All articles by Devin Gannon

Trump-run Wollman Rink via subherwal on Flickr

September 12, 2018

Trump-run attractions in NYC suffer from declining revenue

Although President Donald Trump continues to profit from his family-run business while serving in office, the New York-native is seeing a drop in revenue in his hometown. At four concessions in New York City run by the Trump Organization, sales have dropped or have been flat since Trump became president, the New York Times reported on Wednesday. Even as tourism is on the rise and the city's economy is bustling, business is not booming for two Trump-affiliated ice rinks, a Bronx golf course, and a carousel in Central Park.
More this way

Real Estate Trends

September 12, 2018

Apply for 41 middle-income units at Bushwick’s Rheingold Brewery site, from $1,432/month

By Devin Gannon

A lottery launched on Wednesday for 41 middle-income units at 115 Stanwix Street, a building which is part of the Rabsky Group's redevelopment of the Rheingold Brewery site in Bushwick. Designed by ND Architecture & Design, the eight-story development sits between Montieth Street and Flushing Avenue. Qualifying New Yorkers earning 80 and 130 percent of the area median income can apply for the units, which range from $1,432/month one-bedrooms to a $3,225 three-bedrooms.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

September 11, 2018

Pay to break stuff for fun at these ‘rage rooms’ in NYC

By Devin Gannon

Some New Yorkers in need of major stress relief are skipping meditation and trying an unusual, but apparently effective, alternative. As a self-described provider of destruction services, the Rage Cage lets visitors smash printers, VCRs, dishes, and other items with a sledgehammer or baseball bat. Sessions range from $45 for 25 minutes of raging to a $120 30-minute session for four people (h/t WSJ).
More breaking news ahead

City Living

Three NYCHA developments on the Upper East Side ranked among the worst in the U.S.

Google Street View of the Holmes Towers

September 11, 2018

Three NYCHA developments on the Upper East Side ranked among the worst in the U.S.

By Devin Gannon

The federal government ranked three Upper East Side public housing buildings as some of the worst in the United States, the New York Post reported Monday. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) gave the Holmes Towers, the Isaacs Houses and Robbins Plaza just 25 points out of a maximum of 100 as a measure of quality following recent inspections. Out of the more than 3,800 scores counted by HUD last year, the three complexes tied for 13th worst in the country.
More here

Affordable Housing

Live in an amenity-rich building in Prospect-Lefferts Garden, from $1,775/month

Photo via Nookyln

September 10, 2018

Live in an amenity-rich building in Prospect-Lefferts Garden, from $1,775/month

By Devin Gannon

A brand new rental building in Prospect-Lefferts Gardens launched a lottery this week for five middle-income apartments. The 16-unit building located at 664-668 Rutland Road, between Albany and Troy Avenues, offers enviable amenities like on-site laundry, central air, a fitness center, roof access and a common courtyard. Qualifying New Yorkers earning 130 percent of the area median income can apply for the one $1,775/month one-bedroom and four $2,270/month two-bedroom apartments.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

September 10, 2018

The retractable skylight at the World Trade Center Oculus will reopen on 9/11

By Devin Gannon

The skylight at the World Trade Center Oculus will reopen on September 11 at exactly 10:28 a.m., the same time the North Tower fell in 2001. The "Way of Light," which happens every year on 9/11, will shine through the opening, bringing light to the bustling WTC transit center below. Santiago Calatrava designed the Oculus oriented in a way that allows sunlight to cross the floor, directly along the axis of the building.
Get the details

Events & Things To Do

September 10, 2018

INTERVIEW: Exhibition designer Jonathan Alger on how sports healed NYC and the nation after 9/11

By Devin Gannon

Immediately after the terror attacks on September 11, 2001, sporting events across the country were suspended as the nation grieved, with stadiums used for prayer services and relief efforts instead of games. After a few weeks, commissioners and government officials decided to recommence games, with one of the first at Shea Stadium between the New York Mets and the Atlanta Braves. When former Mets catcher Mike Piazza hit a home run, tens of thousands in the crowd, and even more watching on television at home, truly cheered and celebrated for the first time since 9/11. From then on, sports became something that was okay to enjoy again. "Comeback Season: Sports After 9/11," a new year-long exhibit at the National September 11 Memorial & Museum, examines the role of sports in helping New York City and the entire nation heal after the attacks. Designed by C&G Partners, the show uses the emotion of the crowd to inspire and guide the narrative, with broadcasts and sports memorabilia from that time. The exhibition chronologically follows what happened in sports in the aftermath of 9/11 with nine sections that look at significant sports moments. 6sqft spoke with Jonathan Alger, the co-founder of C&G Partners, about the strategy behind "Comeback Season," the importance of the color green throughout the show and the capacity of sports to do actual good.
Learn about the exhibit and hear from Jonathan

