All articles by Dana Schulz

This sidewalk ‘front porch’ was designed to help students return to school in COVID times

Brooklyn Laboratory Charter Schools/SITU/WXY

August 5, 2020

This sidewalk ‘front porch’ was designed to help students return to school in COVID times

The list of anxieties surrounding a return to school for students and their parents is seemingly endless, but the architects at SITU and WXY have designed an outdoor lobby that they hope can help alleviate some of this stress. Built upon the work of design-forward scaffolding firm Urban Umbrella, the "Front Porch" concept has been installed at the Brooklyn Laboratory Charter School to "allow students and faculty to be protected from the elements while queuing to enter, while hand sanitizing and having their temperatures taken," according to a press release.
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Architecture And Design

This $4M modern Seaport loft is actually in an 18th-century building

Listing photos courtesy of Douglas Elliman

August 5, 2020

This $4M modern Seaport loft is actually in an 18th-century building

One of the fun things about New York City's architecture is how hidden its history can be. Take for example 130 Beekman Street in the South Street Seaport Historic District. The five-story building was actually built in 1798, but it's undergone several renovations over the years, and its condo units are completely modern. Just listed for $3,995,000 is the building's crown jewel, a three-bedroom, top-floor loft with two beautiful outdoor spaces.
Look around

Distinctive Homes

$1.5M Boerum Hill beauty has a backyard sanctuary and barnyard-chic interiors

Image Credit: Alex Mahgoub/Compass

August 4, 2020

$1.5M Boerum Hill beauty has a backyard sanctuary and barnyard-chic interiors

This duplex at 50 3rd Avenue in Boerum Hill definitely looks like it could've been designed by Chip and Joanna Gaines. Though we're pretty sure they didn't travel to Brooklyn to design this two-bedroom condo, it has plenty of their famous "modern farmhouse" design elements, most notably reclaimed wood on the walls and ceiling. The aesthetic is carried over to the backyard, where twinkly lights and climbing vines set the stage for a true outdoor oasis. The apartment has just listed for $1,474,000.
Take the tour

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Radio City cancels the Rockettes this Christmas

Photo by Kevin Poh via Flickr cc

August 4, 2020

Radio City cancels the Rockettes this Christmas

In a not-surprising announcement, Radio City Music Hall says they will not put on their famous Christmas Spectacular featuring the Rockettes this year, the first time since 1933. The decision comes after Broadway said it will stay dark for the rest of the year and other venues like the Met Opera, Lincoln Center, NYC Ballet, and Carnegie Hall cancelled the rest of their 2020 seasons. As NBC New York noted, the Rockettes typically rehearse for more than 200 hours leading up to the show's November debut.
More details here

Events & Things To Do

You can lounge and dine at a rooftop ‘lawn’ at the South Street Seaport

Photo of The Greens courtesy of The Howard Hughes Corporation

August 4, 2020

You can lounge and dine at a rooftop ‘lawn’ at the South Street Seaport

Social distancing guidelines have definitely gotten restaurants to be extra creative, like The Rooftop at Pier 17 which has just opened a new dining experience where guests can book one of 28 "mini-lawns." Called The Greens, the experience has transformed the South Street Seaport rooftop venue into private cabana-style plots, each of which can accommodate eight guests.
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Jennifer Lawrence sells Upper East Side penthouse at a $6M loss

All photos courtesy of Compass

August 4, 2020

Jennifer Lawrence sells Upper East Side penthouse at a $6M loss

In 2016, Jennifer Lawrence picked up a $15.6 million penthouse on the Upper East Side. She must have really wanted to offload it, because last summer, she listed it for $15,450,000 and dropped it to $12 million earlier this month. According to city property records, the Oscar-winning actress ultimately sold the home at 400 East 67th Street for $9,900,000, taking a nearly $6 million loss. Listing agent Pamela D'Arc of Compass declined to comment on the sale.
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After original church was destroyed on 9/11, construction restarts at new St. Nicholas Shrine

All photos courtesy of Governor Andrew Cuomo/Flickr

August 3, 2020

After original church was destroyed on 9/11, construction restarts at new St. Nicholas Shrine

It's been nearly 20 years since St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine was lost in the attacks on 9/11, but today, Governor Cuomo announced the restart of construction on the new Santiago Calatrava-designed church. Work originally began in 2015, but stalled in late 2017 when the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America ran out of funding.
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New Developments

De Blasio says outdoor dining will return to NYC next summer

Outdoor dining on West 71st Street between Central Park West and Columbus. Photo by 6sqft.

