6sqft | NYC local news, events, and apartments

When 6sqft met with Herb Glaser, the third-generation co-owner of Yorkville's 116-year-old German bakery Glaser's, he attributed the business' longevity to the fact that his grandfather "had the foresight and the ability to buy the building that we are in." So it came as a bit of a surprise when we learned over the weekend that the beloved bake shop will be closing its doors this summer. A bittersweet Facebook post stated that "After many years of daunting hours and hard work, the third generation of bakers have come to the difficult decision to hang up their bakers' hat and move towards retirement."
READ MORE

Uncategorized

Nearly 200 affordable apartments available at Bushwick’s Rheingold Brewery site from $947/month

Rendering courtesy of ODA Architecture.

March 5, 2018

Nearly 200 affordable apartments available at Bushwick’s Rheingold Brewery site from $947/month

The lottery (pdf) for 183 apartments at 54 Noll Street and 123 Melrose Street, known as Evergreen Gardens, launched today for one of the parcels of land being redeveloped on the site of the former Rheingold Brewery site in Bushwick. Individuals and families earning 60 percent of the area median income, or between $34,355 and $57,240, are eligible to apply for units ranging from $947/month studios to $1,230 two-bedrooms. Among its plethora of indoor and outdoor amenities, the massive ODA-designed project boasts a central park and a rooftop terrace complete with an urban farm.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

March 2, 2018

Interior designer Bunny Williams lists tasteful Upper East Side co-op for $4M

Interior designer and "high society tastemaker" Bunny Williams has just listed her classic six Carnegie Hill apartment at the 1185 Park Avenue cooperative. The apartment--now full of antiques she has collected from around the world--is asking $3.995 million with a maintenance is $4,685 a month. (According to the New York Times, she purchased it for about $900,000.) The two-bedroom, three-bathroom spread is on the fourth floor of the 15-story prewar co-op, one of the last in the city designed with a drive-through central courtyard.
Take the interior tour

Distinctive Homes

March 2, 2018

How COOKFOX Architects outfitted their Midtown office with wellness technology and outdoor space

6sqft’s series “Where I Work” takes us into the studios, offices, and off-beat workspaces of New Yorkers across the city. In this installment, we’re touring the Midtown offices of architecture firm COOKFOX. Want to see your business featured here? Get in touch! When COOKFOX Architects started looking for a new office space three years ago, it was a no-brainer that they'd incorporate their signature biophilic tools, but their one non-negotiable requirement was outdoor space to connect employees directly with nature. And though the firm has come to be associated with so many contemporary projects, they found their ideal space on the 17th floor of the 1921, Carèrre and Hastings-designed Fisk Tire Building on 57th Street. Not only did it offer three terraces (that the team has since landscaped with everything from beehives to kale), but the large, open floorplan allowed the firm to create their dream wellness office. 6sqft recently took a tour of the space to see how employees utilize the space day-to-day and learn more about how COOKFOX achieved LEED Platinum and WELL Gold status by incorporating natural materials for finishings and furniture, temperature control systems, lighting that supports healthy circadian rhythms, and, of course, plenty of connections to nature despite being in the middle of Midtown Manhattan.
READ MORE

March 2, 2018

A 17-year-old artist created a model of Midtown out of recycled motherboards and hot glue sticks

Zimbabwe-based artist Zayd Menk spent three months working on this 165 by 80 centimeter model of Midtown Manhattan. The 17-year-old student, who built the piece of art for a school project, used a plethora of electronic bits and pieces to build the reduced model: 263 hot glue sticks, 11 CPUs, 27 motherboards, 10 CRT motherboards, 15 batteries, 2 clocks, 4 watches, 3 hard drives, 3 graphics cards, 4 audio cards, 7 power supplies and 13 floppy disk readers (h/t designboom). The used electronics, plus lots of math and scouring of the internet, come together in Menk's project in an art form he refers to as "recyclism."
Learn more

Events & Things To Do

March 2, 2018

Lovely garden apartment in an 1893 West Village building is renting for $4,100/month

This apartment, occupying the garden floor of a historic West Village apartment building, is sure to charm you. Located at 225 West 10th Street, the five-story, 20-unit prewar brick building was constructed in 1893 and converted to condos in 1997. (It's a walk-up, making the ground-floor location of this pad even sweeter.) This bright, well-designed condo is now up for rent asking $4,100 a month. And as you might expect, it comes with access to its own private garden space.
Take a look

