All articles by Dana Schulz

August 13, 2015

Listen to the First 3D-Printed Violin; 50-Year-Old Subways to Remain in Service Until 2022

Subway trains from 1964 on the C and J/Z lines won’t be replaced until 2022. [NYDN] A local artist is planning a funeral procession down the High Line. [DNAinfo] The world’s first 3D-printed violin sounds pretty darn good. [Fast Co. Design] Have fun in the sun on Saturday at Coney Island’s 25th Anniversary sand sculpting competition. [Brownstoner] These […]

August 12, 2015

Venus and Serena Williams Sell Midtown West Apartment for $2M

Just in time for the U.S. Open, superstar tennis sisters Venus and Serena Williams have sold their Midtown West apartment for $2.1 million, according to city records released today. The 1,800-square-foot loft at 28 West 38th Street is currently configured as a one-bedroom, but the wide open layout lends itself to a two- or three-bedroom setup. The sisters bought the unit in 2005 for $1,335,000, but were quoted a couple years later saying they had yet to furnish the space. And judging by the seemingly staged listing photos, they may never have gotten around to it. The buyers are Ted Wells, the criminal attorney recently hired by the NFL to investigate the "deflategate" issue, and his wife Nina Mitchell Wells, former Secretary of State of New Jersey.
See the rest of the space
August 12, 2015

Map Lets Users Draw Where They Think Their Neighborhood Borders Are

Back in the day, there was no East Village; it was all the Lower East Side. The Upper West Side was one big neighborhood; there weren't subdivisions like Broadway Corridor or Riverside. Brokers didn't invent acronyms like NoMad and DoBro. As time goes on, areas in New York City seem to multiply, but this really all depends on who you're talking to. Since the city has no actual neighborhood boundaries (they divide the city by much larger community districts), everyone has their own idea of where one neighborhood ends and the other begins. And a new interactive map from DNAinfo allows New Yorkers to draw what they think their neighborhood borders are and see how their approximations compare to others.'
See how we did at our first attempt
August 12, 2015

1940s Machine Built a House in 24 Hours; No One’s Using LOL Anymore

Greenpoint has the most cases of illegal trash dumping. [NYP] A 1940s house-building machine could supposedly crank out a two-bedroom home in 24 hours. Was this the original 3-D printer? [CityLab] This 17-year-old just opened a gelato shop on the Lower East Side. [Yahoo! Food] Thanks to “hehe,” “haha,” and emoji, no one is using LOL anymore. […]

August 12, 2015

POLL: Do You Agree That the New LaGuardia Plan Is Non-Functional and Uninspiring?

On Monday, resident architecture critic Carter B. Horsley shared his thoughts on the the new $4 billion LaGuardia airport proposal, and let’s just say he is not impressed. He feels the design is “especially lackluster and uninspired when compared to many new 21st-century airports” with no “new urban mascot, logo or icon to offer and amuse.” He […]

August 12, 2015

$29M Historic Townhouse Looks to Take Back the Title of Most Expensive Sale on the UWS

On Monday, the New York Times reported about the listing of an Upper West Side house at 24 West 71st Street – "a historically significant granite-and-iron-spot-brick townhouse with fanciful terra-cotta embellishments and distinctive interior millwork." The stately residence sold for $4.3 million back in 1996, setting a record for the neighborhood. Now, 20 years later, it's back and is looking to reclaim its title of most expensive townhouse sale on the UWS. The home is asking $29 million, more than the current record holder 247 Central Park West, which sold for $25 million earlier this year. The 7,134-square-foot house was built in 1892 by architects Lamb and Rich, and it underwent a $1 million renovation in 1988 that turned it from a ten-unit apartment building back to a single-family mansion, surely helping seal the record-breaking sale in '96 to current owners Arrien and Robin Schiltkamp. According to the just-launched listing, "Immaculately maintained, the six-bedroom, six and a half-bath townhouse has retained the gorgeous original details that infuse every corner, while augmenting them with opulence by Jonathan Rosen Interiors." Some enviable features of the home include six bedrooms; an elevator; a private, south-facing back garden; top-floor terrace; almost all of the original woodwork; stained glass windows; a 400-pound original door; ten gas fireplaces; and a Japanese-inspired spa.
Find out all about the townhouse
August 11, 2015

My 350sqft: A Modern Bachelor Opens Up His Creative and Clever Brooklyn Heights Studio

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 Brooklyn Heights. Want your home to be featured here? Get in touch! When we typically think of bachelor pads, we imagine dark rooms, garbage bags full of empty beer cans, and heaping piles of clothes that aren't discernibly clean or dirty. But today's generation of single man is out to dispel the frat-guy stereotype. Take for example investor relations associate Owen Boyle, whose colorful Brooklyn Heights studio is perfectly curated and ridiculously organized. Though the first-floor pad on Pineapple Street is only 350 square feet, the mix of creative decor and clever design make for a home that is sure to entice any interior design-loving lady. Owen worked with a good friend and designer to transform his first solo apartment into a funky mix of Jersey Shore nostalgia (where he grew up), Brooklyn hip (there's a record player), and laid-back professionalism (see his impressive tie collection). He recently let us in his home, where everything from his shoehorn to the American flag has personal meaning.
Tour this modern bachelor pad here
August 11, 2015

