Hell's Kitchen

It seems like Governor Cuomo's had enough of ugly Manhattan buildings. Fresh off his announcement of a $3 billion overhaul of Penn Station comes another major redevelopment plan–a $1 billion expansion of the Jacob K. Javits Center, already the nation's largest meeting place. First reported by Curbed, the project will increase the building by 1.2 million square feet, adding five times the current meeting space and bringing the total square footage to a massive 3.3 million. Renderings from FXFOWLE show a glassy structure that will house a 58,000-square-foot ballroom (Cuomo says it will be the largest in the northeast), 22,000 square feet of outdoor event space, and a four-level truck garage that will supposedly get 20,000 vehicles off the streets.
See all the renderings

Real Estate Trends

January 6, 2016

$1.4M for a DIY Duplex on a Heavenly Hell’s Kitchen Block

Tucked into the top two floors of 521 West 47th Street, a 1910 co-op loft building that was once a commercial bakery, "Penthouse C" is a package deal priced at $1.4 million consisting of units #3C and #4C and the roof space above them. The listing calls it an "Extremely rare and exciting 'once in a lifetime' chance to combine two authentic lofts plus the corresponding roof space to create your own 3-4 bedroom 3 bath penthouse," though that may take some doing; in their current form, the two spaces offer two different flavors of loft-y bohemian charm.
Check out this unique space

Distinctive Homes

December 9, 2015

VIDEO: Watch Ironworkers Set Panels on Bjarke Ingels’ Via Tetrahedron

Earlier today, 6sqft announced that Via, aka BIG’s 57th Street tetrahedron, is the winner of the 2015 Building of the Year competition. What likely made the starchitect-designed rental building such a frontrunner is its unusual shape, rising 460 feet from its site. Since progress has been right on track, it's easy to forget that the unconventional form yields some unique design and construction challenges. In this video from from Ironworkers Local 580, who set a Gopro up on the crane, we can see the skill required to set the shimmering panels on the slope wall. We also get a very vertigo-inducing view of the building from its apex looking down.
Watch the full video

November 16, 2015

REVEALED: Inside Bjarke Ingels’ Spectacular 57th Street Tetrahedron

Those moving into Bjarke Ingels epic pyramid VIA 57 West next year will have a lot to look forward to. New renderings of the hotly-anticipated construction sited along West 57th Street have just been released (h/t Curbed) alongside a new teaser website inviting visitors "to a special preview" of the building. The new images, which come courtesy of The Durst Organization, reveal bright modern interiors with expansive river views, floor-to-ceiling doors and windows, varying room shapes, individual balconies, and lots of luxe fixtures, finishes and amenities.
Take a tour here

November 2, 2015

For $699K, a Private Backyard and Tons of Charm in the Heart of Hell’s Kitchen

Have you ever gazed out of your office window with envy at a sweet private back garden or cool roof deck right in the middle of Manhattan? This one-bedroom co-op at 315 West 55th Street is one of those. On a beloved residential block in Hell's Kitchen on the city's West Side, this updated apartment has enough room for comfort and the added bonus of a landscaped, full-sized back garden oasis. It's perfect in spring and summer, but magical year-round as it's visible through a pair of sliding glass doors whenever you enter the living room.
Get a closer look

Distinctive Homes

Affordable Housing Lottery Launched for Bjarke Ingels’ Epic Pyramid, VIA 57 West

Construction shot © 6sqft

October 3, 2015

Affordable Housing Lottery Launched for Bjarke Ingels’ Epic Pyramid, VIA 57 West

By Ondel Hylton

Applications are now being accepted for the 142 affordable apartments in Bjarke Ingels' tetrahedron-shaped rental building dubbed VIA 57 West, aka "the Pyramid Building." By downloading applications here, you and 141 other lucky families may have the chance to live in a future landmark that is already turning out to be the most audacious rental building ever built in the city. The massive, half-block-long development will contain a total of 709 units, of which 20 percent will be deemed affordable. Subsidized rents range from $565/month studios for single-person households making between $19,222 - $24,200 annually, to three-bedroom apartments going for $1,067/month for three- to six-person households.
More construction shots and the full pricing breakdown

