6sqft | NYC local news, events, and apartments

Simon Baron Development has announced plans for a seven-story office building at 12 Franklin Street on the Greenpoint/North Williamsburg border. The project, designed by FXCollaborative, will rise in an area bristling with residential development, dining and entertainment choices but with a shortage, according to the developer, of Class A office space geared toward small businesses. The building's 134,000 square feet of office, retail and rooftop amenity space will include 23,000 square feet of manufacturing space–the building's design was intended to reinforce the industrial character of the neighborhood. The project is scheduled for public review today.
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New Developments

MTA to host town hall meetings on ambitious Fast Forward plan

Image © 6sqft

August 20, 2018

MTA to host town hall meetings on ambitious Fast Forward plan

Instead of airing grievances about the subway on Twitter, you will soon be able to complain to the boss of the system face-to-face. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority announced on Sunday that Andy Byford, president of NYC Transit, will host a series of town hall public meetings about the Fast Forward plan, the ambitious proposal to modernize the subway over the next decade. The first meeting will take place at York College in Queens on Tuesday, Aug. 21 from 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm.
Get the details

Transit

Riverton Square, via A&E Real Estate

August 20, 2018

New waitlist opens for mixed-income units at East Harlem’s Riverton complex, from $1,174/month

Last November, East Harlem’s Riverton Square opened up its 7,500-name waitlist for middle-income families. They've now reopened it, this time to a wider range of income brackets. Households earning 60, 80, or 125 percent of the area median income can put their name on the list for units ranging from $1,174/month one-bedrooms to $2,983/month three-bedrooms. The affordable seven-building development was built by the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company in 1947 to serve as housing for WWII veterans. Unlike their similar complexes, Stuyvesant Town and the Bronx's Parkchester, Riverton did not bar black and Hispanic tenants from renting. Today, the 12-acre complex offers a gated community with 12 acres of beautifully landscaped grounds and a public fountain, a new basketball court and playground, and a newly built senior center and after-school center.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

August 20, 2018

Interactive map displays changes in New York City’s street grid over the last 90 years

The Department of City Planning (DCP) launched on Monday a digital tool that compiles more than 8,000 historic maps of New York City, dating back to 1924. The tool, called NYC Street Map, allows users to find the official mapped width and status of specific streets and how that relates to specific properties. According to DCP, NYC Street Map lets New Yorkers explore historic street and building images, find protected bike lanes and locate streets and public areas named in honor of 9/11 victims.
Explore the map

Uncategorized

Image: Wikimedia Commons

August 20, 2018

NYC pet laws and the legal loophole that may let your furry friend stay despite a ‘no pets’ rule

As long as Fido’s not a ferret, of course. You may not know this, but you could be able to keep a pet in a “no pets” apartment–legally. New York City's Pet Law, established in 1983, may actually override your landlord’s kibosh on your kitty or pup, as long as certain criteria are met. Your pet can't be one of the many, many critters on the city's "banned" list, which includes the aforementioned ferrets, pot-bellied pigs, most snakes, hedgehogs, and squirrels.
So how can I keep Fluffy in my no-pets condo?

FREE RENT: This week’s roundup of NYC rental news

Images (L to R): The Addition, Yorkshire Towers, The Crescendo and 555Ten

August 18, 2018

FREE RENT: This week’s roundup of NYC rental news

By Ondel Hylton

Images (L to R): The Addition, Yorkshire Towers, The Crescendo and 555Ten Rockrose’s Eagle Lofts Launches with 1 Month Free; Long Island City Rentals from $2,557/Month [link] Take a Tour of The Crescendo, The Bronx’s Revolutionary New Rental Building [link] Greenpoint Landing’s One Blue Slip Launches Leasing; 90% of Apartments Have Water Views [link] Elegant […]

Real Estate Trends

August 17, 2018

Lottery launches for affordable units across from Lincoln Terrace in Crown Heights, from $938/month

Located across from the Lincoln Terrace/ Arthur S. Somers Park in Crown Heights, a newly constructed building has 10 affordable apartments up for grabs. New Yorkers earning 60 percent of the area median income can apply for the apartments, which include $938/month studios, $1,080/month one-bedrooms and $1,223/month two-bedrooms. In addition to being across from 21 acres of public park, the rental at 24 Ford Street also features a fitness center, lounge, a bike room, and parking.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

TBD Design Studio gave this West Village penthouse a complete overhaul–and a private rooftop pool

Image courtesy of TBD Architecture + Design Studio; photo by Christopher Olstein.

