All articles by Devin Gannon

Google opens new NYC office at historic St. John’s Terminal

All photos courtesy of Google.

February 21, 2024

Google opens new NYC office at historic St. John’s Terminal

By Devin Gannon

Google on Wednesday officially opened its newest New York City office. What once was a freight terminal in an industrial section of lower Manhattan is now a high-performing modern workplace for thousands of employees. Anchoring Google's larger campus in Hudson Square, the historic St. John's Terminal building at 550 Washington Street has been reimagined by COOKFOX Architects with a nine-floor addition atop three existing floors, a sustainable and biophilic design, diverse work areas, and outdoor communal spaces with Hudson River views.
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Real Estate Trends

Bjarke Ingels unveils design for Freedom Plaza casino development next to the U.N.

Rendering of Freedom Plaza courtesy of Negativ

February 14, 2024

Bjarke Ingels unveils design for Freedom Plaza casino development next to the U.N.

By Devin Gannon

As the state's process for choosing a site for a New York City gaming facility continues to slowly move forward, new renderings released this week offer a closer look at one proposed casino in Manhattan. Renowned architecture firm Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) on Monday unveiled new images of Freedom Plaza, a mixed-use development with apartments, a hotel, a museum, a 4.77-acre public park, and an underground casino just south of the United Nations.
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Cronut creator Dominique Ansel opening bakery in Greenwich Village condo

Rendering of 64 University Place courtesy of Argo Real Estate and Bsafal, Inc

February 13, 2024

Cronut creator Dominique Ansel opening bakery in Greenwich Village condo

By Devin Gannon

At a brand new condominium in the Greenwich Village, Cronuts will be one of its selling points. Dominique Ansel, inventor of the iconic pastry, will operate a 2,000-square-foot bakery at 64 University Place, an under-construction 28-unit residential tower designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox. The new bakery will be the third Dominique Ansel location in Manhattan.
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Food & Dining

17 spots to go sledding in New York City

Photo of Owl’s Head Park in Bay Ridge courtesy of NYC Parks/ Daniel Avila

February 13, 2024

17 spots to go sledding in New York City

By Devin Gannon

Sledding has long been a New York City pastime during the long winter months, thanks to the many hills and slopes found in parks across the five boroughs. With the first real snowstorm in many years upon us, it's a good time to escape your apartment and get some fresh air and winter fun. Ahead, find the best places to go sledding in every borough, from scenic Sunset Park in Brooklyn to the natural rolling hills of Manhattan's Inwood Hill Park.
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Events & Things To Do

How to celebrate Black History Month in NYC

February 8, 2024

How to celebrate Black History Month in NYC

By Devin Gannon

Every February the country commemorates Black History Month as a celebration of African American culture and history. In New York City, you can honor the accomplishments and influence of Black Americans with art, film screenings, music, dance, lectures, and tours all month, and year, long.
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Events & Things To Do

A millwork-wrapped co-op in FiDi’s iconic Morse Building asks $2.25M

Photos courtesy of DD Reps for The Corcoran Group

February 7, 2024

A millwork-wrapped co-op in FiDi’s iconic Morse Building asks $2.25M

By Devin Gannon

This co-op in the Financial District offers a designer-crafted residence at a historic address. On a high floor within the 19th-century landmarked Morse Building, the home was designed by architect David Hotson, known for his work on the SkyHouse penthouse at 150 Nassau Street and the Pinnacle of the Woolworth Building. On a slightly smaller scale than those projects but sophisticated nonetheless, the available two-bedroom home, asking $2,250,000, is wrapped in white oak millwork and features two clever lofted spaces.
details here

Distinctive Homes

Aman New York condo sells for $61.58M

All images courtesy of Aman New York

February 6, 2024

Aman New York condo sells for $61.58M

By Devin Gannon

An apartment on Fifth Avenue has sold for $61.58 million, according to city records. Terence Chan, chair of Hong Kong-based private equity firm Bay Area Capital Partners, closed on the four-bedroom apartment at Aman New York, an ultra-luxe hotel-condo with 83 hotel rooms and 22 residences inside the iconic Crown Building, Crain's reported.
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Real Estate Trends