Distinctive Homes

Real estate investor wants Amazon to build second headquarters on a Hudson River landfill

Courtesy of Charles Urdstadt

March 2, 2018

Real estate investor wants Amazon to build second headquarters on a Hudson River landfill

After landing on Amazon's list of 20 potential cities for its second headquarters in January, New York City is one step closer to securing $5 billion in city investment and 50,000 high paying jobs. Although the city pitched four neighborhoods for the tech-giants' HQ2 (Midtown West, Long Island City, the Brooklyn Tech Triangle, and Lower Manhattan), one investor has a different, less grounded location in mind. Real estate mogul Charles Urstadt took out an ad in the New York Post on Friday detailing his plan to bring Amazon to a landfill in the Hudson River.
More here

Policy

St. Patrick’s Cathedral to get $7.2M from sale of air rights under Midtown East rezoning

St Patrick’s Cathedral via Wikimedia

March 2, 2018

St. Patrick’s Cathedral to get $7.2M from sale of air rights under Midtown East rezoning

Editor's Note: The owners of 405 Park Avenue are set to buy the development rights from St. Patrick's Cathedral, the Real Deal reports. MRP Realty and Deutsche Bank Asset Management will add four floors and 205,000 square feet of office space to their existing building. JPMorgan Chase and Mayor Bill de Blasio announced last week plans for the first project under the city's Midtown East rezoning: a 70-story tower to replace its old offices at the same Park Avenue site. And with the Archdiocese of New York this week reaching a tentative deal to sell 30,000 square feet of development rights from St. Patrick's Cathedral, the second project under the new rezoning could quickly follow. According to Crain's, if the sale happens the Archdiocese could pick up at least $7.2 million in air rights.
Find out more

Distinctive Homes

An artist's Upper East Side condo is a palace-sized riot of joyful color for $8.75M

$11M historic West Village home offers the privacy, parking, and outdoor space you'd find in a suburban subdivision

This six-story $13.9M Upper West Side townhouse has all of life's luxuries under one roof, with an elevator to get there

This $3.6M Spuyten Duyvil home is a tranquil refuge indoors and out, within New York City limits

For $1.5M, get (way) off the grid in Gilded Age style on your own private island in Alexandria Bay

This $8.75M Village townhouse is a downtown dream home with an elevator, three terraces, and a rooftop office suite

The corner terrace at this $4.4M Stella Tower condo puts the city skyline at your feet

SHOP THE LISTING: Claire Danes and Hugh Dancy's $9.75M West Village townhouse is an all-season urban refuge

$4.5M Central Park West duplex in Hotel des Artistes gets color just right

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

VIEW ALL

March 2, 2018

85th floor unit at One57 gets an $11M price chop, now listed at $59M

6sqft reported back in October that an 85th-floor unit in the building known for the city’s most expensive residential sale ever was back on the market after a total overhaul for a noteworthy $70 million. The 6,240-square-foot condominium was purchased by Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll for $55.6 million in 2014. After four months, the sprawling sky mansion has been discounted by $11 million according to Mansion Global; the building's third-highest listing is now asking $59 million.
The view is just as good at $59 million

Distinctive Homes

Roosevelt Island’s only subway stop closed, and more weekend service changes

Photo by Hannah Frishberg

March 2, 2018

Roosevelt Island’s only subway stop closed, and more weekend service changes

By Hannah Frishberg

As a nor'easter wreaks havoc above ground this weekend, the MTA will be causing chaos in the subway below with a slew of service changes. The C train will be taking a break from running Saturday night on and the 7 won't be running between Manhattan and Queens. G service is restricted with service coming in two parts, and Roosevelt Island – which has but a single subway station – will be left with no subway service whatsoever as the Roosevelt Island F train station spends the weekend closed for "electrical improvements".
See you on the Tram

Transit

As of today, the Met will start charging non-New Yorkers $25 for admission

Photo via Wiki Commons

March 1, 2018

As of today, the Met will start charging non-New Yorkers $25 for admission

At the beginning of the year, the Met announced that it would begin charging non-New Yorkers (i.e. those without a state ID) $25 for admission, waiving its pay-what-you-wish policy that had been in effect since 1970. And as of today, that policy is officially being implemented through signs at all entrances, 14 new kiosks in the Great Hall, roaming museum staff with iPads, and a brochure that explains the new fee system, reports the Times.
READ MORE