August 17, 2018

TBD Design Studio gave this West Village penthouse a complete overhaul–and a private rooftop pool

It's hard to find a penthouse in downtown Manhattan that isn't impressive in one way or another, but this 1,600-square-foot space high above Christopher Street in the West Village has bragging rights to that rare and elusive refuge that few can claim: There's a private pool on its rooftop terrace. TBD Architecture + Design Studio was responsible for a total renovation of the stunning duplex (h/t Dezeen), resulting in a new multi-level rooftop deck with a hot tub, outdoor shower, bar area, and the aforementioned pool.
Check it out

Distinctive Homes

For $995K, this two-bedroom Park Slope condo is a breath of fresh air

Bill Murray's former Snedens Landing home asks $3.7M

$4M gets you the whole renovated Boerum Hill townhouse package, with a bi-level backyard

$1.4M Fort Greene co-op has a sprawling solarium, a charming parlor and just a hint of loft

This $3.75M Lefferts Manor townhouse has well-preserved historic details and every modern luxury

$65M Sutton Place penthouse is highest on East Side waterfront

For $5.8M, this Fifth Avenue co-op has 'Mad Men'-era vibes and Central Park views

This $3.15M co-op embodies East Village cool, all grown up

For $25M, a Flatiron penthouse in a golden cupola, with Manhattan at your feet

6sqft’s top ‘distinctive homes’ of 2024

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The real value of $100 in New York is just $86.51

Via Tax Foundation

August 17, 2018

The real value of $100 in New York is just $86.51

A $100 in New York State has a real value of just $86.51, according to a report released this week by the Tax Foundation, an independent tax policy research group. And while New Yorkers know the cost of housing here ranks among the highest in the country and drives up the cost of living, everyday goods, including groceries, are also more expensive than most other states.
Not all that surprising

City Living

Where I Work: The team behind Black Seed Bagels shows off their new Nomad shop

Head baker Dianna Daoheung and Black Seeds’ new Nomad location

August 17, 2018

Where I Work: The team behind Black Seed Bagels shows off their new Nomad shop

6sqft’s series “Where I Work” takes us into the studios, offices, and businesses of New Yorkers across the city. In this installment, we’re going inside Black Seed Bagels' new Nomad location. Want to see your business featured here? Get in touch! "We founded Black Seed with the goal of bringing extremely well-made bagels, bagel sandwiches, and coffee to everyone," said co-owner Noah Bernamoff. After he and Matt Kliegman met through a mutual friend while running separate restaurants (Matt, The Smile and the Jane Hotel ballroom and Noah, Mile End Delicatessen), they decided to open their first location of Black Seed Bagels in Nolita in 2014. The Montreal-meets-New York-style bagels became an instant foodie hit, and the partners now have locations in the East Village, Battery Park City, and, as of this week, Nomad. 6sqft paid Noah a visit at their latest location in the trendy Ace Hotel and chatted with him about Black Seed's journey. We also met with head baker Dianna Daoheung, who developed the shop's unique hand-rolled, wood-fired bagels (which garnered her a James Beard nomination) and expanded the menu to include sandwich collaborations with fellow NYC restaurants and chefs.
See the space and meet Noah and Dianna

Battery Maritime Building’s hotel-restaurant conversion is back on track

Via Ismael Leyva Architects

August 17, 2018

Battery Maritime Building’s hotel-restaurant conversion is back on track

The plan to convert the landmarked Battery Maritime Building into a hotel and Cipriani rooftop restaurant is back on schedule after an injection of capital into the project, Crain's reported on Thursday. Developer Midtown Equities will take a 30 percent stake, allowing construction to resume this fall or winter. In 2009, the city first approved a plan to redevelop the building, which sits at 10 South Street in the Financial District, but was delayed after a series of legal and financial setbacks.
More details here

August 17, 2018

For just $128K, a Bronx co-op with Deco details and more space than you’d expect

In a Bronx neighborhood known for comfortable living at reasonable prices and for its six-story pre-war elevator co-ops, this large alcove studio at 601 Pelham Parkway North is a fine example of both. The unit's $128,000 ask alone is worth noting; a glance at the floor plan shows that while the space isn't palatial, it goes beyond the usual one-room studio, and its kitchen and bath have more going for them than many we've seen in more expensive properties. The Art Deco building is, according to the listing, the neighborhood's "most sought after."
Have a look