2026 World Cup Final will be held in New Jersey

Photo courtesy of Anthony Quintano on Flickr

February 4, 2024

2026 World Cup Final will be held in New Jersey

By Devin Gannon

One of the largest sporting events in the world is coming to New Jersey. On Sunday, FIFA, the governing body of football, announced MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford will hold the World Cup Final on July 19, 2026. The joint bid of “New York New Jersey” was one of 16 cities in the U.S., Mexico, and Canada selected in 2022 as a host city for the tournament.
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Events & Things To Do

Port Authority unveils revised design for $10B Midtown bus terminal

Renderings courtesy of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

February 2, 2024

Port Authority unveils revised design for $10B Midtown bus terminal

By Devin Gannon

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey on Thursday unveiled an updated design for the project to build a new modern Midtown bus terminal and announced the publication of the draft environmental impact statement. Plans to replace the rundown 73-year-old bus terminal--the world's busiest--originated over 10 years ago to accommodate expected ridership growth. The terminal will cost $10 billion and take eight years to build, with construction potentially starting as early as this year.
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Transit

Brooklyn Museum marks 200th anniversary with a yearlong celebration

Brooklyn Museum plaza garden and OY/YO sculpture, 04/20/2023. Brooklyn Museum. (Photo: Andrew Brincka)

February 1, 2024

Brooklyn Museum marks 200th anniversary with a yearlong celebration

By Devin Gannon

Founded in 1824 as Brooklyn’s first free circulating library, the Brooklyn Museum has supported and promoted art and culture in New York City for 200 years. To mark its 200th anniversary, the museum is hosting a yearlong birthday party, kicking off this fall, with special events, exhibitions, programs, and even a new Museum on Wheels.
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Events & Things To Do

Popular Articles

$72.5M Greenwich Village townhouse sale is priciest in downtown Manhattan

Streetview of 138-140 West 11th Street © 2024 Google

January 31, 2024

$72.5M Greenwich Village townhouse sale is priciest in downtown Manhattan

By Devin Gannon

An unnamed buyer paid $72.5 million for a townhouse in Greenwich Village, setting a new record for the property type in downtown Manhattan. As first reported by the Wall Street Journal, the home at 138-140 West 11th Street is a combination of two four-story 19th-century homes. The seller was Dexter Goi, the former CEO of Altice USA, according to the Journal.
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Real Estate Trends

New York icon Pastrami Queen opening in Brooklyn

Photo of the Upper East Side Pastrami Queen by Tjeerd Wiersma via Flickr cc

January 31, 2024

New York icon Pastrami Queen opening in Brooklyn

By Devin Gannon

A classic New York delicatessen is moving to Brooklyn. Pastrami Queen, which has served pastrami sandwiches and other Jewish staples for nearly 70 years, will open in Dumbo’s Time Out Market, a waterfront food hall with an impressive number of highly-rated local restaurants. Pastrami Queen will open at 55 Water Street on Thursday, February 1, according to Time Out New York.
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Food & Dining

Major Cycladic art installation opens at The Met

Cycladic Art: The Leonard N. Stern Collection on Loan from the Hellenic Republic at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, on view January 25, 2024–ongoing. Image: © The Metropolitan Museum of Art, photo by Bruce Schwarz

January 30, 2024

Major Cycladic art installation opens at The Met

By Devin Gannon

A historic collaboration between the Greek state and The Metropolitan Museum of Art is bringing an installation of Cycladic masterpieces to New York City. Last week the museum unveiled a display of 161 works made in the Cyclades, a group of islands in the Aegean Sea, mostly in the Early Bronze Age, from the private collection of billionaire philanthropist Leonard N. Stern. Objects on display include the major types of Cycladic marble figurines and range in size from a small-scale figure to a reclining female figure that is more than four feet long.
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Events & Things To Do