Events & Things To Do

You can buy a $14,000 mantle and more salvaged items from the Waldorf Astoria

Photo via Wikimedia; Auction images via Olde Good Things

March 1, 2018

You can buy a $14,000 mantle and more salvaged items from the Waldorf Astoria

By Andrew Berman of Village Preservation

As 6sqft recently reported, ownership of the iconic Waldorf Astoria was among the properties involved when the Chinese government temporarily took over the debt-ridden Beijing-based Anbang Insurance Group, a firm known for snatching up prominent and expensive properties around the world. There has long been speculation about a condominium project in the works, and Bloomberg reports that the project is moving forward. Signs of change: Effects from the building's guest suites have been carted off by Scranton, Pennsylvania-based architectural salvage purveyor Olde Good Things, who is already is selling pieces of the storied hotel on its website.
See what's for sale

Events & Things To Do

March 1, 2018

15 female trailblazers of the Village: From the first woman doctor to the ‘godmother of punk’

Greenwich Village is well known as the home to libertines in the 1920s and feminists in the 1960s and '70s. But going back to at least the 19th century, the neighborhoods now known as Greenwich Village, the East Village, and Noho were home to pioneering women who defied convention and changed the course of history, from the first female candidate for President, to America’s first woman doctor, to the "mother of birth control." This Women’s History Month, here are just a few of those trailblazing women, and the sites associated with them.
Learn all about these amazing women

History

March 1, 2018

Brooklyn’s ‘hive loft’ creates private nooks within an open, industrial space

This quirky interior design project, for an apartment on Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn, came from the owner's desire to preserve their open, industrial loft space while adding some extra privacy and separation. The task fell to OS Architecture, a Manhattan-based firm that's done interior design around the world. As the firm notes, the main goal was "avoiding conventional partitions that would have closed off the space." So they got creative, creating a "single faceted form that could be enclosed and private at times," but still interlocked with the larger space of the open loft. Ultimately this interior object, separate from the columns, ceiling and walls of the apartment, makes for an interesting design talking piece.
See more images

New renderings for ODA’s archway-filled hotel in Crown Heights

Rendering of the Bedford Hotel via ODA

March 1, 2018

New renderings for ODA’s archway-filled hotel in Crown Heights

ODA Architects' boutique hotel planned for the Brooklyn neighborhood of Crown Heights got fresh renderings this week, revealing more details about its archway-filled, concrete design. Developed by All Year Management, the Bedford Hotel is located at 1550 Bedford Avenue, right by the Prospect Park, Brooklyn Museum and the Botanic Gardens. As designboom learned, the 100-room hotel's archway design stems from the classic Brooklyn architecture found elsewhere in the neighborhood, like the Soldiers' and Sailors' Arch at the Grand Army Plaza.
More this way

Events & Things To Do

Nina Dobrev tours $2M condo on the Lower East Side

Photo of Nina Dobrev via Wikimedia

March 1, 2018

Nina Dobrev tours $2M condo on the Lower East Side

By Annie Doge

Nina Dobrev, best known for her role in "The Vampire Diaries," appears to be making the move to Manhattan. The actress recently toured a two-bedroom pad at Blue, a Lower East Side condominium at 105 Norfolk Street, according to the New York Post. The roughly 1,400-square-foot condo boasts lots of natural light, state-of-the-art appliances and a private outdoor space. Originally listed for $2.31 million in 2016, the condo is currently asking $1.88 million.
See inside

Celebrities

March 1, 2018

$2.7M Noho triplex stuns with library walls, glass ceilings, and gilded mirrors

The listing for this 3,000-square-foot home at 710 Broadway in Noho invokes Shakespeare, but we think the triplex, asking $2.695 million, has loftier ambitions. The three-story space is ideal for "an artist, photographer, bibliophile, therapist, or just somebody who likes to entertain," or even someone who doesn't: It's built for privacy, with sleeping areas tucked away on the top and bottom floors and public areas in between (h/t Curbed). A glass-topped solarium awaits off the bookshelf-lined living room, and a lower level opens onto an enclosed patio for solitary or social pursuits.
Take the tour