August 3, 2020

De Blasio says outdoor dining will return to NYC next summer

In a press conference this morning, Mayor de Blasio announced that the city's popular Open Restaurants program will return on June 1, 2021, if not earlier in the spring. He recently expanded this year's outdoor dining program through October 31 after it was found to be successful and safe and after the state indefinitely postponed indoor dining in New York City. De Blasio said that an estimated 80,000 jobs from more than 9,000 participating businesses have been saved since the program launched on June 22 when the city entered phase two of reopening.
More details ahead

NYC’s latest set of outdoor dining open streets includes 13 blocks on the Upper West Side

Open streets outdoor dining along West 47th Street, photo by CityRealty

August 3, 2020

NYC’s latest set of outdoor dining open streets includes 13 blocks on the Upper West Side

Open streets outdoor dining along West 47th Street, photo by CityRealty On Friday, Mayor de Blasio announced that an additional 15 locations would be closing to traffic and opening their streets for outdoor dining through a combination of the city's Open Streets and Open Restaurants programs. This brings the total to 62 participating streets. Some of the latest include 13 blocks along Amsterdam Avenue on the Upper West Side, another stretch in Chinatown, Koreatown, a few in Noho/Soho, and five blocks along Vanderbilt Avenue in Prospect Heights. Since restaurants were first able to open for outdoor dining when phase two began on June 22, more than 9,500 have signed on to participate.
The full list of open streets

For $5.25M, you can own a modernist ‘House at Sagaponac’ in the Hamptons

July 31, 2020

For $5.25M, you can own a modernist ‘House at Sagaponac’ in the Hamptons

Designed by Calvin Tsao and Zack McKown of renowned contemporary firm Tsao & McKown Architects, this residence is one of the original Houses at Sagaponac, a modernist development conceived in the early 2000s by developer Harry "Coco" Brown and architect Richard Meier. The original plan was for 32 homes to be built by different prominent architects, but after Brown's death and the recession, only eight were completed, making them even more special. This five-bedroom home utilizes moveable glass walls and oversized windows to take in views of the surrounding greenery and incredible 60-foot pool and sun deck.
The full tour ahead

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Popular Articles

For $3M, this Williamsburg townhouse was designed as an airy artist’s home

Photo credit: DDReps

July 31, 2020

For $3M, this Williamsburg townhouse was designed as an airy artist’s home

At first look, you might assume that this townhouse at 580 Driggs Avenue in North Williamsburg is new construction, but it was actually built in 1899 and completely gut renovated inside and out in 2019. The "custom artist's home," as the listing calls it, was designed as "an airy open layout and plenty of room to spread out, work from home, or relax on the roof deck or in the garden." Listed for $2,950,000, it's just over 2,300 square feet and has four bedrooms.
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Second Empire brownstone in Fort Greene has been beautifully restored for $4M

Photo credit: Gamut Photos

July 30, 2020

Second Empire brownstone in Fort Greene has been beautifully restored for $4M

There's something very romantic about this brownstone at 374 Vanderbilt Avenue in Fort Greene. The interiors have been beautifully preserved and the home modernized, but not so much so that it's lost its old-world charm. The five-bedroom Second Empire townhouse was built in 1899 and is part of the Fort Greene Historic District. It's asking $3,995,000, and has a studio apartment in the basement level for added income.
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Distinctive Homes

MTA installs free mask dispensers inside buses

Photo: Marc A. Hermann / MTA New York City Transit

July 30, 2020

MTA installs free mask dispensers inside buses

In a continued effort to COVID-proof public transportation, the MTA has installed mask dispensers at the entrance to city buses. The pilot program is now on 100 buses in the Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island, and it will expand to 400 buses in all five boroughs by next month. The free surgical mask dispensers--each of which holds 50 masks and will be refilled daily--are mounted at the front door of express buses and at the front and rear doors of SBS and local buses. Masks are required to ride any bus or subway.
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$3.25M waterfront loft in Brooklyn Heights has view of the Brooklyn Bridge and Statue of Liberty

Photos courtesy of Brown Harris Stevens

July 30, 2020

$3.25M waterfront loft in Brooklyn Heights has view of the Brooklyn Bridge and Statue of Liberty

