6sqft | NYC local news, events, and apartments

On Monday, the lottery opens for 21 affordable units in a new luxury residential building located on the border of the trendy Queens neighborhoods of Astoria and Long Island City. The mixed-use rental at 11-06 31st Drive, called the Vernon Tower despite being just eight-stories, sits directly across from Socrates Sculpture Park and just a few blocks from the Noguchi Museum and waterfront promenade. Qualifying New Yorkers earning 60 percent of the area median income can apply for the units ranging from $867/month studios to $1,123/month two-bedrooms.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

November 2, 2017

Rent Jon Hamm’s Upper West Side penthouse for $15,000/month

Sadly, it doesn't sport the mid-century vibes of "Mad Men," but Jon Hamm's Lincoln Square penthouse is still pretty incredible. The Don Draper portrayer and then-girlfriend Jennifer Westfeldt bought the two-bedroom penthouse at 40 West 67th Street in 2013 for $2.5 million and then undertook a renovation. The longtime pair split in 2015, which could be why they've now decided to put the place up for rent for $14,995 a month. It's not huge, at 1,000 square feet, but it does boast two terraces, a huge dining room with two skylights, and plenty of pre-war details original to the Rosario Candela-designed building. Plus, it's located on one of the city's most coveted blocks.
Take a tour

Flatiron plaza’s winning holiday art installation is a cluster of reflective tubes

Images courtesy of Future Expansion

November 2, 2017

Flatiron plaza’s winning holiday art installation is a cluster of reflective tubes

Imagine finding a spot where the noise of the city is isolated to reveal an eagle-eyed view of some of New York City’s most iconic landmarks. Enter “Flatiron Reflection,” the winning installation of the Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership Business Improvement District and Van Alen Institute’s fourth annual holiday design competition. Designed by Future Expansion, “Flatiron Reflection” consists […]

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November 2, 2017

Chef-owned Chelsea loft boasts a serious kitchen for $2.3M

This Chelsea loft belongs to a chef, food stylist and cookbook author--so you better believe the kitchen is going to impress. The 1,600-square-foot apartment, once a gritty live/work loft at 236 West 26th Street, has been renovated with chef-friendly details over the years. According to the listing, "The loft had been a cooking school in one of its reincarnations and looks like it." The 22-foot-long kitchen is decked out with industrial cabinetry, stainless steel appliances and tons of counter space, which is lined in Carrara marble. After previously hitting the market in 2006 for $1.698 million--it looks like it never sold--it's back up for grabs at $2.249 million.
Get a look

Distinctive Homes

MAP: The best loops and trails for running in Central Park

Joggers in Central Park, via Wikimedia

November 2, 2017

MAP: The best loops and trails for running in Central Park

If you're suddenly feeling inspired to start running with all the talk of the New York City Marathon, a map created by the Central Park Conservancy will help you get moving. While Central Park no longer serves as the only spot marathon contestants race through as it did during the city’s first marathon in 1970, it remains an oasis for runners of all experience levels. The conservancy's guide maps out the many loops and trails of the park to help you hit the ground running in preparation for next year's marathon, or even just starting a new hobby.
Find out more

City Living

‘Good Wife’ star Josh Charles buys Devonshire House pad in the Village for $6.3M

Image courtesy of the Stein Team of Sotheby’s Downtown. Credit: Scott Wintrow/Gamut Photos.
Josh Charles image: Wikipedia.

November 2, 2017

‘Good Wife’ star Josh Charles buys Devonshire House pad in the Village for $6.3M

By Andrew Berman of Village Preservation

Alec Baldwin and Amanda Seyfried just got a new celebrity neighbor at the venerable Greenwich Village condo Devonshire House at 28 East 10th Street. According to the Post, "The Good Wife" star Josh Charles just purchased a three-bedroom home at the celebrity-loved building for $6.3 million. According to records, the actor recently sold a two-bedroom condo at 42 East 12th Street for $3.75 million.
Take a look

‘The Alamo’ turns 50: A history of the Astor Place cube

1980s photo of the Alamo surrounded by mural, vendors, & musicians. © Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation Image Archive.