Distinctive Homes

Trump Tower apartment right below the president hits the market for $25M

Photo of Trump via Michael Vadon on Flickr

August 17, 2018

Trump Tower apartment right below the president hits the market for $25M

You don't need a security clearance to live below the President, but it might still be a challenge for whomever wants to buy the condo right below Donald Trump's Midtown residence. The Post reports that the duplex unit on the 64th and 65th floors of Trump Tower has just hit the market for $24.5 million and sources are saying it "directly adjoins" his bedroom. So how can the administration legally control the buyer? By convincing the condo Board to exercise a board waiver and buy the apartment themselves, according to the Post. And this may just work; a recent Business Insider investigation into a mysterious $1.5 million apartment Melania bought in the building shows that this was the only unit the Board had ever bought.
See inside

No G trains this weekend and other bad subway news

Photo via Wikipedia

August 17, 2018

No G trains this weekend and other bad subway news

By Hannah Frishberg

This weekend, the L continues its mini shutdown and is not running between Brooklyn and Manhattan, A and S service remains confusing and limited in the Rockaways, and the G train is taking a summer vacation and going on hiatus, leaving a free shuttle bus and the F to pick up the slack. And beginning this weekend, 5 trains will stop running in a hunk of the Bronx through September.
Read it and weep

Transit

City will preserve 670 affordable apartments in ‘high-cost’ neighborhoods; Why is the Flower District dying?

Via Pexels (L) ; Flower District via Flickr/cc (R)

August 16, 2018

City will preserve 670 affordable apartments in ‘high-cost’ neighborhoods; Why is the Flower District dying?

By 6sqft

The city will preserve 669 Section 8 apartments for 40 years. They’re located in “high-cost neighborhoods”–Williamsburg, Harlem, the East Village–“where the majority of similar buildings have converted to market-rate.” [NYC HPD] Twenty percent of dwelling units currently under construction in New York City are in a hotel. [TRD] Once a $120 million engine, NYC’s Flower District is being […]

Uncategorized

August 16, 2018

Apply for 35 affordable apartments in Bed-Stuy, from $745/month

A six-story building in Bed-Stuy launched a lottery this week for 35 affordable apartments. Developed in collaboration between Comunilife and NYC Health + Hospitals, the Woodhull Residence at 179 Throop Avenue contains 89 studio apartments, designed as supportive and affordable housing. The apartments up for grabs through the lottery are set aside for individual New Yorkers earning 50 and 60 percent of the area median income, or between $27,463 and $43,860 annually, and include $746/month and $903/month studios.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

Developer’s pitch would turn Liberty State Park into a Formula One racetrack

Image courtesy of Shinya Suzuki via Flickr.

August 16, 2018

Developer’s pitch would turn Liberty State Park into a Formula One racetrack

Five million people a year visit New Jersey's 1,212 acre Liberty State Park on the west shore of New York Harbor for views of Lady Liberty and the the New York City skyline and a visit to its historic rail terminal. But even as the public land is enjoyed by the public for which it is set aside, private interests see the taxpayer-owned waterfront parkland as a jackpot waiting to happen in the form of luxury resort concepts like a golf course and, the most recent pitch, a Formula One racetrack with a 100,000-seat grandstand and fields for international cricket matches, Bloomberg reports. Though they would be on mostly private land, the developer wants 20 acres of the park in order to offer rich revelers its breathtaking views in return for cleaning up 200 contaminated, fenced-off park acres.
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Policy

Tenement Museum will open an info kiosk at the Market Line inside Essex Crossing

By Andrew Berman of Village Preservation

The Tenement Museum will open a new kiosk at the Market Line inside the Essex Crossing development on the Lower East Side, developer Delancy Street Associates announced on Thursday. The kiosk will feature a screen with tour times and other information about the museum. When it opens later this year, the Market Line will run three city blocks and include 100 locally-sourced food, art, fashion and music vendors. The market, projected to be the largest of its kind in New York City, sits inside Essex Crossing, a 1.9-million-square foot mixed-use development.
Get the details