Through oversized north- and west-facing windows at this Brooklyn Heights loft, you're staring directly at the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges, East River, and even the Statue of Liberty in the distance. Located at 8 Old Fulton Street, the two-bedroom co-op is asking $3,250,000 and was renovated by the well-known architects at Studio DB.
Have a look

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Long Island mansion with an indoor pool and movie theater sells for record-setting $9.2M

Listing photos courtesy of Compass

July 29, 2020

Long Island mansion with an indoor pool and movie theater sells for record-setting $9.2M

This over-the-top Mediterranean-style mansion on Long Island just sold for $9,225,000, making it the most expensive home sold this year in Nassau County, as well as the most expensive home sold in Sands Points since 2016 and the fourth-highest sale in the North Shore over the last five years. Sales records aside, the home's opulence speaks for itself. At a whopping 20,000 square feet, the waterfront estate has an indoor pool, movie theater (complete with a ticket booth and stage curtains!), a personal arcade (with skee ball and pinball machines), and tons of marble.
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Real Estate Trends

Upper West Side and Murray Hill saw the biggest price drops during the COVID crisis

Photo by ajay_suresh via Flickr cc

July 29, 2020

Upper West Side and Murray Hill saw the biggest price drops during the COVID crisis

Anyone who follows the NYC real estate market knows that there are deals to be had right now. But WHERE exactly can you get the most bang for your buck? CityRealty compared sale listings in January to those last week and found that the overall listing price among Manhattan condo, co-op, condop, and townhouse listings has fallen an average of 11 percent to $2,175,000 in the past seven months. And when it comes to specific neighborhoods, Lincoln Center, the Upper West Side neighborhood mainly centered around the 60s, saw prices fall the most at 32 percent. Murray Hill was next at 26 percent, followed by Beekman/Sutton Place at 22 percent.
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Real Estate Trends

A zen garden with a sunken hot tub awaits at this $2.5M Greenwich Village co-op

All photos by Evan Joseph

July 29, 2020

A zen garden with a sunken hot tub awaits at this $2.5M Greenwich Village co-op

This Greenwich Village co-op at 2 East 12th Street is the perfect year-round oasis. For those cold winter months, the interiors are super cozy, with two working fireplaces. But in the summer, the backyard is a true retreat. It's two levels, along with a side patio and, most notably, a sunken Japanese-style cedar hot tub. You'll also find a large Ipe wood deck with a built-in banquette, plenty of planters, and a cedar potting shed for all those gardening needs.
You've got to see this place

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Karlie Kloss sells her West Village home for $2.4M

Staged interiors by Christopher Henry Designs. Photo credit: Donna Dotan courtesy of Compass.

July 28, 2020

Karlie Kloss sells her West Village home for $2.4M

After listing her townhouse co-op in the West Village for $2.75 million last September, supermodel and philanthropist Karlie Kloss has found a buyer at the slightly reduced price of $2,382,609, reported CityRealty. The three-bedroom triplex at 151 Charles Street is chic and contemporary and has both a front garden and a second-floor terrace. Kloss bought it in 2012 for $1,975,000. She and husband Josh Kushner sold their Nolita apartment for $6.6 million last August.
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Brooklyn’s tallest tower commences closings and move-ins

All renderings by Williams New York

July 28, 2020

Brooklyn’s tallest tower commences closings and move-ins

Not only is Brooklyn Point the tallest building in the borough, but it has the highest infinity pool in the western hemisphere. Superlatives aside, the 720-foot condo tower has also proved popular for its location across from Willoughby Square Park and its inclusion in the larger City Point development in Downtown Brooklyn. And in true Extell Development fashion, the amenity package is stacked, including a huge landscaped terrace complete with BBQs and a putting green, a triple-height lounge, and another indoor pool. Just in time for residents to enjoy all these perks, Brooklyn Point has announced that it's commenced closings and begun the first move-ins.
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$100M penthouse closes at 220 Central Park South, third-most-expensive NYC sale ever

Photo of 220 Central Park South in front of 111 West 57th Street (cropped) by Jim Henderson via Wikimedia Commons

July 28, 2020

$100M penthouse closes at 220 Central Park South, third-most-expensive NYC sale ever