November 2, 2017

‘The Alamo’ turns 50: A history of the Astor Place cube

On November 1, 1967, an enigmatic 20-foot-tall cube first appeared on a lonely traffic island where Astor Place and 8th Street meet. Though several months before the release of "2001: A Space Odyssey," the one-ton Cor-Ten steel sculpture shared many qualities with the sci-fi classic’s inscrutable "black monolith," at once both opaque and impenetrable and yet strangely compelling, drawing passersby to touch or interact with it to unlock its mysteries. Fifty years later, Tony Rosenthal’s "Alamo" sculpture remains a beloved fixture in downtown New York. Like 2001’s monolith, it has witnessed a great deal of change, and yet continues to draw together the myriad people and communities which intersect at this location.
Learn about the cube's entire 50-year legacy

Live in the heart of Downtown Jamaica from $707/month

Rendering of 147-36 94th Avenue courtesy of GF55 Partners

November 2, 2017

Live in the heart of Downtown Jamaica from $707/month

Applications are currently being accepted for 379 recently constructed, affordable units in a 26-story rental tower, called Alvista Towers, in Jamaica--a Queens neighborhood on the brink of transformation as new residential and commercial developments continue to take root. Amenities at this spacious housing complex located at 147-36 94th Avenue include on-site laundry, playroom, an outdoor courtyard, fitness center, yoga room and a rooftop terrace. Qualifying New Yorkers earning 50, 60, 120, 130 and 165 percent of the area median income can apply to units ranging from a $707 per month studio to a $2,611 per month two-bedroom.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

Distinctive Homes

This $3.5M Noho co-op remembers the origins of loft living

A celebrated artist's Upper East Side co-op asks $4.75 million

The highest penthouse in Brooklyn's tallest residence lists for $16.75M

A loft-sized Harlem studio in a former school asks $599K

Andrew Rannells lists his Chelsea triplex with a terrace for $2.4M

Asking $6.35M, this restored 1804 Tribeca townhouse is one of the last remaining homes from the period

This $8M Dumbo condo with a private rooftop spa embodies penthouse living

This $18.5M penthouse is Village living on a luxury level

For $14.5M, Gilded Age opulence in a designer's Upper East Side mansion the size of a country estate

For $6.75M, everything you'd want in a Park Slope brownstone

VIEW ALL

November 2, 2017

Fabled East Village triplex with retractable screen overlooking 14th Street asks $4.2M

Beginning in 2006, the conversion of a boarded-up brownstone at 224 East 14th street has been too fascinating to avoid headlines. The features that make the four-unit “Brownstone East Village” so noteworthy: on the second floor, a facade of honeycomb-patterned aluminum with a brownstone veneer can be automatically retracted to bare the home’s interiors to the bustling traffic of 14th Street just outside. At the rear, a glass- and steel-paneled garage door raises to open the kitchen onto the open air of an urban lawn. The project's architect, Bill Peterson, moved into the garden triplex with the retractable facade screen and garage doors; Philadelphia developer Alon Barzilay purchased the home from Peterson in 2014 for $2.355 million. Now, this traffic-stopping two-bedroom triplex is back on the market asking $4.2 million.
Check it out, this way

Distinctive Homes

Mike Myers drops price of groovy Soho penthouse to $14M

Photo of Mike Myers via Wikimedia

November 1, 2017

Mike Myers drops price of groovy Soho penthouse to $14M

Mike Myers' penthouse in Soho has hit the market again, but this time the pad at 72 Mercer Street is listed nearly $3 million cheaper. First listed for $16.95 million in 2015, the comedian then tried adding another unit for a combo price of $21.5 million a few months later, but no one took the bait (h/t Curbed NY). Now, the spacious duplex is currently asking $13.95 million. The 4,204-square-foot penthouse includes 3-4 bedrooms, a private roof deck, super high ceilings and massive skylights.
See inside

New initiative #ShopBleecker hopes to combat the historic street’s vacancy rates

Photo via Nick Sherman/Flickr

November 1, 2017

New initiative #ShopBleecker hopes to combat the historic street’s vacancy rates

Bleecker Street is one of New York City’s most historic and eclectic arteries. It housed clubs where Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix cut their teeth, inspired beatniks and, in the early 2000s, became what The New York Times called a “fashion theme park” as some of the industry’s heaviest hitters opened retail shops. Today, however, […]

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FXFOWLE reveals renderings of 40-story office tower at Jersey City’s Harborside boardwalk

Rendering of Harborside Tower, courtesy of Mack-Cali and SJP Properties

November 1, 2017

FXFOWLE reveals renderings of 40-story office tower at Jersey City’s Harborside boardwalk