Distinctive Homes

New construction photos show One Vanderbilt’s 1,401-foot ascent

After beginning its vertical construction last June, One Vanderbilt's progress shows no signs of slowing. According to SL Green, the supertall is currently rising two floors per month and after the 13th floor is completed, three floors will be installed every month. The planned 1,401-foot tower, which will become the city's second tallest skyscraper when completed, will measure over one million square feet. In addition to the above-ground construction, the project includes $220 million in public transit improvements as well as a passageway for direct access to the subway.
See it here

The end of the MetroCard could mean fare capping, better bus boarding, and real-time data

Image via Cubic Transportation Systems

February 28, 2018

The end of the MetroCard could mean fare capping, better bus boarding, and real-time data

The MTA’s new cardless fare system will completely phase out the MetroCard by 2023, and transit advocates from the TransitCenter and the Tri-State Transportation Campaign believe there's more to gain here than strictly streamlining the swiping process. In a report released this week titled "A New Way to Ride," the groups outline three main policy opportunities available through the new fare system--seamless bus boarding, fare capping, and enhanced service information--all of which have been implemented in other cities with similar payment technology.
All the details ahead

NYC Ferry routes coming to the Lower East Side and the Bronx this summer

Image © 6sqft

February 28, 2018

NYC Ferry routes coming to the Lower East Side and the Bronx this summer

Two neighborhoods underserved by transit will get a bit more accessible this summer. Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Wednesday that construction has officially kicked off for new NYC Ferry landings on the Lower East Side and in the Soundview neighborhood of the Bronx. Skanska USA will construct four docks at Corlears Hook, East 90th Street and Stuyvesant Cove on the East River as well as at Clason Point Park in Soundview. According to the city, the new LES and Bronx routes will serve more than 1.4 million riders each year.
More here

Transit

February 28, 2018

$1.9M freestanding home in Flatbush offers more than enough room for entertaining

When you've got all the space that a freestanding home offers, you may as well use it! This Flatbush home at 2687 Bedford Avenue is being marketed as the "center of holidays, family gatherings, birthdays and backyard barbecues." With a front and back lawn, two front parlors, six bedrooms and a dining room that can fit 20, that claim makes sense. In all that space, there are some unique interior details to be found, like built-ins, fireplaces and stained glass. The whole impressive package has just hit the market for $1.885 million.
Check out the interior

Distinctive Homes

February 28, 2018

Local artists will bring 10 public art installations to NYC parks this summer

New York City's parks department will bring art installations to 10 designated parks across the five boroughs this June. As part of "Art in the Parks: UNIQLO Park Expressions Grant Exhibit," public art will be displayed in parks that currently lack cultural programming. Japanese clothing company UNIQLO, as the initiative's sponsor, will give grants worth $10,000 to 10 emerging artists for the installations. The city's Art in the Parks program began in 1967 and is responsible for bringing over 2,000 public pieces of art to the city's parks.
Details this way

Events & Things To Do

Elizabeth Jennings: The woman who helped desegregate NYC streetcars

The corner of Pearl and Chatham streets, where Jennings hailed the bus. Photo via New York Historical Society

February 28, 2018

Elizabeth Jennings: The woman who helped desegregate NYC streetcars

By Hannah Frishberg

In 1854, 99 years before Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat to white passengers in Alabama, another brave African American woman forever changed local transit with her bravery. Elizabeth Jennings is not a household name, or even well-known, but her brave refusal to cow to 20th-century America’s racist customs and fight for her rights is historic, and the results of her actions have rippled down over the decades.
The whole history

History

7 train extension to NJ is among long-term solutions being studied to address commuter hell

Photo via Wiki Commons

February 28, 2018

7 train extension to NJ is among long-term solutions being studied to address commuter hell

How long does it take to get to New Jersey by subway? The answer might be "about 22 years." That's if the round of attention focused on extending the New York City subway system across the Hudson makes it a reality. According to AM New York, Transit officials have said they'll be exploring the extension of the 7 line into New Jersey as part of a study involving a cross-Hudson rail link. The link is one of several solutions being studied in an effort to alleviate a commuter crunch between the two metro areas that's expected to grow continuously over the next 20 years.
Find out more

Transit

February 28, 2018

Fashion exec buys $17M Dakota combo of Judy Garland’s and Roberta Flack’s former addresses