September 14, 2015

VIDEO: Take a Sweeping Drone Tour of Bjarke Ingels’ West Side Pyramid

Few NYC projects are as architecturally exciting as the massive tetrahedron on the rise along West 57th Street. The design, which is the creation of starchitect-of-the-moment Bjarke Ingels, will soar 460-feet from its site (fun fact: the Great Pyramid of Giza stands 455 feet tall) and is slated for completion later this year. While the final form can already be appreciated by passersby from street level at this point—the architect has by now led camera crews through what he calls the "courtscraper" ("the lovechild of a courtyard building and a skyscraper," to be exact)—here's a spectacular, and quite poetic we might add, new video produced by Dark Horse that gives us expansive ariel views of the whole thing through the eye of a drone.
watch the drone tour here

May 9, 2015

May Design Agenda: 6sqft’s Guide to Navigating NYCxDesign Week

NYCxDESIGN, New York City’s official celebration of all things design, hits town from May 8–19, 2015. Home to more designers than any other US metro area, NYC is one of the world’s design capitals. Now in its third year, NYCxDESIGN spotlights the city’s diverse design community and its contributions to our economy and everyday life and increases awareness of and appreciation for design with a collaborative mix of cultural and commercial offerings. The seemingly endless program lineup offers exhibitions, installations, trade shows, talks, launches, open studios and receptions all across the city to celebrate the efforts of everyone from students to stars of the local and international design community. This year will see hundreds of events covering topics from graphic design to architecture, technology and urban design to fashion and product design, interiors to landscape, furniture to design thinking and more. It will be hard to head in any direction and not stumble into a design-related event, but we've compiled a guide to a few of the top collaborative efforts and highlighted some of our picks.
Check out our Design Week picks, this way

April 30, 2015

Hell’s Kitchen, Once the ‘Wild West,’ Now Undergoing Rapid Gentrification

There's yet to be an exact agreed-upon theory as to where the name Hell's Kitchen came from, but most historians agree that it had something to do with the poor tenement conditions and general filth of the neighborhood in the 19th century. Its reputation didn't get any better in the 20th century, though. After the repeal of prohibition, the area became overrun with organized crime, and until the 1980s it was known as a home base for several gangs. Today, Hell's Kitchen is no longer the "Wild West," but rather a rapidly gentrifying community ripe for new development. A neighborhood profile today in the Times looks at the transformation of the neighborhood, also called Clinton or Midtown West, which is generally defined as the area from Eighth Avenue to the Hudson River between 34th to 59th Streets. Summed up, "New buildings are going up, and older ones are being converted to high-end residences. The development of Hudson Yards and the High Line just to its south and the addition of the Time Warner Center on its northeast border have spurred growth. Prices have gone up but are still generally lower than in surrounding neighborhoods."
Find out more ahead

Rent-Stabilized Tenant Gets Evicted for Listing His Apartment on Airbnb in a Landmark Decision

Inside the apartment. Image via Airbnb

February 20, 2015

Rent-Stabilized Tenant Gets Evicted for Listing His Apartment on Airbnb in a Landmark Decision

If you were questioning how truly serious the city is about its beef against Airbnb, look no further than this landmark ruling to evict a rent-stabilized tenant from his ultra-luxe 450 West 42nd Street building. The Post reports that Henry Ikezi was just given the boot by a Manhattan Housing Court judge for posting his 46th-floor Hell's Kitchen apartment on the site for $649 per night, about triple what he was paying at $6,670 per month. The home's market value is upwards of $9,000.
More on the landmark case here

January 14, 2015

To Ski or Not to Ski? That Is the Question in This Adorable Thorndale Condo

We dare you to look at this home and not want to make a cup of hot cocoa, sit down in front of the gas-burning fireplace, wrap yourself up in a blanket and lose yourself in a good book. This 1,209-square-foot Thorndale pad charms with ski lodge appeal, making the cold winter months an experience–and it’s available for rent, asking $8,500 per month.
Hold on while we grab some cocoa, then let’s take a look inside

December 8, 2014

REVEALED: New Look for Hell’s Kitchen Radio City Lofts Built Atop Historic Post Office

By Ondel Hylton

Who can deny the cool factor of living in a space oozing with history? New Yorkers find themselves living in former schools, churches, banks, fire stations, and even insane asylums. Now coming to Hell's Kitchen are 44 condominiums dubbed Radio City Lofts, which will bring our space-deprived denizens a new form of living: life atop a functioning post office.
More on the new lofts here

New Developments

New Yorker Spotlight: Scott Liroff Sheds Light on His Century-Old Family-Run Business, City Knickerbocker

Scott with his father

October 24, 2014

New Yorker Spotlight: Scott Liroff Sheds Light on His Century-Old Family-Run Business, City Knickerbocker

