Photo of the Robeson © CityRealty

A housing lottery for 73 mixed-income units will launch on Thursday at a building in one of the most bustling sections of Central Harlem. The new 10-story building, called The Robeson, is located at 407 Malcolm X Boulevard between West 130th and 131st Streets. Qualifying New Yorkers earning 50, 100, and 130 percent of the area median income can apply for the units, which range from a $680/month studio to a $3,452/month three-bedroom apartment.

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Two neighboring Harlem townhouses have seen a big price drop since hitting the market last year. First listed for a combined $27 million, the historic homes at 32 and 33 Mount Morris Park West are currently listed separately for $7.95 million and $3.95 million, respectively. The 7,000-square-foot, five-bedroom property at 32 Mount Morris Park has been respectfully gut-renovated, while the townhouse next door, which has the same footprint and unique architectural elements, needs restoration work.

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Photos by Seth Caplan for Common

Co-living startup Common has opened its third Harlem location in the St. Nicholas Historic District, better known as Strivers’ Row for the long list of African American luminaries who lived along the two-block stretch. Common brings its modern approach to the area, with a handful of private bedrooms now available at 267 West 139th Street from $1,600 to $2,200 a month.

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Rendering credit: Davis Brody Bond

The City Council’s Zoning Committee voted unanimously to reject a proposed redevelopment of Harlem’s Lenox Terrace housing complex on Wednesday. The site’s owner, the Olnick Organization, has been seeking approval for a mixed-use development with five 28-story towers to be constructed at the complex. This week’s decision is expected to be a sign of what’s to come when the project comes to a vote before the full City Council next month. But Olnick has already signaled that they have a scaled-down backup plan for the site that won’t require a rezoning.

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Rendering courtesy of Susan T. Rodriguez Architecture | Design and the Central Park Conservancy

The $150 million plan to build a new pool and ice rink at the northern end of Central Park is facing backlash from local swimmers and skaters. Last September, the Central Park Conservancy revealed a project to replace the aging Lasker Rink and Pool and create space for year-round recreation. But a group of hockey players and swimmers is asking the conservancy to revise its plan, which they claim would reduce the space they can use, eliminating some of the programs offered.

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CNN journalist Don Lemon has listed his condo in a luxury Harlem apartment building for $1.75 million, according to the New York Post. Located at 2280 Frederick Douglass Boulevard, the tower, known as 2280 FDB, is a few short blocks from Morningside Park and all that Central Harlem has to offer. The TV news anchor first bought the three-bedroom home for $1.48 million in 2013, followed by a neighboring one-bedroom unit for roughly $867,780 the next year. He sold the smaller unit in 2017 for $969,000.

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Rendering courtesy of the Olnick Organization

Amidst pushback from locals and activists, the Olnick Organization has released a Plan B proposal for its Lenox Terrace expansion, reports the Post. Last week, the City Planning Commission approved an application from the complex’s owner to rezone part of the neighborhood and allow five 28-story towers with a mix of market-rate and affordable units to be built at the site. The alternate plan unveiled on Tuesday presents a scaled-down version that wouldn’t require a zoning change but also wouldn’t include any of the affordable units or public amenities in the original plan.

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Image courtesy of The Corcoran Group.

Asking $1.895 million, this two-bedroom Harlem condominium penthouse at the building known as Strivers Lofts at 223 West 135th Street spans 1,700 square feet with the light and views you’d expect from the top floor. A bit more unexpected is the added perk in the form of a separate 200-square-foot home office with a powder room on the building’s ground floor. The penthouse has high ceilings, tall windows, and a large planted roof deck in a former light industrial building, which is now home to full-floor lofts.

Lofty aspirations, this way

Photo: Lenox Terrace Aerial; Credit: Davis Brody Bond

A plan to bring a mixed-use development with five buildings and 1,600 apartments to Central Harlem got a much-needed approval on Monday. The City Planning Commission voted in favor of an application from the Olnick Organization to rezone part of the neighborhood, clearing the way for five 28-story luxury towers to be constructed at the existing Lenox Terrace complex.

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Aerial view of the project; Credit: Davis Brody Bond

A developer’s plan to rezone a neighborhood in Central Harlem to make way for a mixed-use development hit another roadblock this week. Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer on Monday rejected a rezoning application filed by the Olnick Organization to construct five 28-story luxury towers and one mid-rise building located at the existing Lenox Terrace complex. In her recommendation, Brewer said the project lacks the “public and private investments necessary to make it a prudent exercise of planning for future growth.”

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