6sqft takes notice when homes in the storied Dakota at 1 West 72nd Street hit the market; word was out that the three-bedroom co-op in the iconic Upper West Side building that was the alleged onetime home of Judy Garland had recently changed hands after several price chops, and Roberta Flack’s mirror-walled co-op went into contract after having been on the market since 2015. Now Mansion Global reports that power couple Eric and Stacey Bendet Eisner are the buyers of the massive co-op combo. Ms. Eisner is chief executive and creative director of clothing company Alice + Olivia, and her husband Eric (son of former Walt Disney Company CEO Michael Eisner) is an entertainment and media mogul.
See more of this iconic property combo

February 27, 2018

Support women-led restaurants in New York City with this new map from Grubhub

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

What could go better together than feminism and food delivery? Thanks to Grubhub, the online takeout service, hungry New Yorkers can now easily order from women-run restaurants. The company on Tuesday launched an app called RestaurantHER that aims to empower and promote women chefs and owners, who are often underrepresented and underpaid in the restaurant industry. Available nationwide, the app includes a map that looks similar to Grubhub's typical page, but only highlights restaurants owned or co-owned by a woman or a kitchen led by a woman executive chef.
Learn more

Food & Dining

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 Ways to Decorate an Exposed Brick Wall Without Drilling

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

VIEW ALL

February 27, 2018

‘Store Front’ photographers plan a life-size memorial to lost Lower East Side mom-and-pops

Photographers James and Karla Murray published their first account of small businesses in NYC a decade ago with their seminal book “Store Front: The Disappearing Face of New York,” which captured hundreds of mom-and-pops and their iconic facades, many of them since shuttered, along with interviews with the business owners. They've since published two follow-ups, "New York Nights" and "Store Front II-A History Preserved," winning countless awards and gaining local and national fame for their documentation of a vanishing retail culture. And this summer, they're bringing their work to a larger scale than ever. The Lo-Down reports that the husband-and-wife team has designed an art installation for Seward Park, a wood-frame structure that will feature four nearly life-size images of Lower East Side business that have disappeared--a bodega, a coffee shop/luncheonette (the recently lost Cup & Saucer), a vintage store, and a newsstand.
More details

Events & Things To Do

February 27, 2018

$900K corner co-op in Brooklyn Heights is cozy as can be

Walking down Brooklyn Heights' main drag of Montague Street you can't miss number 62, a stunning Queen Anne-style brick building with a prominent turret. One of the building's corner co-op units has just hit the market for $899,000, and while it doesn't have the lavish prewar details the exterior might suggest, it's plenty charming. The rounded living room is lined with exposed brick and floor-to-ceiling windows, and renovations can be found in the kitchen and bedroom. The one-bedroom spread last sold in 2011 for $645,000.
Get inside

Distinctive Homes

February 27, 2018

Finalists for Park Avenue design contest propose an artificial mountain and a river for kayak commutes

Fisher Brothers unveiled on Tuesday the 17 finalists chosen for its "Beyond the Centerline" design competition after receiving more than 150 submissions. Participants were asked to think of creative and ambitious ideas to transform the traffic medians along Park Avenue between 46th and 57th Streets. The finalists did not disappoint. Proposals call for an Alpine mountain, a massive aquarium, floating gardens, mini-golf, an elevated walkway and more. Although a jury will select the grand prize winner, all 17 proposals will be on display for public voting at Park Avenue Plaza, located at 55 East 52nd Street, from March 5 to March 9 for the second-place prize. Below, check out all of the unique projects.
See the ambitious ideas

Architecture And Design

My 700sqft: Mommy blogger Brianne Manz balances work and parenting in Battery Park City

6sqft’s series “My sqft” checks out the homes of New Yorkers across all the boroughs. Our latest interior adventure brings us to the Battery Park City apartment of “Stroller in the City” founder Brianne Manz. Want to see your home featured here? Get in touch!

February 27, 2018

My 700sqft: Mommy blogger Brianne Manz balances work and parenting in Battery Park City

The term "mommy blogger" is fairly well known today, but when Brianne Manz started Stroller in the City nearly a decade ago, she was charting new waters. A fashion industry veteran, Brianne has grown the site into a full-scale lifestyle resource, offering tips on raising a family in New York City, the latest in kids' fashion, and "all things that are mommy." 6sqft recently visited Brianne at the Battery Park City apartment she and her husband found 15 years ago but now share with their three children (their oldest son in nine and two daughters are six and four). Not only did we get to see first-hand how this entrepreneur balances work and parenting, but we chatted with her about why she loves her neighborhood, why having kids in NYC is a great idea, and how anyone can create a family-friendly home.
All this and more ahead

New details revealed for Pier 17, the foodie oasis coming to the South Street Seaport

A rendering of Pier 17’s proposed temporary rooftop structure via LPC/ Howard Hughes Corp.