Events & Things To Do

Google Street View of Federal-style rowhouses on VanDam Street

August 16, 2018

From George Washington to Hudson Square: The history of the Charlton-King-VanDam neighborhood

It’s an often-overlooked enclave with the largest concentration of Federal and Greek Revival style houses in New York City. Its origins can be traced back to historical figures as esteemed as George Washington, John Adams, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jacob Astor, but it’s just as deeply connected to Italian immigrants and radical 20th-century innovators. The most dyed-in-the-wool New Yorker will have trouble telling you if it’s in Greenwich Village, SoHo, or Hudson Square. The tiny Charlton-King-VanDam neighborhood is, as its name would imply, located along charming Charlton, King, and VanDam Streets between Sixth Avenue and Varick Streets, with a little arm extending up the southernmost block of MacDougal Street just below Houston Street. It was only the fourth designated historic district in New York City when it was landmarked on August 16th, 1966, and for good reason.
Find out the full history

History

August 16, 2018

From Rheingold Brewery to the Denizen: Inside Bushwick’s most unique rental

A new rental development designed by ODA Architecture has been dubbed by its developers as a building "made for Bushwick." And once you tour the sprawling, two-block site, that bold declaration makes more sense. Located on part of the former site of Brooklyn's Rheingold Brewery at 54 Noll Street (with its still-under-construction sister site at 123 Melrose Street), the Denizen Bushwick features a fragmented facade with rust-colored, deeply-recessed windows. But what stands out the most at the building, in addition to its bisecting green promenade and interconnected courtyards, remain the corridors of large-scale art that stand seven stories tall.
Take the tour

Architecture And Design

Image courtesy of Cooper Hewitt

August 16, 2018

Get free tickets to 1,300 museums and more on Smithsonian Magazine’s Museum Day

Smithsonian Magazine Museum Day–formerly Museum Day Live–is happening this year on September 22; it's a chance to get free admission to museums across the country, including many great NYC options. Tickets became available on August 15 on the Smithsonian site, where you can download two free tickets to museums, galleries and cultural institutions like the Cooper Hewitt design museum, the Museum of Arts and Design, the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum and many, many more.
Choose from over 1,300 museums

Events & Things To Do

August 16, 2018

This $1.6M ‘European country house’ in the Bronx is stone cold foxy

With a beautifully-designed, renovated boho-chic interiors and a stone exterior that seems to grow right from the verdant landscape, this "European country" Tudor-style house at 2741 Edgehill Avenue in the northwest Bronx neighborhood of Spuyten Duyvil looks pretty good at $1.6 million even without three patios and parking for five cars. It's also minutes from Metro North and not far from the 1 subway line.
Take the tour

Distinctive Homes

Image of Rikers Island via Wikimedia

August 15, 2018

City proposes four jail sites with community amenities as Rikers replacement

Four new borough-based jails have been proposed for New York City as part of a plan to close Rikers Island, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Wednesday. The proposed facilities, which include building sites in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens, will contain about 1,500 beds each and offer on-site support services. The new jails would include space for educational programming, recreation, therapeutic services and staff parking. There will also be community facilities and street-level retail space, providing amenities to the surrounding neighborhood.
Find out more

Policy

Manhattan’s public squares may not actually be square, but they matter

“Public squares, parks, and places in the City of New York.” Via NYPL Digital Collections.

August 15, 2018

Manhattan’s public squares may not actually be square, but they matter

Built to emulate Great Britain's enviable squares, which were actually square, Manhattan's public squares were created in the celebrated New York City tradition of being whatever they pleased–and definitely not square. According to the New York Daily News, Manhattan doesn't have any actual squares at all: Lisa Keller, executive editor of the Encyclopedia of New York City, said "Americans just call it a square if it's bigger than a breadbox." But those 40 squares from Madison to Foley, Herald and Greeley have been vital in defining the city's public spaces; they were its first parks, and a predecessor to the granddaddy of all squares, Central Park.
Squares that shaped the city

To make political statement in Albany, Airbnb donates $10M to local nonprofits

Via CC

August 15, 2018

To make political statement in Albany, Airbnb donates $10M to local nonprofits

Airbnb announced on Wednesday it will donate $10 million to a select group of nonprofit organizations as a way to highlight a bill pending in New York State Legislature that would allow the company to collect taxes from its guests. According to Airbnb, the $10 million represents one-tenth of the projected tax revenue it could generate if the legislation is approved by state lawmakers. The initiative, called "A Fair Share," comes a week after Mayor Bill de Blasio signed into law a bill that requires Airbnb to disclose the names and addresses of its hosts, as a way to crack down on illegal listings.
Find out more