Photo of 220 Central Park South in front of 111 West 57th Street (cropped) by Jim Henderson via Wikimedia Commons As of July 1, 2020, the average price per square foot for a New York City condo came in at $1,110, according to CityRealty. But this duplex penthouse at 220 Central Park South sold for a whopping $12,164 per square foot. First spotted by The Real Deal and confirmed in city property records, PH 76 at the Billionaires' Row tower just closed for $99,903,375, making it the third-most-expensive sale ever, behind billionaire Ken Griffith’s $238 million purchase also at 220 CPS in early 2019 and Michael Dell’s $100 million buy at One57 in 2015. The sale takes the number-three spot from a $92.7 million sale at 220 CPS, which sold in late 2019 to billionaire hedge-funder Daniel Och.
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Real Estate Trends

$17.5M Tribeca penthouse has a 1,000-bottle wine room and a terrace bigger than most apartments

Photos courtesy of Douglas Elliman

July 28, 2020

$17.5M Tribeca penthouse has a 1,000-bottle wine room and a terrace bigger than most apartments

For someone who loves to entertain, this Tribeca penthouse 166 Duane Street can't be beaten. First off, it's huge--6,200 square feet inside and 1,200 square feet outside (larger than most NYC apartments!). This roof deck has several seating areas and an outdoor kitchen, and it's adjacent to a sunroom that has a wet bar. There's another wet bar in the media room, and when the bar runs dry, just head to the 1,000-bottle wine room.
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Distinctive Homes

Iconic West Village speakeasy Chumley’s is closing and auctioning off its memorabilia

Photo courtesy of A.J. Willner Auctions

July 27, 2020

Iconic West Village speakeasy Chumley’s is closing and auctioning off its memorabilia

Update: A representative from A.J. Willner tells 6sqft that the auction has been cancelled due to the landlord objecting to the restaurant's right to sell the equipment. The lastest iconic eatery to shutter in the wake of the COVID pandemic is Chumley's. Opened in 1922, the West Village bar and restaurant was a speakeasy during Prohibition, becoming famous as a literary haunt for the likes of Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Steinbeck, Edna St. Vincent Millay, and J.D. Salinger. It faced an uncertain future in 2007 when a collapsed wall forced it to close; 10 years of red tape followed, but Chumley's reopened in 2016, albeit with a new owner and fancier menu. However, Untapped New York first heard the news that Chumley's will not reopen following the city's shutdown orders, and they are auctioning off everything from their restaurant equipment to the tufted leather banquettes to the iconic literary memorabilia.
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Food & Dining

Famous ‘haunted house’ in Clinton Hill reduces its price to $3.4M

Photos courtesy of Compass

July 27, 2020

Famous ‘haunted house’ in Clinton Hill reduces its price to $3.4M

This Greek Revival home looks like something one might find in New Orleans or Savannah, but it's actually right in Clinton Hill. Its southern charm, however, has not seemed to help the home at 136 Clinton Avenue find a buyer; it's been on and off the market for four years, originally asking $4.8 million. One year ago, the price dropped to $3.6 million, and it's just been lowered again to $3,420,000. Perhaps its "haunted" past is scaring off potential buyers. The historic home is known to be one of the most haunted in Brooklyn.
Lots more ahead

52-year-old Chinese-Cuban restaurant La Caridad closes on the Upper West Side

Photo taken by 6sqft on July 24, 2020

July 27, 2020

52-year-old Chinese-Cuban restaurant La Caridad closes on the Upper West Side

Last week, West Side Rag noticed a "for lease" sign on the window of La Caridad 78, a beloved Chinese-Cuban restaurant that has been on the corner of Broadway and 78th Street for 52 years. Neighbors had speculated about its closing in the days prior after seeing the restaurant's furniture and other interior items taken out. As Florence Fabricant wrote in the Times, "It was one of the city’s best-known purveyors of Chino Latino food," serving up dishes like "fried rice with plantains or Chinese pepper steak with Cuban black beans."
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Food & Dining

Dramatic Upper East Side townhouse has private parking and a posh backyard for $9.9M

Photo credit: Warburg Realty/Jason Haber

July 27, 2020

Dramatic Upper East Side townhouse has private parking and a posh backyard for $9.9M

It's almost unbelievable that all this space is within a Manhattan home, but this townhouse at 236 East 72nd Street on the Upper East Side is as real as they come. Listed for $9,880,000, the 5,000-square-foot house is anchored by a dramatic, double-height living room with ceilings almost 21 feet high and massive, cathedral-like windows. Outside, the 40-foot-long garden is surrounded by planters and beautiful landscaping and boasts a fountain and two seating areas. But perhaps the most enviable feature is the private parking garage.
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