In conjunction with a larger plan to transform Jersey City into a waterfront destination, real estate investors Mack-Cali and SJP Properties announced on Tuesday a proposal for a 40-story office building that will implement the latest in “intelligent building” technology. Located just seven minutes to Manhattan via the PATH, Harborside Tower, designed by FXFOWLE, will feature a sleek glass and steel facade, with 1.2 million square feet of space for businesses. In addition to the office space, the tower will feature two units of retail space, one at 12,000 square feet and the other at 25,000 square feet, found just off the lobby.
Renderings this way

November 1, 2017

Cute Williamsburg condo asks $775K after a clever renovation

This 624-square-foot, one-bedroom condo at 134 North 10th Street in Williamsburg offers the best of both worlds in a small amount of space. A recent reno restored details of the historic townhouse building, like six-inch-wide plank pine flooring, built-in closets, and decorative fireplaces. But the renovation also created an efficient, flexible layout with custom build outs that include shelving, desks, sliding doors, and lofts. After last selling in 2010 for $441,090, this blend of old-meets-new is on the market asking $775,000.
Take a look around

Distinctive Homes

Mayor de Blasio doubles planned senior housing to 30,000 affordable apartments

Photo via NYC.GOV

November 1, 2017

Mayor de Blasio doubles planned senior housing to 30,000 affordable apartments

Mayor de Blasio announced yesterday a new housing program, "Seniors First," that aims to double the city's commitment to senior housing over the mayor's extended 12-year Housing New York plan, with the goal of serving 30,000 senior households by 2026. This isn't the first time de Blasio has turned his focus to the affordable housing challenges for seniors; earlier this year he announced plans for two initiatives, including an Elder Rent Assistance program that would provide 25,000 seniors with monthly rental assistance of up to $1,300. And jumping on the bandwagon, too, are private developers. The Wall Street Journal reports that a Florida-based private-equity firm purchased a high-profile Brooklyn Heights apartment building--previously belonging to the Jehovah’s Witnesses--for about $200 million with plans to convert it into luxury senior housing.
Read more about the plans

Lottery opens for Extell’s Lower East Side affordable rental, from $947/month

Rendering of 229 Cherry Street, via Extell Development

November 1, 2017

Lottery opens for Extell’s Lower East Side affordable rental, from $947/month

The housing lottery for Extell Development's affordable housing building in the Lower East Side has officially launched. The 13-story development at 229 Cherry Street and sits right next to the group's amenity-filled, luxury condo, One Manhattan Square. Designed by Dattner Architects, residents at 229 Cherry Street will have access to a landscaped terrace, fitness center and a lounge. Qualifying New Yorkers earning 60 percent of the area median income can apply for $947 per month studios, $1,017 per month one-bedrooms and $1,230 per month two-bedrooms.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

3 Hudson Boulevard loses 100+ feet in new renderings

A new rendering of 3 Hudson Boulevard, via FXFOWLE/Moinian Group

November 1, 2017

3 Hudson Boulevard loses 100+ feet in new renderings

A revised proposal for the Moinian Group’s Hudson Yards tower 3 Hudson Boulevard calls for a slight height chop, which will strip it of its supertall status. A redesign from FXFOWLE now brings the total square footage to 2 million square feet from a previous 1.8 million and lowers its height to 940 feet tall from 1,050 feet. Instead of 63 floors, the tower will rise 53 floors in this new design. To match standards for today’s modern office, the building will now feature larger floor plates, higher ceilings and a terrace on the eighth floor. As the New York Post reported, a groundbreaking ceremony will be held this Friday with elected officials, celebrating the reboot.
More this way

November 1, 2017

One Vanderbilt’s outdoor observation deck may tie for highest in NYC

Nearly a year ago, developer SL Green confirmed that their 1,401-foot supertall One Vanderbilt, set to be the city's second tallest building behind One World Trade Center, would boast a 1,020-foot observation deck, which would have made it the third-highest indoor-outdoor observatory in the city after the forthcoming 1,100-foot deck at 30 Hudson Yards and the 1,050-foot deck at the Empire State Building (One World Observatory is at 1,250 feet, but it’s not outdoors). However, new details and diagrams uncovered by NY Yimby show that it may actually stand at 1,100 feet, tying for the city's highest.
READ MORE

Charming duplex in an Upper East Side clapboard house asks $695K

If you have to have half of your apartment in a basement, English or otherwise, this one-bed-plus-bonus-room duplex at 229 East 81st Street is the one you want. The co-op known as Canterbury Mews occupies two buildings on a Yorkville block lined with gracious townhouses and well-tended brick. In front is an eight-unit 20th century apartment building and around the back is a 19th century white clapboard house. Between the two is a lovely landscaped patio, which is what you'll look out onto from this compact charmer asking $695,000.
Get a peek inside