Policy

August 15, 2018

George and Amal Clooney’s supposed illegal Soho rental hits the market for $16M

Everything you need to know about affordable housing: applying, getting in, and staying put

In April, sources said that George and Amal Clooney were renting a duplex apartment at 116 Sullivan Street. They also said that the owner of the 19th-century Soho townhouse, Richard Fertig, converted this apartment into an "illegal hotel" for "transient use." Likely in light of the city's new Airbnb law that requires the company to disclose the names and addresses of hosts, Fertig has listed the entire six-story home for $16 million.
Get a look inside

THE 6SQFT SHOP

The best websites for buying and selling used furniture in NYC

The 6 best furniture rental companies in NYC

8 best places in NYC to thrift for home goods

Everything you need to know about using a guarantor in NYC

15 quintessential NYC gifts for the New Yorker in your life

New York City's best holiday markets of 2023

Raising chickens in NYC: Laws, tips, and everything else you need to know

10 best plants for apartment dwellers

Snag the Greenest Seat in Town: Gufram's 1972 Pratone Chair is Shaped Like a Patch of Grass

VIEW ALL

Via NYC Ferry

August 15, 2018

NYC Ferry now connects the South Bronx and Wall Street, cutting travel time in half

A new ferry route connecting the South Bronx and Wall Street launched on Wednesday, the first-ever ferry service between the two boroughs in the 21st century. The new route starts at Clason Point Park in Soundview and makes stops at East 90th Street, East 34th Street and ends at Wall Street's Pier 11. The entire trip takes about 45 minutes. "The new Soundview ferry will cut commute times in half for thousands of Bronxites," Mayor Bill de Blasio said in a statement. "Our all-of-the-above approach to transit gives New Yorkers reliable options to get where they need to go."
Learn more

Transit

August 15, 2018

Where I Work: Go inside SHoP Architects’ aviation-inspired offices in the Woolworth Building

6sqft’s series “Where I Work” takes us into the studios, offices, and businesses of New Yorkers across the city. In this installment, we’re touring the Financial District offices of SHoP Architects. Want to see your business featured here? Get in touch! The largest collection of WWII-era spotter planes in the world, a massive copper section of the Barclays Center facade, a materials library with hundreds of samples of everything from fabric to flooring--these are just some of the surprises you'll come across in SHoP Architects' offices in the iconic Woolworth Building. The firm's projects include buildings at mega-developments like the Domino Sugar Factory and Essex Crossing, the twisting American Copper Buildings, and the world's future tallest residential skyscraper 111 West 57th Street, and their office certainly embodies this creativity and range of work. After taking a tour of the space, 6sqft chatted with Associate Principal Angelica T. Baccon about this very special office design, what a typical day is like at the firm, and, of course, the backstory behind those planes. We also met with Materials Librarian Kate Smith to learn a bit more about this rare resource that helps inform the ideas at SHoP.
Take the tour!

MTA postpones select bus service expansion amid funding crisis

Via jason smith on Flickr

August 15, 2018

MTA postpones select bus service expansion amid funding crisis

Bad news for bus riders. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority will not expand select bus service over the next few years as originally planned in order to cut costs amid a looming financial crisis for the agency, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday. Mayor Bill de Blasio first announced last year a plan to expand the select, or express, bus routes by upgrading 21 new routes over the next decade. But the MTA said it can save $28 million through 2022 by postponing the program temporarily.
More here

Transit

August 15, 2018

$10K per month rent seems fitting for this photo-ready Tribeca loft

From the wide-plank oak floors to the sleek contemporary kitchen and exposed brick walls, this two-bedroom loft in a former textile merchant's building at 40 Walker Street looks like it could be the perfect bachelor pad, as long as the smooth operator in residence is willing to fork over $9,995 a month for the Tribeca condo.
Check it out

