Theater District

Revamped One Times Square, home to the New Year’s Eve ball drop, tops out

Image courtesy of Jamestown

December 8, 2023

Revamped One Times Square, home to the New Year’s Eve ball drop, tops out

The $500 million redevelopment of One Times Square, home of the New Year's Eve ball drop, is moving closer to completion. Developer Jamestown on Thursday celebrated the topping out of the project, which is transforming one of the world's most famous buildings into a year-round entertainment hub with a new visitor center, a viewing deck overlooking Times Square, a museum, and lots of advertisements. Located at 42nd Street and Seventh Avenue, One Times Square is expected to reopen to the public in 2025.
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New Developments

COVID vaccination site opens in Times Square for theater, film, and TV workers

Photo by Andrae Ricketts on Unsplash

April 12, 2021

COVID vaccination site opens in Times Square for theater, film, and TV workers

By Devin Gannon

A coronavirus vaccination site with appointments set aside for theater, film, and television workers opened in Times Square on Monday. Last month, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced plans to open a vaccine hub on Broadway for the theater industry ahead of The Great White Way's expected reopening later this year. The newly opened site, located at 20 Times Square, will now have vaccine slots designated for TV and film actors and crew members.
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After almost closing, famous Theater District tourist spot Ellen’s Stardust Diner will reopen tomorrow

Photo (cropped) by Jazzy Guy via Wikimedia Commons

September 30, 2020

After almost closing, famous Theater District tourist spot Ellen’s Stardust Diner will reopen tomorrow

By Dana Schulz

Ellen's Stardust Diner has been a Theater District fixture since 1987, famous for its retro '50s design, subway car entrance, and singing waitstaff. But like so many other restaurants in New York City, Ellen's struggled to reopen due to the pandemic. As Broadway World reported in July, a photo on Facebook showed a notice posted at the diner from the landlord that said Ellen's owed $618,459.22 in back rent. But good news--Time Out NY now reports that the restaurant and landlord seem to have resolved their conflict, and Ellen's will reopen (singing waiters and all!) as of tomorrow.
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Food & Dining

Mayor pulls Theater District air rights plan after disputes with City Council over floor price

Image via Wiki Commons

February 28, 2017

Mayor pulls Theater District air rights plan after disputes with City Council over floor price

By Michelle Cohen

Image via Wiki Commons The de Blasio administration pulled the plug Monday on proposed legislation that would give the city a 20 percent cut of any air rights sales in midtown Manhattan's Theater District, according to Crain's. The reversal followed disputes with City Council members over a key element–a floor price for the sales. The proposal had been part of a long effort to get theater owners to up the amount they contribute to a fund used for venue maintenance and support for smaller theaters. There is now speculation as to whether the move could cast a shadow on the administration's Midtown East rezoning plan, which is a similar policy initiative.
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Policy

February 7, 2017

City continues push to raise fee for Theater District air rights transfers

By Dana Schulz

In November, the City Planning Commission voted to raise the cost of air rights transfers in the Theater District, allowing the city to take a 20 percent cut of any sales and establishing a minimum floor price of $346, a roughly 400 percent increase over the current $17.60 flat fee that they feel will be more in line with current property values. Despite vocal opposition from the Real Estate Board of New York, who back Theater District landlords and believe the increase is "is onerous, excessive and unfair," this month the Commission is hoping to have the proposal approved by the City Council, reports Crain's.
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Policy

November 17, 2016

City Planning Commission votes to raise fee for Theater District air rights transfers

By Michelle Cohen

The City Planning Commission has voted to up the cost of air rights transfers in the special Midtown Manhattan district that includes Broadway's theaters, The Real Deal reports. Currently, when developers purchase air rights from theaters between West 40th and West 57th Streets from Sixth to Eighth Avenues, they pay $17.60 per square foot to the Theater Subdistrict Fund. Transferable development rights can usually only be used for adjacent properties, but the city created the special district in 1998 to help the theater industry thrive amid sharply rising real estate prices; within the district, air rights can be moved more freely in a larger area outside the usual “arms length” restrictions.
What does this mean for Broadway theaters?

Policy

June 2, 2014

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

By Aisha Carter

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?
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Distinctive Homes

222 LES Tower + Lofts

222 East Broadway

Lower East Side

Art Deco romance meets 21st-century convenience

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Theater District

Revamped One Times Square, home to the New Year’s Eve ball drop, tops out

COVID vaccination site opens in Times Square for theater, film, and TV workers

After almost closing, famous Theater District tourist spot Ellen’s Stardust Diner will reopen tomorrow

Mayor pulls Theater District air rights plan after disputes with City Council over floor price

City continues push to raise fee for Theater District air rights transfers

City Planning Commission votes to raise fee for Theater District air rights transfers

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

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