Distinctive Homes

October 31, 2017

Vornado pitches new Moynihan Train Hall for Amazon’s second headquarters

Earlier this month, New York City officially pitched four neighborhoods to house Amazon’s HQ2: Long Island City, the Brooklyn Tech Triangle, Lower Manhattan and Midtown West. During its third-quarter earnings call Tuesday, Vornado Realty Trust said the Moynihan Train Hall remains at the forefront of the city’s Midtown West bid, citing the project’s proposed 730,000 square feet of office space and 120,000 square feet of retail as meeting the retailer's key requirements (h/t Commercial Observer). Vornado, along with Related Companies, Skanska USA, and architecture firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, is converting the former James A. Farley Post Office into the Moynihan Train Hall, an effort led by Governor Andrew Cuomo to create a world-class transit center.
More this way

Uncategorized

October 31, 2017

$10K/month townhouse triplex in Fort Greene mixes historic details with boho accents

This classic Fort Greene brownstone at 23 South Elliott Place holds an attractive triplex apartment inside. The rental, which covers the parlor floor, second floor and third floor (and includes access to the backyard), is on the market for a cool $10,000 a month. On display across every floor are those exquisite original brownstone details, while a renovation managed to open up the floorplan and bring more light inside.
There's also a hammock out back

Distinctive Homes

First 5Pointz-replacing tower tops out in Long Island City

Construction progress as of late-October, via CityRealty

October 31, 2017

First 5Pointz-replacing tower tops out in Long Island City

The first tower of the controversial rental complex in Long Island City, 5Pointz, has officially topped out, although not without some roadblocks. Once an art studio and exhibition space, known for its vibrant graffiti-covered warehouse, the complex was whitewashed of its iconic murals in 2013, making way for the new development. Now, four years and several lawsuits later, construction of the development at 22-44 Jackson Avenue continues to chug along, with its first and tallest tower topping out this week. As CityRealty discovered, David Wolkoff's 1.4 million-square-foot plan calls for a 47-story tower and a 41-story tower, with 1,115 apartments total.
Find out more

My 1,760sqft: Real estate mogul and jetsetter Emir Bahadir shows off his custom West Village loft

6sqft’s series “My sqft” checks out the homes of New Yorkers across all the boroughs. Our latest interior adventure brings us to the West Village apartment of real estate mogul, entrepreneur, and professional jetsetter Emir Bahadir. Want to see your home featured here? Get in touch!

October 31, 2017

My 1,760sqft: Real estate mogul and jetsetter Emir Bahadir shows off his custom West Village loft

Growing up as an heir to a generations-old Turkish real estate empire, Emir Bahadir divided his time among London, Switzerland, Istanbul, and New York, and while being "exposed to all different types of fashion and arts from a very young age" got him hooked on design and art, it was the "energy" of NYC that ultimately got him. After moving here eight years ago to study at NYU, 25-year-old Emir has now founded his own brokerage and development firm, BHDR, and amassed an Instagram following of more than 600,000. Part of this media success stems from his personal brand Bahadiring, where he's able to "share his top-of-the-line lifestyle with the world... featuring everything from a clothing line to cosmetics." One representation of his luxurious taste is his West Village loft, which he describes as masculine, sleek, and bold. Emir embarked on a 14-month renovation with architect Mark Stumer after purchasing the home three years ago, and he's now opened the doors to give 6sqft a special look at his contemporary art collection, custom-made furniture including a library with leather shelves and drop-down movie theater, and family heirlooms.
Take the full tour

FDR’s beloved dog is said to haunt Grand Central Terminal’s secret train track

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial featuring Fala, via Wikimedia

October 31, 2017

FDR’s beloved dog is said to haunt Grand Central Terminal’s secret train track

While the subway can always be a bit creepy, there might be more behind those spooky feelings when standing underground than just frighteningly bad service. Allegedly, a ghost haunts Track 61, the secret track hidden under Grand Central Terminal, according to Phil Schoenberg, a New York City historian and founder of Ghost Walks NYC. And not just any ghost, but the spirit of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Scottish Terrier, Fala, who apparently roams the shuttered train track. The president famously used the private track as a way to escape the public eye, keeping his paralysis a secret (h/t WNYC).
Get the spooky scoop ahead

Report says NYC subway is the most sustainable public transit system in North America

Photo via Wiki Commons

October 31, 2017

Report says NYC subway is the most sustainable public transit system in North America