Frank Lloyd Wright’s horseshoe-shaped home in Connecticut sells for $6M

Photos by Udor Photography

January 29, 2024

Frank Lloyd Wright’s horseshoe-shaped home in Connecticut sells for $6M

By Devin Gannon

A 1950s Connecticut home designed by Frank Lloyd Wright has sold for $6 million. Known as "Tirranna," an Australian Aboriginal word meaning "running waters," the home at 432 Frogtown Road in New Canaan measures over 7,000 square feet and sits on 14 acres, making it one of the largest private residences ever completed by the famous architect. The horseshoe-shaped home, which cantilevers over a pond and waterfall, has had only four owners in the last 70 years, according to Mansion Global. The property was listed in May by Coldwell Banker Realty's Marsha Charles and Albert Safdie for $8 million and closed last week.
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Real Estate Trends

Longtime UES home of Barbara Walters back on the market for $17M after deal falls through

Photo credit: Evan Joseph

January 25, 2024

Longtime UES home of Barbara Walters back on the market for $17M after deal falls through

By Devin Gannon

The Upper East Side home of late journalist Barbara Walters is back on the market after the buyer backed out of a deal signed last year, the New York Post reported. The apartment at 944 Fifth Avenue was first listed in April 2023 for $19,750,000 before dropping in price to $17,750,000 and entering contract in November.
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Distinctive Homes

Adams looks to develop 24 affordable housing projects on public sites across NYC

Photo courtesy of Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office on Flickr

January 24, 2024

Adams looks to develop 24 affordable housing projects on public sites across NYC

By Devin Gannon

The city will push forward 24 residential developments on city-owned properties across the five boroughs. During his State of the City address on Wednesday, Mayor Eric Adams unveiled several proposals addressing the ongoing housing crisis, including a new initiative called "24 in 24." The plan calls for two dozen affordable housing projects on public land, which could create and preserve over 12,000 affordable apartments.
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NYC to curb ‘community preference’ policy in affordable housing lotteries

Rendering of the Peninsula project in the South Bronx, which gave a 50 percent preference for residents of Bronx Community District 2. Courtesy of WXY Studios

January 23, 2024

NYC to curb ‘community preference’ policy in affordable housing lotteries

By Devin Gannon

New York City will restrict the preference it gives to residents applying for an affordable apartment within their community district according to a settlement reached on Monday. Under the current policy, 50 percent of affordable apartments are set aside for New Yorkers who live in the same neighborhood as the development, known as “community preference." After a lawsuit first filed in 2015 challenging the policy as discriminatory, a new order signed Monday caps the preference to 20 percent of units through 2029 and then to 15 percent after that.
details here

NYC’s latest film studio is opening in Long Island City this year

Images courtesy of Innovo Property Group

January 22, 2024

NYC’s latest film studio is opening in Long Island City this year

By Devin Gannon

New York City's latest film studio will open in Long Island City this year. Taking up the upper three floors of a five-story development at 23-30 Borden Avenue, Borden Studios includes four sound stages, office and support space, and more than 8,800 square feet of outdoor space, including a rooftop terrace. Developed by Innovo Property Group and operated by The MBS Group, the studio is expected to open this spring.
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Central Park Tower penthouse last listed for $149.5M finds buyer

Image courtesy of Extell

January 18, 2024

Central Park Tower penthouse last listed for $149.5M finds buyer

By Devin Gannon

Only two weeks into 2024 and New York City is already seeing record real estate deals. A 12,557-square-foot penthouse in Central Park Tower at 217 West 57th Street has entered contract, as first reported by the Wall Street Journal. The duplex condo at the Billionaires’ Row tower, considered the tallest residential building in the Western Hemisphere, was first listed in March for $175 million and most recently asked $149.5 million, according to CityRealty. The final deal turned out to be closer to $115 million, according to the Journal. The buyer has not been named.
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Real Estate Trends

Hochul wants to extend the Second Avenue Subway west into Harlem

The 96th Street subway station on Second Avenue Subway when it opened in 2017. Photo by Charley Lhasa on Flickr.

