brody Bond, Architects of 9/11 Museum, Will Design New NYU Building in the Village

A rendering of the NYU expansion plan

December 18, 2014

Davis Brody Bond, Architects of 9/11 Museum, Will Design New NYU Building in the Village

Architecture firm Davis Brody Bond is continuing their tradition of designing projects met with much controversy. First came the 9/11 Museum, then the Frick Museum expansion, and now the new NYU building in the Village. Davis Brody Bond will join KieranTimberlake in designing the university's new building on the Coles Sports Center site on Mercer Street between Houston and Bleecker Streets. The building is part of the highly contentious $6 billion, 1.9 million-square-foot NYU 2031 expansion plan. The development agreement allows NYU to develop only one parcel of land at a time, with Coles being the first.
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December 17, 2014

Can PS109 Affordable Artists’ Housing Slow the Gentrification of East Harlem?

We all know the typical gentrification pattern–artists move in to a neighborhood and make it hip; they're followed by trendy coffee shops and cool vintage stores; rents rise; the artists move on to the next frontier. But what if the influx of artists to a neighborhood slowed gentrification? It sounds like an impossible premise, but it just might be taking shape in East Harlem. Fast Co. EXIST takes a look at El Barrio’s Artspace PS109, the project which has transformed an abandoned public school building in East Harlem into 89 units of affordable live/work housing for artists and their families and 10,000 square feet of complementary space for arts organizations. A whopping 53,000 creatives applied to live in the building, where studios will rent for as low as $494/month and two-bedroom units will go for $1,022/month. But isn't Artspace’s goal to break the gentrification cycle—"to preserve the cultural fabric of a small corner of Manhattan that’s starting to change quickly" by preserving its affordable housing?
Read more ahead

December 17, 2014

Real Estate Wire: Ridgewood Apartments Going for Over Half a Million; The Condo Replacing Clinton Hill’s White Castle

Units in a brand new five-story residential building in Ridgewood are going for $339,000 all the way up to $769,000. The listings have only been live a day and two units are already in contract. [Curbed] Here are some renderings of the condo replacing Clinton Hill’s White Castle on Myrtle Avenue. [Brownstoner] The Naftali Group has sold The Bergen for […]

Real Estate Trends

December 17, 2014

Vote for 2014’s Building of the Year!

There is no shortage of towers on the rise in Manhattan, but amongst these glass and stone beauties are a handful that stand head and shoulders (and several hundred feet) above the rest. A red hot real estate market and cutting edge building technology have paved the way for towers of both unprecedented heights and prices. But worthy of equal credit are the visionary developers and architects who dare to change the NYC skyline. Here we've handpicked 12 of the most newsworthy buildings of 2014; these towers boast groundbreaking designs and record-breaking (or soon to be record-breaking) prices. But we ask you: Out of the dozen, which deserves the title "Building of the Year?" Cast a vote above to help us decide which is 2014's most important tower! Extended by popular demand… Voting ends TODAY, December 12th at 11:59 PM WEDNESDAY, December 17th at 11:59 PM and we’ll reveal the winner on Friday, December 19th. And if you’re still torn between two (or all), jump ahead for the low-down on each, from height to 2014 news highlights.
More on each of the buildings here

December 16, 2014

Real Estate Wire: ‘Poor Door’ Building Has Private Pools; WeWork Now Worth $5 Billion

Check out the private pools at Extell’s “Poor Door” building, One Riverside Park. [Curbed] Co-working is cool! Shared workspace startup WeWork is now worth a staggering $5B. [WSJ] Not all of the city’s rising residential buildings are in a race to the finish line. This Brooklyn project has been stalled for nearly a decade. [NYT] Retail, […]

Real Estate Trends

Is 125th Street the Next 14th Street? Big-Name Developers Think So.

125th Street via jmd41280 via photopin cc

December 15, 2014

Is 125th Street the Next 14th Street? Big-Name Developers Think So.

14th Street, 23rd Street, 86th Street–there's no question that these east-west thoroughfares are some of the city's most bustling corridors of commercial, cultural, and residential activity. And 125th Street in Harlem could now be joining their ranks, a real estate trend dissected in a WSJ article today. Big-name NYC developers are cashing in on the street's transformation. Greystone & Co. bought a $11.5 million site through a bankruptcy auction earlier this month, where they'll put 75 market-rate and affordable apartments, along with ground-floor retail space. Across the street, Continuum Co. will add 700 residential units and 85,000 square feet of retail. Nearby, Wharton Properties has obtained funding for their 33,000-square-foot retail complex that will be anchored by Whole Foods.
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Real Estate Trends

December 15, 2014

Arne Glimcher, One of World’s Most Powerful Art Dealers, Buys $5.6M Madison Square Loft

By Annie Doge

If you're familiar with the NYC gallery scene you definitely know the Pace Gallery and its founder Arnold "Arne" Glimcher, one of the world's most powerful art dealers, as well as a film producer and director. According to city records, Arne and his son Marc have bought a $5.6 million Madison Square loft at 117 East 24th Street. The contemporary space boasts four bedrooms and 4,000 square feet as well as 11.5-foot ceilings and plenty of wall space to display one's art collection, though we're not sure which of the father-son art dealing pair will be residing in the loft.
Take a look around

December 15, 2014

Real Estate Wire: Jean Nouvel’s MoMA Tower Gets a Teaser Site; New Extell Mega Tower Coming to Times Square