August 14, 2018

Private seven-acre Connecticut island with a garden wonderland sells for $21.5M

A private island in Long Island Sound known as Rogers Island just got a new owner, who paid $21.5 million for the seven-acre property off the Connecticut coast. The sellers, a couple of "island collectors" by the name of Christine and Edmund Stoecklein, are bound for the West Coast, according to Mansion Global, unloading their gorgeously landscaped land mass and even lovelier Tudor mansion for less than the $22.3 million they paid for it in 2003, to an anonymous buyer.
Take the cross-island tour

Real Estate Trends

Construction underway for Roman Abramovich’s Upper East Side mega-mansion

Via LPC

August 14, 2018

Construction underway for Roman Abramovich’s Upper East Side mega-mansion

Russia-born billionaire Roman Abramovich is moving ahead with his plan to construct a mega-mansion on the Upper East Side, the New York Post reported on Monday. Abramovich's original proposal in 2016 called for an "18,255-square-foot mansion with a six-foot front yard, 30-foot backyard and pool in the cellar" across a combination of three townhouses on East 75th Street. Although the Landmarks Preservation Commission rejected that first plan, a proposal that kept similarly-styled facades and added a fourth property was approved soon after.
Get the details

New Yorkers are bypassing food trucks for McDonalds as fast food finds new footing

Image: Wikimedia commons

August 14, 2018

New Yorkers are bypassing food trucks for McDonalds as fast food finds new footing

Even as New York City continues to experience record financial growth, a small explosion of fast food chains within city limits still comes as somewhat of a surprise. A recent Crain's article confirms that, even more surprisingly, McDonalds, perhaps the fast-foodiest of all, is not only expanding but polishing up its image to appeal to a more upscale market–and it's working. You might just chalk it up to a sweeping takeover by big chain stores, but isn't that about gentrification? Fast food has traditionally had a big presence in the city's lower-income neighborhoods–known as "food swamps"–and in tourist areas. But the nation's largest Chick-fil-A just opened in...the Financial District. Reasons for the latest fast food boom are many, it turns out, and extend beyond mere mallification.
Would you like fries with that?

3 chances to live just steps from the G train in Bed-Stuy, from $1,912/month

Photo via Julien Magne/Flickr

August 14, 2018

3 chances to live just steps from the G train in Bed-Stuy, from $1,912/month

A six-story building in Bed-Stuy launched a lottery this week for three middle-income units. The newly constructed building, located at 523 Willoughby Avenue, sits between Marcy and Tompkins Avenues and just a two-minute walk from the G train. Qualifying New Yorkers earning 130 percent of the area median income can apply for one $1,912/month one-bedroom and two $2,303 two-bedroom apartments.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

Photo by 6sqft

August 14, 2018

Where to experience Bangladeshi culture in NYC, from the East Village to Ozone Park

By Hannah Frishberg

It's hard to miss the two floors of flashing, chili pepper light-adorned Indian restaurants on First Avenue and Sixth Street in the East Village. The origin of these two stacked eateries, though, is much more frequently overlooked, as is the fact that the neighborhood's adjacent "Little India" is really more "Little Bengal." New York's main Bangladeshi community is often cited as being in Jackson Heights, which boasts a large South Asian population and a great representation of its diverse culture, including the beloved Patel Brothers grocery store. Less well known is that East New York also has a large Bangladeshi community, and in the 1990s, the East Village's "Curry Row" worked to identify itself as Indian, a culture more Americans at the time were familiar with. Ahead, we look at the whole history and break down the best places to experience Bangladeshi culture in NYC.
READ MORE

August 14, 2018

Michael Cohen lists Tribeca condo as a $25,000 rental just four months after buying it

Photo of Michael Cohen via Wikimedia As they say, never underestimate desperate people. In May, Michael Cohen, the disgraced former personal lawyer of Donald Trump who is now under federal investigation, put his $9 million Trump Park Avenue apartment on the market as collateral against a bank loan. So it was a bit surprising when he turned around dropped nearly $7 million on a condo in Tribeca's flashy new condo tower 111 Murray Street. But it makes a bit more sense now, as The Real Deal learned that Cohen has listed the 19th-floor apartment as a $25,000/month rental. He made the purchase as an "investment" after allegedly facing pressure to defer the taxes on the $3.3 million sale last year of his Trump World Tower apartment; by closing on a new unit, he was able to take part in the 1031 exchange that allows investors to roll proceeds from one transaction over to another.
Get the scoop