January 9, 2024

Hochul wants to extend the Second Avenue Subway west into Harlem

By Devin Gannon

The Q train may go even further. During her State of the State address Tuesday, Gov. Kathy Hochul backed a plan to extend the Second Avenue Subway west along 125th Street with three new stops at Lenox Avenue, St. Nicholas Avenue, and Broadway. The announcement comes as construction prepares to kick off on the second phase of the line, bringing the Q line up to 125th Street in East Harlem.
details here

NYC developers filed plans for just 9,909 housing units in 2023

Image courtesy of robertotmn on Flickr

January 9, 2024

NYC developers filed plans for just 9,909 housing units in 2023

By Devin Gannon

In 2023, housing production in New York City slowed dramatically. According to a new Real Estate Board of New York report, developers filed 285 multi-family foundation plan applications with just 9,909 apartments proposed, a 78 percent drop in total unit filings from 2022 when there were over 45,500 units proposed. The number of dwelling units proposed last year is 50 percent of the roughly 20,000 units produced per year between 2000 and 2020. REBNY blames the expiration of the 421-a tax break for the major decline.
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Real Estate Trends

Plans to demolish landmarked West-Park Presbyterian Church on hold

Photo by James Russiello on Wikimedia

January 8, 2024

Plans to demolish landmarked West-Park Presbyterian Church on hold

By Devin Gannon

A historic Upper West Side church lives to fight another day. The West-Park Presbyterian Church on Friday withdrew its request to the Landmarks Preservation Commission to demolish the 19th-century Romanesque Revival building at Amsterdam Avenue and West 86th Street. The congregation could not afford the estimated $50 million in urgent repairs needed at the 135-year-old property and sought permission from the commission to demolish the landmarked building with the hopes of selling it to a developer. The church’s application was withdrawn ahead of a vote by LPC scheduled for this Tuesday, but the congregation said it will resubmit in the future.
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Policy

Apply for 87 income-restricted apartments in prime Fort Greene, from $910/month

Rendering courtesy of NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development; 142 South Portland Avenue site before construction, photo courtesy of MDG Design + Construction

January 5, 2024

Apply for 87 income-restricted apartments in prime Fort Greene, from $910/month

By Devin Gannon

Applications are now being accepted for 87 affordable apartments at a new mixed-use project in Fort Greene. The Hanson Place Community Plaza development at 142 South Portland Avenue has 104 apartments, 10,000 square feet of community space, and a prime location, just a block from the mall and transit hub at Atlantic Avenue and the Barclays Center. Qualifying New Yorkers earning 50, 60, and 140 percent of the area median income can apply for the apartments, priced from $910/ month for studios to $3,654/month for three-bedrooms.
find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

NYC subway trains collide near 96th Street, causing minor derailment

Scene of the collision and derailment north of 96th Street. Photo by Marc A. Hermann / MTA on Flickr

January 4, 2024

NYC subway trains collide near 96th Street, causing minor derailment

By Devin Gannon

Service on the 1, 2, and 3 trains in Manhattan remains disrupted Friday morning after a subway train on the Upper West Side derailed. Around 3 p.m. on Thursday, a 1 train with roughly 300 commuters on board hit a work train as it was merging onto the northbound track north of 96th Street. According to emergency personnel, 24 passengers sustained injuries, none of which were life-threatening.
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Transit

All-cash home deals in Manhattan hit record high

Photo by Joe Taylor on Unsplash

January 3, 2024

All-cash home deals in Manhattan hit record high

By Devin Gannon

In New York City, cash is king. In the fourth quarter, the share of all-cash real estate transactions in Manhattan jumped to 67.9 percent of all sales. This marks a record-high market share of all-cash deals, according to appraiser Miller Samuel's new Elliman Report detailing Manhattan sales in the last three months of 2023.
details here

Real Estate Trends

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