Manhattan

The Morgan Library and Museum will unveil the recently restored exterior of the Morgan Library and the new Morgan Garden to the public this month. The six-year-long, $13 million project marks the first-ever comprehensive restoration of the historic 115-year-old library’s exterior. Designed by architect Charles Follen McKim for J.Pierpont Morgan, the library was completed in 1906 and later became a public institution. The project restores one of the nation's finest examples of Neoclassical architecture, enhances the surrounding grounds, improves the building's lighting, and enables public access to the grounds of the 36th street site for the first time ever.
Stroll the garden, this way

Photo courtesy of Coldwell Banker Warburg

June 8, 2022

A private waterfront terrace and river views define this sprawling $2.5M Upper East Side co-op

This 2,600-square-foot co-op at 45 East End Avenue has seemingly endless interior space, but 500 square feet of outdoor terrace with waterfront views steals the show along with three exposures and unobstructed East River views. Asking $2,500,000, this three-bedroom Yorkville residence is in an elegant Emery Roth-designed 1951 building.
Tour this private UES escape

Distinctive Homes

Manhattan Park’s annual Pop-Up Pool Party gets a new mural, inspired by an ocean wonderland

Photo by Max Touhey.

June 8, 2022

Manhattan Park’s annual Pop-Up Pool Party gets a new mural, inspired by an ocean wonderland

Roosevelt Island luxury rental community Manhattan Park has just unveiled the mural that will highlight its outdoor pool this summer. Now in its eighth year, the art transformation has graced the community's Pop-Up Pool Party each summer starting on Memorial Day. This year's mural, created by Syrian-Armenian artist Hratch Arbach, "reflects imaginary scenes inspired by the ocean wonderland.”
Find out more

Events & Things To Do

Photo by Steven Pisano

June 8, 2022

New York’s largest Pride flag returns to Roosevelt Island’s Four Freedoms Park

New York's largest Pride Month flag is back and better than ever this year. Found in Roosevelt Island's Four Freedoms Park, the 2022 Progress Pride Flag measures more than 100 feet long by 30 feet wide and features added colors to be more inclusive of the LGBTQIA+ community. The installation, which will be featured on the park's monumental staircase throughout the month of June, first debuted in 2019, the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising, and is back for Pride Month 2022.
See it here

Events & Things To Do

L.E.A.F. festival blooms again this year with a three-day flower-filled affair in the Meatpacking District

Flower Flashes by Lewis Miller Design / Photo credit: Leatal Cohen, Pic and Petal for L.E.A.F

June 7, 2022

L.E.A.F. festival blooms again this year with a three-day flower-filled affair in the Meatpacking District

L.E.A.F, New York's budding contemporary flower show, returns to Manhattan’s Meatpacking District for its second year this month, inviting all to celebrate the renewal of New York City and its continued resilience. The three-day festival highlighting world-class floral design will feature a European-style flower market, large-scale floral installations and displays, and retail and hospitality events around the neighborhood.
Find out where the blooms are

Events & Things To Do

Lottery launches for 53 affordable studios for seniors at former illegal Upper West Side hotel

Rendering courtesy of the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development

June 3, 2022

Lottery launches for 53 affordable studios for seniors at former illegal Upper West Side hotel

A building that once operated as an illegal hotel and has been converted into affordable housing for seniors opened a lottery on Friday for 53 apartments. Located at 117 West 79th Street, Park 79 Apartments is a 100 percent affordable housing development with 77 rent-stabilized studio apartments for seniors earning at or below 50 percent of the area median income (AMI), including 24 homes for formerly homeless New Yorkers. Residents, who must be aged 62 years or older to qualify, will pay only 30 percent of their income in rent.
Find out more

Affordable Housing

All photos courtesy of Chris Lee

June 3, 2022

See NYC’s largest outdoor dance floor and its 10-foot disco ball at Lincoln Center

New York City's largest outdoor dance floor is now open. As part of Lincoln Center's three-month-long festival Summer for the City, "The Oasis" opened this week with a 10-foot, 1,300-pound disco ball hovering above the institution's iconic fountain. Designed by costume and set designer Clint Ramos, The Oasis has transformed Josie Robertson Plaza into a dance floor that will host silent discos, live music, dance lessons, and more free events all summer. Summer for the City, which kicked off last month, will feature over 1,000 artists across 10 stages at the famed campus.
See more here