February 27, 2018

New details revealed for Pier 17, the foodie oasis coming to the South Street Seaport

The Howard Hughes Corporation has worked since 2010 to revitalize the Seaport District as a destination for New Yorkers, bringing more than 400,000 square feet of cultural and culinary space to the waterfront. The highlight of the $731 million redevelopment remains Pier 17, a four-story building designed by Achim Menges with a see-through canopy, dining options, an iPic theater, retail and more. The Landmarks Preservation Commission approved the revised designs for the project in December and the New York Post has just learned more information about the project's timeline, with nearly everything set to open at some point this year.
More this way

Stream 30,000 free movies from the NYPL; East End Avenue’s building boom

NYPL via Wiki Commons (L); East End Avenue via CityRealty (R)

February 27, 2018

Stream 30,000 free movies from the NYPL; East End Avenue’s building boom

By 6sqft

Have a library card? You can now stream 30,000 films for free from the New York and Brooklyn Public Libraries. [Time Out NY] What it’s like living in one of NYC’s turrets. [NY Mag] NYC now has 7,500 tech companies employing 120,000 people, 60% more than a decade ago. [Crain’s] A new children’s book tells the story […]

Uncategorized

February 27, 2018

Asking $10M, this huge Tribeca loft has a cashmere-lined bedroom and 20-foot fireplace

In the impressive converted Tribeca loft condo building at 137-141 Duane Street and 62-66 Thomas Street known as Diamond on Duane, this three- or four-bedroom loft with 75 feet of world-facing windows has a recent renovation going for it in addition to 5,800 square feet of living space. In that renovation, no luxury was spared including a cashmere-lined bedroom, and "apartment-sized" closet/dressing room, a library with a full wet bar and a 20-foot gas fireplace.
Apartment-sized closet and more, this way

Distinctive Homes

Design competition proposals call for fish tanks and mini-golf in the middle of Park Avenue

Rendering courtesy of Eric Spencer

February 26, 2018

Design competition proposals call for fish tanks and mini-golf in the middle of Park Avenue

In November, Fisher Brothers first launched a design competition to bring life to the boring traffic medians along Park Avenue, between East 46th and East 57th Streets. The privately-funded contest, dubbed "Beyond the Centerline," aims to spur creative thinking and unique ideas never before considered for the traffic medians. After the developer received more than 150 submissions from landscape architects and urban planners, the list has been narrowed to 17 finalists (h/t New York Times). Stand out proposals from the finalists include a mini-golf course, a glass aquarium and a curvy, elevated park.
More details here

Architecture And Design

February 26, 2018

Dick Cavett’s old-world Central Park West co-op lists for $6M

By Annie Doge

Back in 2009, Dick Cavett paid $4.2 million for an amazingly preserved unit at the historic Central Park West co-op the Kenilworth. But all of this old-world charm wasn't enough to keep the talk-show host and comedian, as the three-bedroom home, which the listing describes as "fit for Royals," has just hit the market for $5,995,000. A lucky buyer will get to enjoy a slew of pre-war details, including leaded glass windows and doors, the original oak-paneled dining room, floor-to-ceiling custom built-ins, decorative fireplaces, and carved woodwork and moldings.
Take a tour

February 26, 2018

First-floor pad with some prewar charm asks $1M on the Upper West Side

You're getting something of a deal for this two-bedroom co-op up for sale at 301 West 108th Street on the Upper West Side. The spacious pad is asking $1.12 million due to its first-floor location and lack of views. (It hit the market for $1.249 million last year and didn't sell.) But the listing does promise that it isn't the "typical" ground-floor unit, considering that it's "elevated well above ground level." Prewar touches that include archways, moldings, wainscoting and hardwood floors--plus a stunning building lobby--don't hurt, either. The apartment last sold in 2015 for $995,000.
See what you think