Bodegas in gentrifying NYC neighborhoods get exterior upgrades under new program

Via bitchcakes on Flickr

August 13, 2018

Bodegas in gentrifying NYC neighborhoods get exterior upgrades under new program

As neighborhoods in New York City continue to change, bodegas are having to update their inventory. While chips and cigarettes are still corner-store fixtures, owners are selling more fresh fruit and vegetables and organic products to keep up with the shift in consumer demographics. Coinciding with the updated interiors, the exteriors of some NYC bodegas are getting upgrades as well, thanks to a new pilot program from the city. The program, "Commercial Corridor Challenge," aims to help fund public realm improvements for local businesses to keep them competitive amid gentrification, the Wall Street Journal reported.
More here

August 13, 2018

New SHoP Architects-designed Pier 17 is making progress, looking sharp

Howard Hughes Corporation's re-launch of the SHoP Architects-designed Pier 17 in Lower Manhattan's Seaport District kicked off this summer, with exciting plans for food, drink, art, architecture, retail, and entertainment concepts finally being realized. The first two venues in the new complex–the Heineken Riverdeck waterfront bar, designed by Woods Bagot, and the Fresh Market Hall restaurant–are open for business and the district's 2018 rooftop concert series officially began on July 28 with a free opening-day performance by Jon Batiste and the Dap-Kings. The rest of the new complex in what historically was the city's first 24-hour district is still under construction, but designs are taking shape on the way to transforming the existing building into a vibrant destination and a 21st century 24/7 live/work/play community.
Take a look

New Developments

Prospect Park Boathouse via Flickr/cc

August 13, 2018

Six brand-new, middle-income apartments available right off the park in Prospect-Lefferts Gardens

Prospect-Lefferts Gardens is becoming a more and more coveted neighborhood, especially when you're just a few short blocks from Prospect Park and the B and Q trains at Parkside Avenue, which is exactly the selling point for the new 20-unit rental at 830 Flatbush Avenue. The building was recently completed and as of today, households earning 130 percent of the area median income can apply for six middle-income apartments, including $2,253/month one-bedrooms and $2,716/month two-bedrooms. They'll also have access to a fitness center, laundry room, lounge, bike storage, and roof deck.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

Anthony Bourdain’s Columbus Circle condo hits the rental market for $14K/month

Photo of Bourdain via Wikimedia; photo of Time Warner Center via Joe Schulz on Flickr

August 13, 2018

Anthony Bourdain’s Columbus Circle condo hits the rental market for $14K/month

Anthony Bourdain's Columbus Circle apartment has hit the rental market, nearly two months after the chef's death. Located on the 64th floor of the Time Warner Center, the two-bedroom condo is asking $14,200/month, as first reported by TMZ. In addition to high-end condos, the building is home to CNN's NYC headquarters, the same network that carries Bourdain's popular Parts Unknown series.
More here

Aerial view of Roosevelt Island. Image: Schizoform via Flickr.

August 13, 2018

Cuomo announces deal to keep 360 Roosevelt Island apartments affordable for 30 more years

Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Sunday that an agreement had been reached to keep over 360 Roosevelt Island apartments in the Westview housing development, currently in the Mitchell-Lama rental program, affordable for 30 more years. Without the agreement, the Westview's owner could have removed the building from the middle-class housing program and converted all of the apartments to market rate immediately. Instead, Westview will be able to exit from the Mitchell-Lama program but tenants will be offered first-time ownership opportunities at deeply affordable and below-market prices. Simultaneously, long-term affordability protections will be provided for tenants who continue to rent.
Find out more

August 13, 2018

The 8 best wildlife activities in and around NYC

By Rebecca Fishbein

You may have thought NYC’s wildlife predominantly consisted of subway rats and the giant cockroaches that find their way into your apartment each summer, but it appears there’s more to this city’s animals than pests. Indeed, New York is actually full of unique birds, mammals, and insects that help contribute each day to our shared ecosystem. It’s also full of walking tours, boat tours, driving tours, and other activities that’ll give you an opportunity to get a good look at the wildlife around us, both in the city and just outside of it. Here are some of our favorites.
The top 8 wildlife activities in and around NYC

August 13, 2018

This $3.5M Crown Heights mansion gives you plenty of room to imagine its grand historic past