Events & Things To Do

Stunning Soho penthouse has three private outdoor spaces and pre-war loft charm for $3.7M

Photos by Travis Mark and Eitan Gamliely for Sotheby’s International Realty

June 1, 2022

Stunning Soho penthouse has three private outdoor spaces and pre-war loft charm for $3.7M

In the heart of Soho, a historic loft penthouse effortlessly blends original prewar details with modern upgrades, including three enviable separate private outdoor spaces. From the double-height great room and exposed brick to the arched windows and the skylight hanging more than 23 feet above it all, the sprawling two-bedroom home at 477 Broome Street is quintessentially Soho, but with a twist. It's now available for $3,765,000.
See inside

Distinctive Homes

Developers behind Harlem’s One45 withdraw plan after opposition from local council member

Rendering courtesy of SHoP Architects

June 1, 2022

Developers behind Harlem’s One45 withdraw plan after opposition from local council member

A proposal to bring two new residential towers with hundreds of affordable housing units to a largely vacant lot in Harlem was scrapped by developers this week. Late on Monday, the developer withdrew the project, known as One45, a few hours before it was set to be voted on by a City Council committee, as Patch first reported. The plan involved two mixed-use towers on the corner of West 145th Street and Lenox Avenue with a total of 915 apartments. The proposal faced fierce opposition from local Council Member Kristin Richardson Jordan, who argued that the new development would displace Harlem's Black residents and contribute to gentrification. Without the zoning changes needed to build One45, the developers could construct a condo building with no affordable housing, a self-storage facility, and a community facility.
Get the details here

Affordable Housing

MTA’s East Side Access project renamed ‘Grand Central Madison’

Photo by Marc A. Hermann / MTA on Flickr

June 1, 2022

MTA’s East Side Access project renamed ‘Grand Central Madison’

Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday announced that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's long-awaited 700,000-square-foot East Side Access Project will be renamed "Grand Central Madison." The project, which brings Long Island Rail Road service to Grand Central Terminal, will increase LIRR service systemwide by 40 percent during morning peak service and significantly increase reverse peak service. Grand Central Madison is expected to open in December.
See more here

Photo credit: MW Studio for The Corcoran Group

May 31, 2022

Manhattan’s oldest home, a 1795 East Village house built by the Stuyvesant family, asks $8.9M

Old house lovers will want to note this sale: Manhattan's oldest home, built in 1795 for Nicholas Stuyvesant, a great great grandson of city founder Peter Stuyvesant, is on the market for $8,900,000. The East Village townhouse at 44 Stuyvesant Street in the St. Marks Place Historic District has retained most of its original layout, according to Mansion Global. The 5,500-square-foot, 24-foot-wide home is the oldest building in Manhattan that has been used continuously as a single-family dwelling.
Discover the secrets of this historic East Village gem

New street mural promoting peace has been installed on 14th Street in Union Square

All photos courtesy of Jane Kratochvil

May 31, 2022

New street mural promoting peace has been installed on 14th Street in Union Square

A new street mural was unveiled last week along the 14th Street Busway in Union Square. Designed by Brooklyn-based artist Ji Yong Kim, Ripples of Peace and Calm is inspired by traditional East Asian paintings, depicting lotus flowers, floating leaves, and swimming koi fish. The mural's serene qualities are meant to represent the "antithesis of hate" and promote peace and calm, particularly at a time when the city continues to see a spike in violence against Asian New Yorkers. Presented by the city's Department of Transportation and the Union Square Partnership, the mural was installed over the course of five days last week with help from Brooklyn-based urban planning and design firm Street Plans, community groups, and volunteers.
Details this way

Events & Things To Do

Apply for 268 mixed-income apartments at new 19-story East Harlem tower, from $625/month

Rendering courtesy of S9 Architecture

May 27, 2022

Apply for 268 mixed-income apartments at new 19-story East Harlem tower, from $625/month

About three years since breaking ground, One East Harlem has launched a housing lottery for 268 affordable apartments. Designed by S9 Architecture, the 19-story tower is located at 201 East 125th Street and contains over 400 units of housing, an affordable grocery store, and a new home for the Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute. Qualifying New Yorkers earning 40, 50, 100, and 165 percent of the area median income can apply for the apartments, priced from a $625/month studio to a $3,142/month three-bedroom.
Do you qualify?

