August 7, 2015

Brooklyn Bridge Park Condo Asking $895K Takes Its Storage Seriously

If you thought it'd take at least $1 million to buy an apartment along the Brooklyn Bridge Park waterfront, here's something that's (a little) cheaper. Unit #306 at 360 Furman Street–aka One Brooklyn Bridge Park–is the cheapest unit up for sale currently in the building, asking $895,000. At that price point, it doesn't look like you're getting views of the water or Lower Manhattan. But you still get a decent amount of space and a pretty cool, custom-designed storage system.
Check it out
August 7, 2015

Gucci Granddaughters List Mod Midtown Penthouse for $45M

Often known simply as "the Gucci sisters," Alessandra and Allegra Gucci are the great-granddaughters of Guccio Gucci, who founded the world-famous fashion label. Their father, the late Maurizio Gucci, then led the brand until his ex-wife arranged for a hit man to gun him down in 1995. In the '70s, Maurizio bought a duplex penthouse at the Olympic Tower in Midtown East, which now belongs to his daughters. According to the Wall Street Journal, the family listed the 9,450-square-foot, eight-bedroom pad in 2010 as a $60,000/month rental, but they're now trying to unload it completely to the tune of $45 million.
More on this impressive penthouse
August 6, 2015

2 World Trade Center Could Be the Most Expensive Office Tower in the World

The Post reports that the construction of the Bjarke Ingels Group-designed 2 World Trade Center will come with a $4 billion price tag. The 2.8 million-square-foot downtown tower will top out at 1,340 feet, just 28 feet shy of One World Trade Center, which currently holds the title of the world's most expensive office building with construction costs coming in at $3.8 billion.
More details this way
August 6, 2015

Bold Renovation by Ghislaine Viñas Seeks to Make This the Coolest Townhouse in Tribeca

Where to even begin with the renovation of this Tribeca townhouse on Warren Street? The neon colors? The insane art collection? The spiral staircase? The sheep? Needless to say, this project by Ghislaine Viñas Interior Design, also of Tribeca, nearly defies description. It's big, it's bold, it's fun, it looks like something out of a storybook. In fact, the design firm is no stranger to this kind of work–they designed the infamous 80-foot slide that winds through a FiDi penthouse. Do we dare say that this renovation, sans slide, looks like just as much fun?
See more
August 6, 2015

Art Nerd New York’s Top Event Picks for the Week, 8/6-8/8

In a city where hundreds of interesting happenings occur each week, it can be hard to pick and choose your way to a fulfilling life. Art Nerd's philosophy is a combination of observation, participation, education and of course a party to create the ultimate well-rounded week. Jump ahead for Art Nerd founder Lori Zimmer’s top end of week picks for 6sqft readers! One of the busiest art shows I've ever seen returns to New York this week- Spoke Art's annual Wes Anderson-themed exhibition "Bad Dads," which attracts collectors, fans and those who love to dress like his characters (always a lot of fun). Artist Brian Leo's colorful myriad of cartoony drawings open at Amy Li, a massive group show curated by Melissa Mccain-Welles kicks off at Azart Gallery, and cutesy arty toy store My Plastic Heart hosts a two-person East vs. West Coast Show. The gorgeous grounds of Wave Hill in the Bronx invite guests to chat with artists in their current show after perusing the gardens, and Michael Alan brings his "living installation" for visitors to become a part of for its 13th anniversary.
All the best events to check out here
August 6, 2015

BuzzFeed Editor Picks Up a $2.25M Harlem Townhouse

Listicles must certainly be profitable. Mark Schoofs, BuzzFeed News' investigations and projects editor, just picked up a $2.25 two-family Harlem townhouse, according to property records released today. The buy comes just a few months after we uncovered that New York Times editor Frank Bruni bought an Upper West Side apartment for $1.65, leaving many wondering just how "struggling" are writers these days? Schoofs' new home was constructed only seven years ago and has two units on six floors. The larger five-bedroom residence, where we assume the homeowner will live, occupies the top four floors and has three balconies, a terrace, and a duplex roof deck. The other two-bedroom unit on the first two floors has access to the back patio and garden.
Take a look around
August 6, 2015

Michael Hilgers’ BalKonzept Will Turn Your Fire Escape Into an Outdoor Office

City dwellers who are lucky enough to have a balcony (or maybe just a fire escape) and who also work at home now have the perfect setup for the warmer months. German designer Michael Hilgers created a brilliant balcony desk that hooks onto the railing to hold a laptop or papers. Dubbed BalKonzept, this extremely lightweight design comes complete with an integrated flowerbox, so you can have both a perfect outdoor workstation and a garden.
Learn more about this makeshift balcony desk
August 6, 2015