Distinctive Homes

How the Second Avenue Subway is hurting Upper East Side businesses

96th Street entrance to the Second Avenue Subway, via MTA/Flickr

February 26, 2018

How the Second Avenue Subway is hurting Upper East Side businesses

By Cait Etherington

On Valentine’s Day, The Source, a long-running store on Third Avenue that sold everything from stationary and household cleaning products to cards and candles, closed its doors for good. Since early January, when the owner hung a going-out-of-business sign in his window, he had been telling Upper East Siders shoppers that he was shutting down for two reasons: rising rents but the drastic decline in business brought about by the Second Avenue Subway’s opening in January 2017. Although one might assume that a business like The Source is really a victim of Amazon and the rise of other online retailers, the increasing vacancy rates along Third and Lexington Avenues on the Upper East Side over the past year appear to confirm his speculation. As much as the Second Avenue Subway has been good news for businesses in Yorkville, its opening seems to have dealt a devastating blow to businesses located just west of the new line.
What’s the deal?

Transit

More than half of NYC’s 20 most expensive sales were at One57 and 432 Park

432 Park Avenue via CIM Group/Macklowe Properties

February 26, 2018

More than half of NYC’s 20 most expensive sales were at One57 and 432 Park

The buyer of One57's $100 million penthouse was unveiled as Michael Dell last week, finally solving the mystery of which billionaire set New York City's record for the most expensive home ever sold. The reveal sparked CityRealty's interest in finding out where other costly buildings fall in comparison. Unsurprisingly, Midtown's One57 and 432 Park make up 12 out of the city's 20 priciest homes ever sold with single units going for $100.47 million and $91.5 million, respectively. While those two buildings on Billionaires' Row easily take the top three spots, 15 Central Park West ranks fourth, with its $88 million penthouse sold in 2012.
More this way

Real Estate Trends

Highly elegant and highly classified: The history of espionage at the St. Regis

Photo via Wally Gobetz/Flickr

February 26, 2018

Highly elegant and highly classified: The history of espionage at the St. Regis

By Lucie Levine

You know that Old King Cole had a pipe and bowl, but did you know he also had a cloak and dagger? New York’s hyper-illustrious St. Regis Hotel, home to the famous King Cole Bar, has a clandestine pedigree that goes straight to its core. Founded by a family of spies, the Hotel became headquarters for the nation’s wartime spy service, and in the process helped inspire not only the Bloody Mary cocktail but also the Invasion of North Africa.
Read on for the history of Midtown’s preeminent spy den

February 26, 2018

This $6K/month West Village loft comes with a ton of exposed brick and a dash of fun

The listing for this "truly unique" 1,200-square-foot loft at 73 8th Avenue at the Meatpacking/West Village border tells of its "ton of exposed brick," and though we're not sure that's an exact measurement, we know it's asking exactly $6,000 a month to enjoy its one bedroom, 14-foot ceilings, wide-plank cherry wood floors and private outdoor paradise.
Looks like a fun place to live

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

Images (L to R): 525W52, Hudson Crossing, 27 ON 27TH and 247N7

February 24, 2018

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

By Ondel Hylton

Images (L to R): 525W52, Hudson Crossing, 27 ON 27TH and 247N7 Neighborhood’s Rich History Embraced in 525W52’s Art Program; See the Installations Live at Hudson Crossing in Midtown West: Studio to 2-Bed Rentals from $2,475/Month Live in LIC at 27 on 27th: Rentals from $2,384/Month in Full-Service Luxury Tower Williamsburg’s 247N7 Offers Stylish Apartments […]

Real Estate Trends

February 23, 2018

Win two tickets to GVSHP’s comedy night at the Village Underground

There's probably no neighborhood in NYC more associated with the history and current success of the comedy scene than Greenwich Village, and here's a chance to hear some of today's top comics in one of the neighborhood's most iconic venues. On Monday, March 12, GVSHP's Brokers Partnership will hold their fourth annual Comedy Night at the Village Underground, featuring comics Emmy Blotnick, Matthew Broussard, Phil Hanley, Matteo Lane, Lenny Marcus, Brian Scott McFadden, and more to come. The Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation is offering one lucky 6sqft reader the chance to win two tickets to the event--worth $90!
Find out how to enter