Affordable Housing

See the new stucco sculpture by Jan Hooss on display in the Upper East Side’s tallest tower

Photo courtesy of Alex Stein

May 26, 2022

See the new stucco sculpture by Jan Hooss on display in the Upper East Side’s tallest tower

World-renowned plaster artist Jan Hooss has installed a custom stucco art installation in the lobby of 180 East 88th Street, a new condo tower designed by Joe McMillan's DDG. Inspired by an architectural style widely used on the Upper East Side at the beginning of the 20th century, the art piece "fuses a rococo design with a whimsically modern aesthetic," according to a press release. The stucco sculpture sits above the vaulted lobby's fireplace, contrasting its flowing, water-like quality with the fire below.
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Contemporary artist Rashid Johnson lists Kips Bay townhouse for $5M

All photos courtesy of Evan Joseph / Sotheby’s International Realty

May 26, 2022

Contemporary artist Rashid Johnson lists Kips Bay townhouse for $5M

Artist Rashid Johnson and his wife, fellow artist Sheree Hovsepian, are selling their brick townhouse in Kips Bay for $4,995,000. Located at 139 Lexington Avenue, the turn-of-the-century four-bedroom property measures more than 4,100 square feet across five floors. Every level boasts original details--like mantles, plaster crown moldings, and ceiling medallions--and, of course, tall ceilings and walls perfect for hanging artwork.
See inside

Distinctive Homes

Lottery opens for six income-restricted co-ops in Hamilton Heights, available to buy from $236K

Photo courtesy of the NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development

May 25, 2022

Lottery opens for six income-restricted co-ops in Hamilton Heights, available to buy from $236K

Applications are now open for six income-restricted co-ops available for purchase in Hamilton Heights. The apartments, located at 601 West 148th Street, are available to New Yorkers who earn 95 percent of the area median income, or between $63,288 annually for a single household and $136,895 for a family of five. The units include a single one-bedroom for $235,856 and five two-bedroom apartments, priced at $283,192.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka sell Harlem townhouse listed for $7.3M

All photos courtesy of Will Ellis / DDreps

May 25, 2022

Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka sell Harlem townhouse listed for $7.3M

Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka found a buyer this month for their five-story Harlem townhouse, which first hit the market last August for $7,325,000. As first reported by the New York Post, the home at 2036 Fifth Avenue is in contract for more than $7,100,000, likely setting a new record for a townhouse sale in the Upper Manhattan neighborhood. The home, constructed in 1908 as a bed-and-breakfast, measures 8,000 square feet and 20 feet wide.
Find out more

This furnished $5.75M Midtown townhouse has been designed for modern living, framed by a rich history

Photo courtesy of The Corcoran Group

May 25, 2022

This furnished $5.75M Midtown townhouse has been designed for modern living, framed by a rich history

Just off Park Avenue on a tree-lined street just four blocks from Grand Central Station, this landmarked townhouse at 130 East 38th Street is both historic and a modern design masterpiece. Built in 1869 as a Second Empire-style brownstone, the four-story home's facade was altered in 1919 by the popular Ziegfeld actress Ida Adams. Its rounded oak front door originated in a Detroit mansion. More recently, the three-bedroom home, listed for $5,750,000, has been reimagined for the 21st century, from its finished lower-level suite to its landscaped roof terrace with panoramic skyline views.
Take the townhouse tour

Distinctive Homes

You can pick your own tulips on Park Avenue

Photo courtesy of East Midtown Partnership on Flickr

May 24, 2022

You can pick your own tulips on Park Avenue

Get your trowels ready! The Park Avenue Tulip Dig is back, giving New Yorkers the opportunity to dig up and take home tulip bulbs planted along the famed thoroughfare between the north side of East 54th Street and the south side of East 86th Street. Approximately 60,000 tulips are planted every year in a new color by the non-profit Fund for Park Avenue, as reported by Patch. This year's flowers are a pink tulip known as "Darwin Hybrid Apricot Pride."
Learn more

This $2.9M Sutton Place co-op has finishes–and furniture–courtesy of an AD100 designer

Photo credit: Stephen Kent Johnson

May 23, 2022

This $2.9M Sutton Place co-op has finishes–and furniture–courtesy of an AD100 designer