Though many people have their gripes with New York City’s public transportation system, a new study says it’s No. 1 in North America — at least when it comes to sustainability. New York City earned the top spot out of 23 United States and Canadian cities in the Sustainability Cities Mobility Index, a report out Monday by Arcadis, […]

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October 30, 2017

For $1.7M, a mid-century masterpiece in Connecticut’s modernist enclave

New Canaan, Connecticut became the hot-spot of modern architecture in the 1940s and 1950s, when a group of architects known as the Harvard Five settled here and built nearly 100 modern homes. Of the surviving properties--20 were torn down over the years--this one still stands in impressive condition and is now on the market. The DeSilver House is a striking midcentury modern design by architects Harrison DeSilver and John Black Lee. From the exterior, floor-to-ceiling windows frame views of the nearly three-acre site, and the interior is chock full of preserved modern details. It's been offered through a private sale by the owner for $1.7 million.
You must see the interior

Distinctive Homes

De Blasio’s $145M investment in the Rockaways will help protect the area from future storms

Conceptual renderings of Bayswater Park, one of the seven resilience projects to help protect the Rockaways from future storms, via NYC Office of the Mayor

October 30, 2017

De Blasio’s $145M investment in the Rockaways will help protect the area from future storms

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

With coastal storms and flooding set to become more common, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a $145 million investment to help protect the Rockaways. The mayor made the announcement Sunday on the fifth anniversary of Hurricane Sandy, which wreaked havoc on New York City in 2012. The Rockaways in Queens were hit particularly hard, and the peninsula […]

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VIEW ALL

Snøhetta tapped as lead architect for $300M Sony Building restoration

Rendering of 550 Madison Avenue, via DBOX/ Snøhetta

October 30, 2017

Snøhetta tapped as lead architect for $300M Sony Building restoration

Over the last few years, plans to refurbish the former headquarters of AT&T and Sony Building at 550 Madison Avenue have come and gone, including a proposal to convert the upper floors into luxury condos designed by Robert A.M. Stern. Now, with those plans long abandoned, Olayan America and Chelsfield revealed plans on Monday for a $300 million renovation of the tower, modernizing the lower levels of the building with high-quality amenities and a sprawling 21,000-square-foot public garden. With Snøhetta as lead architect, the renovation will be the first major project in East Midtown since its revitalization plan was approved earlier this year.
See the new design

Architecture And Design

October 30, 2017

Seth Meyers’ $4.5M West Village condo is in contract after only a month

Just over a month after listing his West Village condo at 302 West 12th Street for $4.5 million, the “Late Night” host has reportedly found a buyer for the two-bedroom unit (h/t Curbed). Meyers and his wife, Alexi, purchased the pad for $3.5 million in 2013, but last summer they dropped $7.5 million on a five-bedroom co-op at 32 Washington Square West.
See more, this way

MTA to install flood-proof doors at subway stations

Photo courtesy of the MTA on Flickr

October 30, 2017

MTA to install flood-proof doors at subway stations

On Friday, the MTA unveiled custom doors designed to protect the city’s subway system from future floods. In October of 2012, Hurricane Sandy crippled Lower Manhattan, as well as most other parts of the city, with a 13-foot surge of water. Now, five years later, the MTA is installing custom-made, marine doors, equipped with inflatable gaskets to seal out water to be installed at the bottom of the subway’s stairwell (h/t WSJ). In addition to these doors, other stations will get metal hatch doors below street subway grates, fabric curtains to block flowing water and a system of interlocking stop logs at the entrance of some stations.
Find out more

Transit

Roman Abramovich buys fourth townhouse on Upper East Side block for $96M mega-mansion

Rendering of the revised LPC proposal from June 2016; via Steven Wang Architects

October 30, 2017

Roman Abramovich buys fourth townhouse on Upper East Side block for $96M mega-mansion

In the wake of Mayor de Blasio's claims that Russian oligarchs "basically stole the wealth of their country with the help of their government" and then used these "ill-gotten gains" to buy up property here in the city, one of the country's best-known billionaires, steel magnate and owner of the Chelsea Football Club Roman Abramovich, has purchased a fourth townhouse on a landmarked Upper East Side block in order to create an unprecedented mega-mansion. According to the Post, Abramovich's latest buy was a secret one but brought his total assemblage up to a whopping $96 million. Though he could've created the "biggest home the city has ever seen," reps for architect Stephen Wang tell us that the project will still remain a three-townhouse combination, now with a different trio included.
More details ahead

Celebrities

New Domino Sugar Factory renderings show barrel-vaulted glass topper and taller towers

292-314 Kent. Rendering by Practice for Architecture and Urbanism via Landmarks Preservation Commission.