Events & Things To Do

The NYC subway saw 30 million fewer trips last year

Photo via Colin Mutchler/Flickr

February 23, 2018

The NYC subway saw 30 million fewer trips last year

For the second straight year, subway ridership has fallen, reports Time Out New York. Data presented in an MTA Transit Committee meeting this week shows a drop of nearly 30 million trips between 2016 and 2017, or a decrease to 1.727 billion trips last year from 1.756 billion the previous year (though it should be noted this is less than two percent of the total trips taken). Newly appointed transit president Andy Byford attributes the dip to low gas prices and the rise of ride-sharing services like Uber and Lyft. He also told NY1 that poor service may be turning riders away, certainly possible considering that weekdays delays more than tripled between 2012 and 2017.
READ MORE

Transit

February 23, 2018

Six-acre Connecticut estate asking $2.5M is drop-dead gorgeous, inside and out

Be prepared to swoon over this estate in Warren, Connecticut. 90 minutes outside of New York City, follow a long tree-lined private road to this six-acre hideaway. Inside and out, the 1950s property stuns, with interior design worthy of a magazine spread. And property amenities are plentiful, including wood-burning fireplaces in every room, an in-ground pool with its own cabana, a barn and lush landscaping. The property is now up for grabs asking $2.495 million.
Prepare to fall in love

Distinctive Homes

222 LES Tower + Lofts

222 East Broadway

Lower East Side

Art Deco romance meets 21st-century convenience

Studios starting at $799,000
1 bed starting at $1,100,000
2 beds starting at $1,955,000
3 beds starting at $2,875,000

Learn More

The Chinese government now owns the Waldorf Astoria

Photo via Wikimedia

February 23, 2018

The Chinese government now owns the Waldorf Astoria

The Chinese government has taken control over debt-ridden Anbang Insurance Group, a Beijing-based firm known for snatching up prominent properties around the world for billions of dollars. One of those high-profile properties includes New York City's iconic Waldorf Astoria, which the group purchased for $1.95 billion in 2014. According to the New York Times, the government takeover comes after Abang violated regulations, although the exact violations committed are unclear so far. Anbang will be overseen for one year by a group that includes China's central bank, the country's securities and banking regulator, the regular of foreign exchanges and other government agencies.
Find out more

Events & Things To Do

The Urban Lens: Vintage photos show the New York Times’ 1940s printing process

Pressroom. Numbering cast plates with page numbers for identification.

February 23, 2018

The Urban Lens: Vintage photos show the New York Times’ 1940s printing process

By Hannah Frishberg

In September 1942, with humanity in the throes of WWII, one Marjory Collins photographed the inner workings of the New York Times for the U.S. Office of War Information. Her photos depict a culture of white men and machines working at individual tasks for the greater goal of creating the day's paper. The press printing process shown is a world apart from today's digital media industry, where so many human jobs have been antiquated by more advanced technology, which is, thankfully, more diverse.
See all the photos

MTA approves more than $200M in cosmetic improvements for eight subway stations

Two stations at 34th Street will be renovated; photo via dog97209 on Flickr

February 23, 2018

MTA approves more than $200M in cosmetic improvements for eight subway stations

The board of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority approved on Thursday a $213 million plan to rehabilitate eight subway stations, despite objections from the authority's city representatives. Under Gov. Andrew Cuomo's $1 billion Enhanced Station Initiative, the stations--six in Manhattan and two in the Bronx-- will get outfitted with USB ports, LED lighting, digital countdown clocks and artwork (h/t New York Times). The board first delayed the vote on the construction contracts in January after board members, appointed by Mayor de Blasio, questioned the necessity of these cosmetic improvements when the system's infrastructure remains in desperate need of repair.
More this way

Central Park’s Belvedere Castle will close for restoration next week

Photos via Central Park Conservancy

February 23, 2018

Central Park’s Belvedere Castle will close for restoration next week

The Belvedere in Central Park was conceived as a miniature castle by Calvert Vaux, co-designer of the park, in 1869. It opened with some of the best views of the city's prized green space--the name Belvedere was chosen as it is Italian for "beautiful view." But the years have taken their toll on the stone structure, which has not been renovated since 1983. Now the Central Park Conservancy will close it to address issues like cracked pavement, a leaky roof, and plumbing issues. Starting this Monday, February 26th, Belvedere Castle will be off-limits to the public for its restoration, and will not reopen until 2019.
More details of the reno

Architecture And Design

February 23, 2018

This classic $6.4M West Broadway loft is the stuff of Soho dreams