This two-bedroom, 1,400-square-foot Sutton Place co-op at 435 East 57th Street is the home of Caleb Anderson, partner in the AD top 100 interior design firm Drake/Anderson. Anderson has listed the home for $2,895,000, furniture included, so the next owner can instantly benefit from an impeccable NYC design pedigree. The elegant pre-war apartment underwent a thorough renovation, with top-tier materials and craftsmanship–from Venetian plaster walls and custom hardware to hand-painted wall coverings–evident at every turn.
Take the tour

Distinctive Homes

May 20, 2022

Judge rules artists’ work won’t stop Manhattan jail demolition

On Wednesday, a judge ruled against halting the demolition of the Manhattan Detention Complex at 124-125 White Street at a hearing in a lawsuit brought by two artists whose works at the site may be moved or destroyed, the New York Times reports. The plaintiffs had requested a preliminary injunction; Judge Lewis A. Kaplan of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York denied the request, citing a lack of proof that preserving the artworks outweighed the community value of a newly-constructed jail planned for the site. The artists–with support from Neighbors United Below Canal, a neighborhood group opposed to the new Chinatown jail–had invoked the Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990 as grounds for the lawsuit.
Find out more

People’s Theatre Project will run NYC’s first immigrant research and performing arts center

Photo by kathryn on Flickr

May 20, 2022

People’s Theatre Project will run NYC’s first immigrant research and performing arts center

The Upper Manhattan-based People's Theatre Project (PTP) will run the city's first research and arts center dedicated to immigrants and the immigrant experience in New York. On Thursday, Mayor Eric Adams announced the selection of the PTP Company, an immigrant and women-led nonprofit, to own and manage the Immigrant Research and Performing Arts Center (IRPAC), which is expected to open in Inwood in 2027. The city will grant the company $15 million to put towards the creation of the new 17,000-square-foot center, which will be developed by LMXD, MSquared, and Taconic Partners.
Details here

Events & Things To Do

Amy Schumer lists her Upper West Side ‘secret garden’ penthouse for $15M

Photo credit: Edward Menashy for Evan Joseph Studio

May 20, 2022

Amy Schumer lists her Upper West Side ‘secret garden’ penthouse for $15M

Actress and comedian Amy Schumer is selling her Upper West Side penthouse at 190 Riverside Drive, the Wall Street Journal reports. Asking $15,000,000, Schumer purchased what she calls her "Manhattan dream apartment" for $12,150,000 in 2016. Surrounded on every side and on the roof above by 3,000 square feet of verdant planted terraces, and centered around a glass-wrapped solarium living room, the five-bedroom, 4,500-square-foot condominium is indeed a New York City dream home–even if it's no longer a secret. Schumer told the Journal she and her husband, chef Chris Fischer, are moving–likely to Brooklyn–to be closer to their son's school.
Step inside Amy Schumer's dreamy sky garden

Century 21 to reopen flagship store in the Financial District

Photo by ajay_suresh on Wikimedia

May 19, 2022

Century 21 to reopen flagship store in the Financial District

A favorite shopping destination of New Yorkers is coming back home. After undergoing a major renovation, and filing for bankruptcy in 2020, the famed department store Century 21 will return to its flagship location at 22 Cortlandt Street in the Financial District next spring. The new store will encompass four main floors, offering men's, women's, and children's apparel, including footwear, outerwear, handbags, accessories, and fragrances, according to a press release. And to emphasize its connection to the city, Century 21 is adding "NYC" to its logo.
See more here

Real Estate Trends

Interior designer Muriel Brandolini lists attractive UES townhouse for $9.5M

All photos by Yoo Jean Han for Sotheby’s International Realty

May 19, 2022

Interior designer Muriel Brandolini lists attractive UES townhouse for $9.5M

Celebrated interior designer and decorator Muriel Brandolini is selling her four-story brownstone on the Upper East Side for $9,500,000. Brandolini, known for her "modernist-tropical" style reflective of her French-Vietnamese upbringing, decorated her home at 167 East 80th Street with art, patterns, and statement lighting, creating highly-livable spaces on every floor. Outside, a long private rear garden surrounded by bamboo gives the home a vacation vibe.
See inside

Distinctive Homes

NYC to celebrate Biggie Smalls’ 50th birthday with Empire State Building tribute, special MetroCards

Image courtesy of Marc A. Hermann / MTA on Flickr

May 18, 2022

NYC to celebrate Biggie Smalls’ 50th birthday with Empire State Building tribute, special MetroCards