October 30, 2017

New Domino Sugar Factory renderings show barrel-vaulted glass topper and taller towers

Update 10/31/17: The Landmarks Preservation Commission did not approve the new plans at the hearing, instead suggesting the architects present revised designs that address how the newly exposed brick will be preserved and how the ground floor will interact with the open space. The Commissioners were divided on the glass topper, with some feeling it appropriately references the building's arches and others feeling it inappropriately treats the structure as a ruin. 6sqft previously shared the latest round of designs for the three million-square-foot Domino Sugar Factory mega-development in Williamsburg, done by Vishaan Chakrabarti‘s Practice for Architecture and Urbanism (PAU). Developer Two Trees broke ground on the first tower in the Domino Sugar Refinery Master Plan last spring, and the lottery opened for 104 affordable units at the SHoP Architects-designed building, the 16-story 325 Kent Avenue. Now, more new renderings of the complex have been released ahead of an October 31 presentation before the Landmarks Preservation Commission (h/t Brownstoner).
More new renderings this way

October 30, 2017

Global interiors and a 1,000-square-foot garden put this $1.8M East Village maisonette in a class by itself

This impeccably decorated one-bedroom garden maisonette at 645 East 11th Street has East Village charm, international flair and a claim to the "largest private garden in Manhattan." Adding to the apartment's unique style is the treasure trove of interior details that reflect the owners' extensive travels to Asia, Bali and elsewhere including ceiling fans from the Metropole Hotel in Vietnam, a rosewood fireplace mantel, 19th century mahogany doors, a 19th century Chinese armoire and 10-foot teak walls surrounding a dozen bamboo trees in teak planters in the massive back garden.
Take the tour

Distinctive Homes

October 29, 2017

For $1.25M, Juliet balconies and an enchanted garden create romance on the Upper West Side

This bright and cozy garden duplex co-op at 24 West 69th Street on the Upper West Side has pre-war details like high beamed ceilings, built-in bookshelves, crown moldings, French doors and two Juliet balconies; but it's the 731-square-foot private enchanted garden just outside those French doors that makes this one-bedroom-convertible-to-two such a charmer.
Have a look

Distinctive Homes

Images (L to R): CHELSEA29, 800 UNION, ARC and 363 BOND

October 28, 2017

This week’s roundup of NYC rental news

By Ondel Hylton

Images (L to R): CHELSEA29, 800 UNION, ARC and 363 BOND New Rental Tower ‘Chelsea29’ Offers Two Months Free & Launches Affordable Housing Lottery [link] Brand New Rentals Debut in Ridgewood at ‘The Mill’ from $2,000/Month [link] Exclusive Residences Debut at 91 Crosby Street in SoHo, Including Rare $30K Triplex Penthouse [link] Rentals Debut at […]

Real Estate Trends

Snag an affordable apartment in this greenery-rich Williamsburg building, from $670/month

Rendering of 695 Grand Street courtesy of St. Nicks Alliance & NYHC

October 27, 2017

Snag an affordable apartment in this greenery-rich Williamsburg building, from $670/month

Located just steps away from Williamsburg's bustling Metropolitan Avenue, a mixed-use building at 695 Grand Street is now accepting applications for 38 affordable units. Developed by St. Nicks Alliance and designed by Magnusson Architecture and Planning (MAP), the eight-story rental features sustainable design elements like a landscaped terrace and rooftop, as well as a vertical green wall planted trellis on its facade. Qualifying New Yorkers earning 30, 50, 60 and 130 percent of the area median income can apply for units ranging from $670/month studios to $2,056/month three-bedrooms.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

South Ferry subway station flooded after Sandy. Image: Flickr/MTA

October 27, 2017

Residential development has boomed in areas hit hardest by Sandy

It has been five years since Superstorm Sandy devastated homes and buildings across New York, and the city has been in the process of repairing itself ever since. Along with rebuilding the homes that were affected by the storm, new developments have continued to pop up in vulnerable flood zones. More than 85 percent of […]

Uncategorized

Crown Building’s five-story penthouse is the latest to join Midtown’s $100M+ club

Penthouse rendering (Aman Resorts)

October 27, 2017

Crown Building’s five-story penthouse is the latest to join Midtown’s $100M+ club