For the many house-hunters seeking a townhouse in Crown Heights, this $3.5 million Colonial Revival mansion at 190 New York Avenue is a fine example of the neighborhood's grand history. The area known as the St. Marks District was, at the turn of the 19th century, home to many of the borough's wealthiest residents, with streets lined with large free-standing or semi-detached homes like this one. This four-story townhouse measures an unusually large 30 feet by 59 feet on a 109-foot lot. Inside are 14 rooms including seven bedrooms, seven fireplaces and a master bedroom that's blessed with a terrace. And here's a fun fact--according to the listing, a one-time tenant was the prolific singer and actress Ethel Waters
Take the tour

RENTING IN NYC: This week’s roundup of NYC rental news

Images (L to R): 500 Metropolitan Avenue, Alvista Towers, 38 Sixth Avenue and Revetment House

August 11, 2018

RENTING IN NYC: This week’s roundup of NYC rental news

By Ondel Hylton

Images (L to R): 500 Metropolitan Avenue, Alvista Towers, 38 Sixth Avenue and Revetment House 500 Met: Williamsburg Rentals from $2,852/Month Debut Above New Hotel [link] Embankment House: Premier No Fee Apartments in Jersey City from $2,600/Month [link] Introducing Talo38: Luxury Rentals to Debut Near LIC – Astoria Border [link] Revetment House; Historically-Attuned Jersey City […]

Real Estate Trends

Spring + Thompson

83 Thompson Street

Soho

Loft-like residences in Soho designed by Selldorf Architects

2 beds starting at $4,975,000
4 beds starting at $14,850,000

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NJ Transit says ‘summer of hell’ will last until fall; Brooklyn’s iconic Watchtower sign will not rise again

NJ Transit via Wiki Commons (L); Watchtower sign via Wiki Commons (R)

August 10, 2018

NJ Transit says ‘summer of hell’ will last until fall; Brooklyn’s iconic Watchtower sign will not rise again

By 6sqft

NJ Transit admitted to extremely poor service this summer–but warned that it probably won’t end until the fall. [NYT] Go inside the world Of NYC “canners,” who survive by collecting recyclable cans and bottles. [Gothamist] And meet the Brooklyn can collector who’s worth $8 million. [NYP] The iconic Watchtower sign that stood atop the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ former […]

Uncategorized

August 10, 2018

RPA report shows subway platform temperatures of 104 degrees

Are subway platforms really as hot as the inside of a rotisserie, or does it just seem that way? On Thursday, August 9, 2018, the Regional Plan Association (RPA) sent out an intrepid task force of staff and interns to measure the temperature in the city's ten busiest subway stations. The temperature outside was 86 degrees. The data they collected helped to inform a report titled, "Save Our Subways: A Plan To Transform New York City’s Rapid Transit System."
Roasted alive?

Live on the Williamsburg-Bushwick border for just $1,039/month

Photo via Wally Gobetz/Flickr

August 10, 2018

Live on the Williamsburg-Bushwick border for just $1,039/month

At the beginning of the year, three middle-income apartments came online at the brand new rental 126 Boerum Street in trendy East Williamsburg, just off the Bushwick border and only steps to theL train at Montrose and the J/M at Lorimer. Now, two more units are available, these for New Yorkers earning 60 percent of the area median income and renting for $1,039.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

In 1981 the MTA rolled out 7,000 pure white subway cars to curb graffiti and guess what happened next

Image courtesy of the NY Transit Museum Collections.

August 10, 2018

In 1981 the MTA rolled out 7,000 pure white subway cars to curb graffiti and guess what happened next

Throughout the 1970s and '80s, New York City struggled with infrastructure failure, poverty, crime and garbage. One front in what seemed like a constant battle against total chaos was the attempt to keep subway cars graffiti-free. Inspired by a single white car sitting in a train yard in Corona, Queens that somehow managed to remain tag-free for two months (behind a security system that included a chain-link fence, barbed wire and guard dogs, but never mind that) in September 1981, the MTA rolled out one dozen all-white 7 trains–7,000 cars in all. The new program was dubbed “The Great White Fleet,” and officials hoped the bright white cars would do their part to keep graffiti at bay.
A rolling canvas

St. Patrick’s Cathedral $7M air rights deal blocked by exclusive men’s club

Image via Wikimedia

August 10, 2018

St. Patrick’s Cathedral $7M air rights deal blocked by exclusive men’s club