By Susan Cohen

Tucked away on the second floor of a building on 11th Avenue and 48th street is City Knickerbocker, Inc., a small lighting business with a long history. Founded in 1906 founded by Adolph Liroff, a Russian immigrant whose trade was converting gasoliers and sconces to electric lamps, this business has lasted for four generations. Today, Scott Liroff, Adolph's great-grandson, proudly carries on the family tradition serving as City Knickerbocker's Vice President. To appreciate Scott's role in both his family and the business, one needs to go back over one hundred years to Brooklyn in the early 20th century. When Adolph's Brooklyn-based business took off, he headed to the city and rented a space on 42nd Street between 8th and 9th Avenues. After the Metropolitan Opera rented his light fixtures, Broadway started calling to rent lights too. As early as 1912-1913 City Knickerbocker's primary source of business was rentals. When Adolph's son, Seymour, took over the business in the 1950s, the store provided lighting for shows including The Ed Sullivan Show and The Milton Berle Show. 6sqft recently spoke with Scott to learn about City Knickerbocker and what it means to carry on a legacy in New York.
Read the en-light-ening interview here

September 21, 2014

Section 3 of the High Line Park Opens Today – See New Photos!

The third and final section of the High Line will officially open to the public today at 11 A.M., marking the final chapter of a 15-year journey to transform a once abandoned rail road track into an elevated park for the city. The new section has been christened 'High Line at the Railyards' and follows the original train tracks from 30th to 34th Streets to the north and south, and from 10th to 12th Avenues east and west, exposing High Line-goers to expansive and unobstructed views of the Hudson River and New Jersey. Unlike the two sections that preceded it, the path that makes up The Railyards is far less manicured. With its organized but "wild" greenery, the design of this final leg instead asks visitors to contemplate the railway's past and the surrounding landscape as it stands and as it will change with the introduction of Hudson Yards.
More of the new section and the ribbon cutting here

Architecture And Design

Coffee Culture: Are Neighborhood Cafes the First Sign of Gentrification?

Photo: Cafe Grumpy in Greenpoint by Premshree Pillai cc

September 3, 2014

Coffee Culture: Are Neighborhood Cafes the First Sign of Gentrification?

From “coffices” to lab-like minimalist gourmet coffee meccas to cozy neighborhood hangouts, neighborhood cafes are a fine example of the essential “third place” mentioned in discussions of community dynamics: that place, neither work nor home, where regulars gather and everyone’s welcome. Along with yoga studios, art galleries, community gardens, vintage clothing shops, restaurants with pedigreed owners and adventurous menus and, some say, a change in the offerings on local grocery shelves, cafes are often the earliest sign of neighborhood change. The neighborhood cafe serves as a testing ground for community cohesiveness while adventurous entrepreneurs test the still-unfamiliar waters around them. Beyond the literal gesture of offering sustenance, cafes provide a place where you can actually see who your neighbors are and appreciate the fact that at least some of them are willing to make an investment locally.
Get a fleeting glimpse of old New York City cafe culture in the West Village, meet the future of coffee distribution in Red Hook.

August 24, 2014

Neon, Metal, and Patty Melts: A Look at Classic New York City Diner Design

By Jason Carpenter

American diners are neon-lit time capsules of architecture and design. They are the '57 Ford Thunderbird of restaurants, shaping post-war optimism and far too much metal into something beautiful and quintessentially American. Best of all, you can still find plenty of little diners doing what they have always done, among the rising skylines and property values of New York City.
See our diner photos here

August 5, 2014

CB4 Housing Plan Calls for 11,000 Units of Affordable Housing

Mayor de Blasio called for all 59 New York City community boards to propose ways to increase the number of affordable housing units within their district, and CB4, which covers Chelsea, Clinton, and Hell's Kitchen, is the first to respond. The Manhattan District Board 4 Affordable Housing Plan was voted on internally by the board on July 23, but is expected to be officially presented to the city on August 8th. The 81-page plan, which could influence affordable housing policy throughout the city, focuses on six major themes that will outline how the west side neighborhoods tackle the addition of 11,000 units of affordable housing.
We break down the themes

July 9, 2014

Parkview Developers Ian Reisner and Mati Weiderpass Sell Southmoor House Penthouse for $11.9 Million