Taking its name from an elaborate pyramid-shaped crown, the Crown Building at Fifth Avenue and 57th Street has been described as one of the city's most desirable retail locations. Michael Shvo and Russian developer Vladislav Doronin bought the non-retail upper floors of 730 Fifth Avenue in 2015 and filed plans to redevelop the Billionaires' Row property, and new details have been revealed, CityRealty reports. An 83-key luxury hotel with a three-story spa, a members-only lounge, a jazz club and cigar bar and two restaurants will start on the fourth floor. Above the hotel, 20 luxury condominiums known as Aman New York Residences will start on the 11th floor. The building's crown jewel will be a 14,000 square-foot five-story penthouse on floors 22-26 asking $100 million.
See more, this way

New Developments

October 27, 2017

The Urban Lens: Remembering the darkness of Hurricane Sandy five years later

6sqft’s series The Urban Lens invites photographers to share work exploring a theme or a place within New York City. In this installment, Orestes Gonzalez shares his series "Dark Sandy," photos he took five years ago when lower Manhattan lost power during Hurricane Sandy. Are you a photographer who’d like to see your work featured on The Urban Lens? Get in touch with us at [email protected]. "Never had I seen Manhattan in such darkness... I had to get over there and experience this dark phenomenon with my camera," says Orestes Gonzalez of his series of photographs taken the night Hurricane Sandy hit New York City. As we now approach the fifth anniversary of the Superstorm, the photos are a reminder of how far we've come, and in some cases, how much work still needs to be done. In fact, 20% of the 12,713 families who enrolled in the city's Build it Back program are still waiting for construction to wrap up or for a property buyout. But despite some of the post-storm issues, in the wake of the disaster, Orestes remembers the "sense of camaraderie" he experienced during those dark times, a trait that New Yorkers have come to be known for.
Hear from Orestes and see the full series

Places

October 27, 2017

Proposal for gap along East River greenway calls for two wave-like lanes and flexible outdoor rooms

In April, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that the city will spend $100 million on closing the gap that stretches from 53rd to 61st Street along the East River Greenway in Manhattan. Beginning in 2019, the city plans on connecting all 32-miles of the greenway's coastline with waterfront amenities for the public. As ArchDaily learned, an interdisciplinary design practice, wHY, has submitted a request for proposal to the New York City Development Corporation for the greenway’s 1.1 mile-long, undeveloped gap. The firm’s $70 million proposal calls for two lanes: a slow one for plants and pedestrians and a fast-lane for bikers and runners.
Find out more

October 27, 2017

Mayor de Blasio announces new $250M program to keep Mitchell-Lama developments affordable

Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Thursday that the city will invest $250 million to protect 15,000 Mitchell-Lama apartments from going to market rate. The investment is part of the city's initiative to create or preserve 300,000 units of affordable housing by 2026. The new program will address over 15,000 Mitchell-Lama homes where affordability is at risk over the next eight years.
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October 27, 2017

First look at proposed Greenwich Village tower by Robert A.M. Stern

If there's one neighborhood in NYC where new developments face the most challenges it's Greenwich Village. One of the city's first historic districts and once home to preservation godmother Jane Jacobs, the low-scale community is arguably the most vocal and steadfast in the city. But it looks like Madison Realty Capital didn't get the memo, as they've tapped starchitect Robert A.M. Stern to design a hulking, 27-story condo tower at 14 Fifth Avenue, just a block north of Washington Square Park, according to NY Yimby. And while Stern's signature classy, limestone design fits in well with the stretch's other apartment buildings, the proposed 367-foot height will likely not sit well with locals. However, at this point, the tower is merely conceptual and will still require a public review need Landmarks Preservation Commission approvals.
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System Architects’ fiery Tribeca townhouse is partially unveiled

First glimpse of Jeremy Edmiston’s “Unhistoric Townhouse” at 187 Franklin Street. Photo courtesy of Tribeca Citizen.