First Look at 22-Story Expansion of Downtown Brooklyn’s Hampton Inn Hotel

We all know Brooklyn's residential market is scorching hot, but its hotel market is booming as well. Two hotels recently opened at the borough's Manhattan Bridge entryway, the 174-room Dazzler Brooklyn Hotel and the 116-room Hampton Inn. The latter has just begun construction on a 145-room expansion on an adjacent lot at 156 Tillary Street, and we've uncovered the first look at what the 22-story Stonehill & Taylor Architects-designed tower will look like (an encore to the striped-brick banality that rose in the first phase).
More details ahead
August 6, 2015

Huge Head Made of Reclaimed Materials Lands in Tribeca; 131 Years of the Dakota

Artist Nicholas Holiber crafts a big head out of reclaimed materials that’ll be on display in Tribeca Park until September. [Contemporist] From brothels to boutiques, GreeneStreet.nyc maps out 400 years of one Soho street’s gentrification. [WIRED] CUNY professor William Helmreich did something meshuga (our new favorite word): He walked every block in every borough. [CBS […]

August 6, 2015

Map of ‘Subway Deserts’ Shows Outer Boroughs Left High and Dry

Though we may already know there are places in NYC that we can't easily get to, transit data junkie Chris Whong lays it all out on a map that points out the city's lesser-served regions, at least by underground means. The interactive map shows all NYC land areas more than 500 meters (about .3 miles) from one of the city’s 468 subway stations–that’s about two avenue blocks or six or seven shorter street blocks (around a seven-minute walk) according to Google maps. A big blue dot blots out this radius surrounding the station; everything outside the dot, well, you’re hoofing it (or taking a bus, car or rickshaw).
Find out more
August 6, 2015

For $2.3M This Breezy Southern Cottage in the West Village Hides a Secret Garden

Tailored upholstery, rattan furniture, and mix-and-match pale floral chintz may convey a southern beach house feel, but the casual elegance of this 1,200-square-foot one-bedroom garden hideaway on a beautiful West Village block extends beyond the home's current decor. Subtle pre-war details like 11-foot ceilings, crown moldings, marble fireplaces and rich dark wood floors contrasted with bright white walls embody the pretty and casual island vibe. There's also central air for those balmy summer days. But what makes this home at 77 Horatio Street most irresistible is the magical 500-square-foot garden at the back, visible just beyond a balcony off the dining area through oversized glass patio doors.
Step inside this pretty downtown bungalow
August 5, 2015

Could This Deconstructivist Office Tower Be Coming to the Garment District?

The visualization wizzes at Hayes Davidson posted this image of a hyper-modern tower addition atop an imposing Verizon-owned building at 230 West 36th Street. While few details are provided with the accompanying image, an article from the Times last year mentioned that the top two floors and some unused development rights of the 1924 building were being shopped around to developers as a potential hotel site. The rendered building appears to be a commercial office building, however. With the dearth of development sites suitable for large office floor plates east of Ninth Avenue, and a hot Midtown South office market where vacancy rates hover near 9 percent, the site could be a prime opportunity to construct new office space in the heart of the Times Square/Penn Station sub-market.
More details ahead
August 5, 2015

The Many Lives, and Miraculous Recovery, of NYC’s First Cancer Hospital

Walking down Central Park West from the north end of the park, it's hard to miss the castle-like structure on the corner of 105th Street. The facade is dominated by great conical towers, majestic turrets, deep red brick, and a soft Belleville brownstone. A closer look reveals stained glass windows and intricate stonework, all convincing details that someone went out to build a fairy-tale castle on the perimeter of Central Park. Among the surrounding townhouses and co-op buildings, it's a stunning piece of architecture that looks like it doesn't quite belong. Indeed, the story of how this building, constructed at 455 Central Park West in 1887, still stands is an unlikely one that is rooted in medical history–a dark medical history, at that. This was New York's first cancer hospital, and the first hospital in the United States dedicated specifically to its treatment. This was a time when cancer treatment was unfamiliar to most doctors–in the back of the castle was a crematorium and smokestack that was often in use. After the hospital's closure in 1955, it became a notorious nursing home known for mistreating its patients. When investigations caused the nursing home to close in 1974, the building was left to rot. Not until a redevelopment plan took off in 2000 was it restored into a luxury condo development. Today, despite its grim past, it remains an important piece of New York's medical and architectural history.
Keep reading for the full story
August 5, 2015

First 1,000+ Foot Tower Outside Manhattan May Rise in Downtown Brooklyn

As the result of the $90 million acquisition of Brooklyn's landmarked Dime Savings Bank building by developers Michael Stern (111 West 57th) and Joe Chetrit, a new residential skyscraper in Brooklyn could nearly reach the height of the Empire State Building. The historic Neo-Roman building at 9 DeKalb Avenue in Downtown Brooklyn–next door to the famed Junior's Restaurant–comes with 300,000 square feet of development rights, which, combined with existing air rights next door at 340 Flatbush Avenue Extension (which the pair bought last summer for $43 million), could be used to build an adjacent tower of nearly 600,000 square feet. The likelihood of a tower that reaches between 1,000 and 1,200 feet has been mentioned by sources close to the deal.
find out more about the planned Brooklyn skyscraper
August 5, 2015