It appears that Ian Reisner and Mati Weiderpass of Parkview Developers have sold one of their Southmoor House penthouses. The 17-floor building serves as more than just home to the Out Hotel developers. It’s also headquarters for their company. And like true developers, they own a big chunk of the building, making them one of the co-op’s biggest shareholders. While the newly troubled pair seems quite committed to their own symmetrical pad—turning down a $15.5 million cash offer a few years back without batting an eyelash—that doesn’t stop them from making serious bank on some other units. And you won't hear us complaining, because that means we get to check out this 3BR/3BA penthouse.
Take a look inside this premier pad here

June 24, 2014

Multiple Walker Tower Owners Also Buying Units in Sister Property Stella Towers

Take two Art Deco commercial buildings designed by Robert Walker in the roaring twenties and mix in a little 21st century residential conversion magic by JDS Development Group, Property Markets Group, and Starwood Capital Group, and what do you get? Apparently two highly successful projects that now have even more in common - owners who have purchased units in both buildings.
Why did owners double up on their investments?

Uncategorized

June 2, 2014

Penthouse Loft at Piano Factory Goes on the Market for $3.995 Million

Imagine sitting in this living room. This would be only one of the perks of living at 454 West 46th Street #PH-6BS. The stunning penthouse rests at the top of the Piano Factory, and it’s currently on the market for $3.995 million with Town Residential’s Glenn Connolly. If this penthouse is the crowning jewel of the historic loft conversion complex, then that living room is the crowning jewel of the penthouse. No, you’re not going blind. The living room is really that light-flooded, thanks to a vaulted glass ceiling above. And it doesn’t stop there. The radiant room leads to a gorgeous terrace – just one of the unit’s two, to be exact. The other one is off of the spacious, eat-in chef’s kitchen, which rests in a corner of the apartment, offering top-of-the-line appliances and exposures from windows on two walls. But if the stunning southern views from the kitchen’s terrace, or the main terrace’s skyline views that stretch from Hell’s Kitchen to the edge of Central Park aren’t enough, you can always build another deck on the roof with board approval because you have roof rights. Is there anything these people haven’t thought of?
Take a look inside here

Distinctive Homes

May 28, 2014

Thorndale: Turn of the 20th Century Carriage House Becomes Perfect 21st Century Home

At the turn of the 20th century, the first Model T Ford was still almost a decade from leaving the assembly line at the Ford Motor Company’s Piquette Plant in Detroit, Michigan and horse-drawn carriages were the primary mode of transportation. Carriage houses, like the one at 406 West 45th Street, built in 1905 for Oakleigh Thorne, owner of Thorndale Farms in Dutchess County, were necessary to properly store the carriages and associated equipment, such as saddles, stirrups, bridles, halters, reins, bits, harnesses, etc. By 1927, over 15 million Model T-Fords had been produced and the horse and buggy was on its way to being a novelty from a simpler time, and carriage houses were eventually given second lives as garages, offices, workshops, restaurants and, as in the case of the aptly named Thorndale, beautiful residences.
Take a look at the gorgeous conversion

Distinctive Homes

May 23, 2014

The Most Gorgeous New York City Hotel Interiors

By Jason Carpenter

Design is on display in New York's luxury hotels, where the interior look and feel is as important as where it's located. From the lobbies that welcome guests on their first steps into the building to the bars and dining areas later at night, some of a hotel's best design work lays outside the guests' rooms. Here are just a few of our favorite hotel interiors.
See more amazing hotel lobbies here

May 13, 2014

Daily Link Fix: See NYC Under 6 Feet of Water; The MoMA Presents Kickstarter-funded Projects

Taste of Bushwick Coming Soon!: Bedford and Bowery gives us some details on the first annual installment of this new food festival. See NYC Under 6 Feet of Water: Fast Company shows us a new Google feature that will have the survivalists scrambling for more canned tuna and reinforcements. The MoMA Presents Kickstarter-funded Projects: Dezeen […]

Uncategorized

May 6, 2014

Sales Officially Open at Ralph Walker’s Stella Tower – Will It be the ‘Star’ of Hell’s Kitchen?

Whether a reference to the Latin word meaning “star” or the lesser-known rare gold coin of the late 19th century, Stella Tower is aptly named. JDS Development Group, Property Markets Group, and Starwood Capital Group (the trio behind Chelsea’s Walker Tower) officially opened sales at Ralph Walker’s iconic Art Deco building, although a few sales have already moved forward quietly over the last few weeks.
See what all the fuss is about

May 5, 2014

Archilier Architecture’s “Chinese Lantern” Inspired Design to Light Up 470 Eleventh Avenue