October 27, 2017

System Architects’ fiery Tribeca townhouse is partially unveiled

The latest Tribeca distraction: the partial unveiling of the single-family townhouse at 187 Franklin Street, a funky flame-façaded new building that its architect, Jeremy Edmiston of System Architects, refers to as the Unhistoric Townhouse. Tribeca Citizen reports that workers at the building (which also resembles a Yankees logo) were lifting off some of the mesh that conceals the wavy wonder, perhaps to install one of its metal-mesh balconies. 6sqft previously covered the building, whose design of an undulating red façade complemented by those silvery, net-like balconies was first proposed in 2010.
Landmarks approved rendering, this way

October 26, 2017

$2.6M Soho condo boasts a tricked out roof deck and cozy sleeping nook

This one-bedroom condo at Soho's 118 Wooster Street is offering up plenty of unique features to its next buyer. For one, the 1,250-square-foot interior got a cozy sleeping nook to hold a second bedroom. Then, under 20-foot ceilings, a massive great room, plus a formal bedroom, await. The stairs take you up to a glass atrium, which opens to an 800-square-foot roof deck with a water and electric hookup. For all these indoor and outdoor perks, it'll cost $2.649 million.
Go see the roof deck

Distinctive Homes

Rendering of Elton Crossing courtesy of Magnusson Architecture and Planning

October 26, 2017

Live in a brand new building near Yankees Stadium, from $396/month

Applications are now being accepted for 198 affordable units at Elton Crossing, a new mixed-use development in the Melrose neighborhood of the Bronx. The building at 899 Elton Avenue features on-site laundry, fitness rooms, a landscaped seating area, resident gardening program and spots for parking. Qualifying New Yorkers earning 30, 40 50, 60, and 100 percent of the area median income can apply for units ranging from a $396 per month one-bedroom to a $1,740 per month three-bedroom.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

One Domino Square

8 South 4th Street

Williamsburg

Spectacular living on the Williamsburg waterfront

1 beds starting at $1,925,000
2 beds starting at $2,055,000
3 beds starting at $3,030,000

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Cubic MTA payment system. Rendering courtesy of Cubic Corporation.

October 26, 2017

MTA approves $574M MetroCard-replacing e-readers; new video and renderings

By Andrew Berman of Village Preservation

Cubic, the San Diego-based company who was awarded the job of creating the MTA's new cardless fare system, has just announced that the $539.5 million contract award (with additional options worth $33.9 million) has been approved by a vote of the MTA Board. As 6sqft previously reported, Cubic is the same company that developed the MetroCards that replaced subway tokens over 30 years ago. The new MTA system is modeled on the one that has been in use in London’s Underground and commuter railroads.
See the new fare payment system in action

Rare photos of the High Line being demolished in the 1960s tell the story of a changing West Village

Crane with wrecking ball mounted on the trestle. Photo by Peter H. Fritsch (1962). Photo courtesy of the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation/Fritsch Family Collection.

October 26, 2017

Rare photos of the High Line being demolished in the 1960s tell the story of a changing West Village

Few structures have had a more far-reaching impact upon the West Village and Chelsea than the High Line. Its construction in 1934, then partial demolition in the early '60s, and final preservation and conversion into a park a decade ago have profoundly shaped the way these neighborhoods have changed over the last 85 years. And while photos of its heyday and those of it today as an internationally recognized public space are plenty, few exist of those interim years. But GVSHP recently acquired some wonderful images of the High Line being demolished in 1962 at Perry Street, donated by the Fritsch Family who lived nearby at 141 Perry Street. The Fritschs’ photos say a lot about how the High Line, and its demolition, changed the West Village. It’s apparent from the images just how much more industrial, and gritty the Far West Village was in those days. But it also shows how the demolition of the High Line left a huge gap in this unpretentious neighborhood, which housed both disappearing industry and a diverse and vital residential community.
See the other photos and learn the whole history

History

Image Twitter/@NYCityAlerts

October 26, 2017

Statue of Teddy Roosevelt outside Natural History Museum vandalized with red paint

Just weeks after activists staged an alternative tour of the American Museum of Natural History to call for its removal, among other things, the equestrian statue of Teddy Roosevelt was vandalized early Thursday morning. The base of the statue, which is maintained by the city’s Department of Parks and not the AMNH, was splattered with red paint […]

Uncategorized

Photo courtesy of Roman Kruglov on Flickr

October 26, 2017

Report breaks down how much time New Yorkers waste waiting for delayed subways

The Independent Budget Office released yet another incriminating report this week about New York City's subway system. Not only are the subway's growing delays costing the city up to $389 million each year, but the IBO also found that delays end up setting back New Yorkers nearly $1.23 million every day in lost work time, totaling about $307 million every year. And now, the budget office on Wednesday released a report that breaks down the length of time passengers wait on a station platform for every subway line, except shuttles. According to the report, the average number of passenger hours lost to delays systemwide during the work week between 7am and 10am this year grew by 45 percent from 2012, up from 24,000 hours to 35,000 hours.
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Transit

October 26, 2017

Buy Rihanna’s Chinatown penthouse for $17M