This Sweet $3M Village Co-op Is No Steal, but Its Location Is Stellar

Occupying the entire parlor floor of an elevator building on one of the loveliest blocks in Greenwich Village, this pre-war co-op at 38 West 9th Street may be sweet, but it's far from little; the same could be said of its $2.995 million ask. For that price you'll get two good-sized bedrooms, and, looking at the floor plan, there's plenty of room for a third with a little reconfiguration. There are also loads of charming and well-preserved architectural details in every room.
Take a look around
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August 5, 2015

Jack Craig’s Skeletal Coat Rack Turns Into a Room Divider as Clothes Populate It

Detroit-based industrial designer Jack Craig came out with a minimal wooden coat rack that doubles as a room divider. Crafted from light Ash and simply dubbed Coat rack room dividers, it gets "activated" when guests arrive and drape their clothes on its many modular units. As clothing populates the racks, the structure starts to disappear turning into a fabric landscape that also works as a space divider, which seems like the perfect prop for closet-deprived New Yorkers.
Learn more about this multifunctional piece
August 5, 2015

Amy Lau Creates an East Hampton Retreat Using Mid-Century Modern Furniture

When two New York art enthusiasts left the city behind for a getaway home in East Hampton, they made sure to take along designer Amy Lau to create their relaxing lagoon-side residence. After purchasing the four-bedroom house in 2012 for $3.75 million, the couple wanted to create a setting that contrasted their art deco Upper East Side apartment. "We did not set out to collect modernist furniture for our house in the country but rather to find furnishings and art we could live with while relaxing," homeowner Joel Portugal told Modern Magazine. So they enlisted their long-time style influence Amy Lau, in addition to East Hampton architectural consultant Sandra Brauer, to combine mid-century art with tranquil, summery touches.
See the interior here
August 5, 2015

POLL: Do You Still Shop at Your Local Bodega?

Yesterday we asked the question, “Are the city’s bodegas becoming a thing of the past?” As we noted, “many of these tiny shops have been scrambling to stay in business. The city’s roughly 12,000 bodegas are losing customers.” According to the Times, 75 have already shuttered this year. Typically, we pin this on rising rents […]

August 5, 2015

Health- and Fitness-Themed EVEN Hotel Tops Out in Midtown East

The future Midtown East home of the fitness- and wellness-themed EVEN Hotel line has reached its 414-foot apex. Situated one block away from Grand Central Terminal, the 36-story mixed-use tower at 219 East 44th Street will be the hotel brand's second location in the city, and its upper floors will be crowned with ten penthouses. The building's developers are a partnership between CWC and the Intercontinental Hotel Group (IHG), who are also the parent company of the Holiday Inn and Crown Plaza brands. IHG will debut their first Manhattan EVEN Hotel later this year at 321 West 35th Street with this 44th Street location opening soon after. The brand promotes a health and wellness lifestyle for travelers through in-room fitness zones for private workouts and healthy food and beverage options, including made-to-order smoothies and grab ‘n’ go meals. Additionally, the hotel will have dedicated meeting areas, indoor/outdoor eating and exercise space, and spa-inspired showers.
More details ahead
August 5, 2015

Funky Soho Apartment from ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ Keeps Trying

The Soho apartment that made a cameo appearance in the film "The Devil Wears Prada" is trying its luck again on the market. Back in 2012, the unit, #3A at 56 Crosby Street, hit the market for $5.2 million and for $23,000 a month after it was on and off the market in 2009 and 2010 with an ask of $4.495 million. It looks as if it never sold. Now? It's trying its luck as a rental and again asking $23,000 a month. Star power hasn't helped this listing before, do you think this time around it'll be different?
See the rest of the quirky interior
August 4, 2015

My 1,680sqft: Artist Anne Peabody Invites Us Into Her Landmarked Clinton Hill Carriage House

Our ongoing series “My sqft” checks out the homes of 6sqft’s friends, family and fellow New Yorkers across all the boroughs. Our latest interior adventure brings us to Clinton Hill. Want your home to be featured here? Get in touch! Anne Peabody is no stranger to turning the completely ordinary into something extraordinary. As an artist she creates elaborate and beautiful works with pieces of glass sized as small as a grain of rice to sheets as large as doors; as a preservationist, she’s restored many a home in both her native Kentucky and New York City (her last featured in the Wall Street Journal). Two years ago, Anne and her husband Tony purchased a landmarked home in Clinton Hill. She had long dreamt of owning one of the neighborhood’s historic carriage houses, and when one came to the market she immediately jumped on it. Unfortunately, it wasn’t in an ideal state at signing—the previous owner had 20 cats and no litter box and the floors were soaked in pee—but she knew exactly what she was getting into. We recently visited Anne to have a look at her house before it goes under renovation this fall—a project that will entail restoring the exterior to its original late 1800s glory and the addition of an art studio and glass extension at the back of the home—and to hear why she's always stuck so close to this particular neighborhood. Though the current space is sparse, it’s easy to see the potential that lies within.
Inside Anne and Tony's next big project

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