A ‘Hamilton’ Tour of New York; There May Be a New Ikea in Town

The new Broadway musical “Hamilton” is the hot ticket in town. Here are all the places in New York Alexander Hamilton frequented. [Broadway Direct] A Rhode Island-based startup called Greycork is promising modern furniture that’s cheaper and easier to assemble than Ikea. [Curbed] Still mourning the end of “Mad Men?” Ease the pain by owning […]

August 11, 2015

New Census Fact Finder Sheds Surprising Light on Neighborhood Demographics

Think you live in a hipster 'hood? Constantly complaining about the stroller parades down your block? While you may think you have your neighbors pinpointed, a quick look at the hard facts may surprise you. Last week, the Department of City Planning revealed its updated Census Fact Finder, an interactive application that uses data from the U.S. Census Bureau's annual American Community Survey to provide highly detailed neighborhood profiles. Take for example the Lower East Side, often thought of as a playground for well-off post-grads. As The Lo-Down noted, 47 percent of the neighborhood's population is unemployed, only 34 percent have a college degree, and 35 percent pay less than $500/month in rent.
More findings right here
August 10, 2015

Rupert Murdoch Puts West Village Townhouse Back on the Market After Just Five Months

Back in April, we reported that News Corp. and 21st Century Fox chairman Rupert Murdoch had listed his One Madison penthouse for a whopping $72 million. He had planned to live in the glassy triplex full time, but instead picked up a $25 million West Village townhouse. But now it looks like the billionaire has changed his mind yet again, putting the townhouse at 278 West 11th Street back on the market for $28.9 million, according to the Daily News.
Find out more here
August 8, 2015

Weekly Highlights: Top Picks from the 6sqft Staff

First 1,000+ Foot Tower Outside Manhattan May Rise in Downtown Brooklyn Are the City’s Bodegas Becoming a Thing of the Past? Funky Soho Apartment from ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ Keeps Trying 2 World Trade Center Could Be the Most Expensive Office Tower in the World Could This Deconstructivist Office Tower Be Coming to the Garment […]

August 7, 2015

How to Stop Supertall Towers from Swaying; FAO Schwarz’s Times Square Deal Falls Through

JFK Airport will receive $8.9 million in federal funds for runway and airfield upgrades. [Crain’s] Fortis Property Group is making progress with its controversial plan to bring four apartment towers to the former site of the Long Island College Hospital in Cobble Hill. [Curbed] With Manhattan skyscrapers getting taller and thinner, developers are installing giant counter […]

August 7, 2015

51 Percent of Americans Live in the Country’s Nine Largest States

Being face-to-armpit on our morning subway commute and sharing an apartment with five other people can cause us New Yorkers to forget that outside of our five-borough bubble there are places where homes are spaced out and one may need to drive several miles just to get to the grocery store. This mapping series by Dadaviz user Jishai illustrates just how disproportionate the country's population is. As Mental Floss first noted, "For each visualization, the red and orange regions have equal populations." For example, in the map above, we see that 51 percent of the population lives in the country's nine largest states. Other statistics visualized on the maps show that 50 percent of the population live in the 144 largest counties in the nation, and that the country's largest county, located in southern California, has roughly the same population as the 11 smallest states.
See more population maps 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 4, 2015

Want to Enter an Affordable Housing Lottery? You’ll Be up Against 696 Other Applicants

Photo via Wiki Commons According to a new report from the Daily News, for every affordable apartment offered through the city's housing lotteries since 2013, there were 696 applicants, leaving you with a measly 0.14 percent chance of being selected. "All told, there were 2.9 million applications for 4,174 affordable units available from 72 lotteries run by the city's Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD)," says the News, yet another signifier that average New Yorkers are struggling to pay ever-increasing rents.
Find out more here
August 3, 2015

VIDEO: Travel Back to Coney Island’s Summer Heyday in the 1940s

"Coney Island, the world's greatest fun frolic, with its beach miles long, all peppered with people. The place where merriment is king." That's the opening line in this fun video that offers a tour of 1940s Coney Island during its heyday as the go-to summer destination. The narrator describes the millions of people on the boardwalk and beach, and while this might seem like an exaggeration at first, the footage clearly shows hordes of revelers sunbathing, swimming, lining up for the freakshow, and enjoying the rides (many of which probably wouldn't be deemed safe today). There's also great scenes of the Miss Coney Island contest (a swimsuit beauty pageant where the judge takes out the tape measurer for the contestants' waists), the famous Cyclone, and Luna Park lit up at night.
Watch the nostalgic video here
August 3, 2015

Last Music Row Shop Closes; The Mansions of Mill Basin

Home-furnishings chain Restoration Hardware is opening a boutique hotel and restaurant around the corner from its flagship store in the Meatpacking District. [Crain’s] The last store of Music Row, the stretch of 48th Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenues that was once filled with guitar sellers, studios and repair shops, has closed. [NYP] Residents are staying […]

August 1, 2015

July’s 10 Most-Read Stories and This Week’s Features

July’s 10 Most-Read Stories My 425sqft: Tour a Bubbly Packaging Designer’s Boerum Hill Studio Filled with Eclectic Finds Julia Roberts Lists Greenwich Village Apartment for $4.5M New York’s First-Ever Penthouse: A 54-Room Upper East Side Mansion Built for a Cereal Heiress Day vs. Night: What NYC’s Population Looks Like Tetra-Shed: A Portable Wooden Home Office […]