Tucked away on Rutherford Place, one of the prettiest streets in the neighborhood, this charming first-floor pre-war apartment sits along the eastern border of Gramercy and Union Square. Built in 1855 as a townhouse, the one-bedroom co-op at 224 East 17th Street has a large master bedroom and a small office space–and direct views of Stuyvesant Square Park.
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Architecture, Greenwich Village, New Developments, Union Square
An “oversized Silicon Alley” is what some are calling Mayor de Blasio’s plan to transform Union Square and its southern stretches into the city’s next tech hub. The main component so far is the massive Union Square Tech Hub proposed to replace the P.C. Richard & Son building on East 14th Street, but Councilwoman Rosie Mendez and the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation are advocating that, in exchange for the building, the city rezone the surrounding blocks to prevent an influx of out-of-scale development. Despite their oppositions, CetraRuddy has revealed on their site two environmentally friendly proposals for the site at 799 Broadway, the former home of the St. Denis Hotel at the southwest corner of East 11th Street. Spotted by CityRealty, the 240-foot, 17-story office building would be the first catering to the Mayor’s tech dreams, though the renderings are merely conceptual at this point.
Features, Interiors, My SQFT House Tours, Union Square
6sqft’s ongoing series “My sqft” checks out the homes of New Yorkers across all the boroughs. Our latest interior adventure brings us to the Union Square penthouse studio of Leonard Shaver. Want to see your home featured here? Get in touch!
When Leonard Shaver moved into his studio penthouse 20 years ago, he never thought he’d be there two decades later. But thanks to a 320-square-foot terrace that not only makes the space feel twice its size but offers sweeping views of the skyline and Empire State Building, resurgence of the Union Square area, and the way his system of “organized chaos” has suited him, he now couldn’t imagine living anywhere else. Admittedly a bit of a “hoarder,” Leonard has an impressive set of Moroccan rugs, along with collections of Limoges Mona Lisa plates, Baccarat crystal, and shoes (yes, he even keeps them in the oven a la “Sex and the City”). 6sqft recently paid Leonard a visit to check out his home and learn about how he makes the small space work for himself and his two dogs Hunter and JJ.
City Living, Policy, Transportation
L train via Wiki Commons
To mitigate the nightmare commuters will face during the 15-month L-train shutdown, the MTA and the Department of Transportation presented four possible alternatives that would make a portion of 14th Street a car-free busway. Streetsblog NYC reported that during a Manhattan Community Board 6 meeting on Monday, the agencies laid out the following options: a standard Select Bus Service (SBS) along 14th Street, enhanced SBS that includes turn and curb restrictions, a car-free busway in the middle lanes along 14th and a river-to-river car-free busway. Agency officials predict between 75 and 85 percent of the daily 275,000 daily L riders will use other subway lines, with bus service possibly absorbing between 5-15 percent of displaced trips.
Celebrities, Union Square
This Union Square apartment has certainly seen its fair share of scandal. Notorious former Congressman Anthony Weiner, along with wife and Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin, moved into the duplex rental at Zeckendorf Towers in November 2014, just after his failed mayoral run and sexting scandal. And now that Abedin filed for divorce (nearly nine years since the couple announced their separation) after Weiner pled guilty to sending sexual text messages to a minor, they may finally be parting ways with the contemporary home. Three days ago, the Post reported that the unit hit the market for $11,900 a month, but the listing has since been pulled, perhaps from the publicity or because it was rented.
City Living, Transportation, Union Square, Urban Design
Advocacy group Transportation Alternatives has been trying to stay focused on grounded solutions–literally, as opposed to the tunnel and skyway ideas that are also being discussed–to mitigate the anticipated possible chaos when the dreaded 15-month L train shutdown hits. The organization is aiming for the ear of the Department of Transportation (DOT) and the MTA which control street design and bus expansion, respectively. The group recently held an “L-ternative” contest seeking pedestrian-centered proposals for main transit corridors along the L line, such as 14th street, Gothamist reports. The winning proposal, called 14TH ST.OPS, imagines a (car) traffic-free 14th Street with a six-stop shuttle bus using dedicated lanes, plus protected bike lanes.
Cool Listings, Flatiron, Interiors
The Flatiron District is known for its big, basic loft apartments, often creatively customized by residents, and this duplex co-op at 131 Fifth Avenue is no exception. Currently on the market for $1.75 million, the art-friendly home has understated bragging points like 15-foot ceilings and 10-foot windows overlooking 5th Avenue, as well as a full suite of interior design tools for creative living.
Construction Update, Union Square
The redevelopment of Union Square‘s Tammany Hall is moving full steam ahead. As CityRealty reports, leasing has launched, and along with a brand new website, a slew of new renderings showing off the historic building’s impending transformation have also been revealed.
Cool Listings, Interiors, Union Square
This one-bedroom apartment comes from the Zeckendorf Towers, a 1980s development that encompasses four 29-story towers with 630 apartments. Although it is a condo complex, you can rent this particular unit for $4,900 a month. It’s particularly flexible as a sliding glass door that separates the bedroom also partitions off a bonus space which could be used as an office or nursery. The unit also benefits from built-in shelving and custom closets that maximize storage space.
Celebrities, Cool Listings, East Village, Union Square
The East Village loft owned by novelist and literary bad boy Bret Easton Ellis is available for rent for $5,900 per month. Ellis has been renting out the studio apartment since he decamped for Los Angeles a decade ago; he told the Observer he’s been holding on to the 950-square-foot, second-floor condo in the American Felt Building at 114 East 13th Street as a back-up plan, “if Los Angeles just doesn’t work out.” The “American Psycho” scribe says he spent the late ’80s living in the lofty studio–in his early 20s at the time–writing the iconic 1991 novel of late 20th century privilege, materialism and delusion and throwing massive Holly Golightly-esque bashes packed with his contemporaries back in the day in an East Village very different from today’s.
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