September 7, 2018

Remove an ex-lover’s clutter with ‘ExBox’ storage service

By Devin Gannon

In addition to the emotional baggage an ex-lover leaves behind after a breakup, they typically leave their literal stuff scattered across your apartment. Instead of being forced to remember happier times, a new startup is offering to remove or store anything that reminds you of your ex (h/t apartment therapy). The company "ExBox" will send a box to your apartment, ready to be filled with your former sweetheart's junk.
How to sign up and more

Shop

Brooklyn entrepreneur launches next-day delivery service in Park Slope as challenge to Amazon

Via CityRealty

September 7, 2018

Brooklyn entrepreneur launches next-day delivery service in Park Slope as challenge to Amazon

By Devin Gannon

With the tremendous growth of Amazon, valued this week at one trillion dollars for the first time, local businesses and brick-and-mortar shops are having to think outside of the box to entice customers. An entrepreneur from Brooklyn is hoping to directly challenge Amazon by launching his own e-commerce and next-day delivery service (h/t Bloomberg). This month, Peter Price, a 78-year-old New Yorker who formerly served as the president of Liberty Cable, will roll out a trial service in Park Slope called EMain, which will allow local stores to post deals online and deliver items the following day for free.
More here

City Living

The most expensive development site in the Bronx will be 30 percent affordable

A previous rendering of 101 Lincoln Avenue via Hill West Architects

September 7, 2018

The most expensive development site in the Bronx will be 30 percent affordable

By Devin Gannon

The most expensive transaction on record for a development in the Bronx officially closed Wednesday, after Brookfield Property Partners picked up the two sites for $165 million from Somerset Partners and Chetrit Group. Originally, Somerset and Chetrit planned for all of the development's 849 residential units to be market rate, and while Brookfield intends to keep the same number of apartments, they are designating 30 percent of them affordable, according to the Real Deal.
Find out more

This $1.9M penthouse in Hell’s Kitchen has Spanish-inspired interiors and a stained-glass solarium

By Devin Gannon

With its 14-foot wood beamed ceilings, terracotta tiles and stained-glass solarium, this Hell's Kitchen penthouse easily transports you from Manhattan to Spain. The three-bedroom duplex, located at 521 West 47th Street, is asking $1.895 million. The listing describes the unique home, which measures just over 2,200 square feet, as a "private villa penthouse in the sky."
See inside

Distinctive Homes

Expansion of Hudson Yards green space could be NYC’s most expensive park project ever

Rendering via MVVA and the Hudson Yards Development Corporation

September 6, 2018

Expansion of Hudson Yards green space could be NYC’s most expensive park project ever

By Devin Gannon

The $374 million plan to extend green space at Hudson Yards would be the most expensive park project in New York City history, Crain's reported Thursday. Last month, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced financing had been secured for the extension of Hudson Park and Boulevard, which currently runs between West 33rd and West 36th Streets. This funding allows the park to extend to West 39th Street.
Get the details

Uncategorized

September 6, 2018

Sutton Place townhouse designed for Anne Vanderbilt asks $21M

By Devin Gannon

The brick Georgian townhouse in Sutton Place designed for Anne Vanderbilt, the wife of railroad heir William Vanderbilt, has hit the market for $21 million. Located at 1 Sutton Place, the 15-room home sits on the northeast corner of 57th Street, punctuated by a bright blue front door. Vanderbilt, along with a group of wealthy buyers, is credited with turning the remote, riverside Manhattan neighborhood into one of the city's most influential areas.
Take a tour

September 5, 2018

New views and details revealed for 407-acre state park opening in Central Brooklyn next summer

By Devin Gannon

The largest state park in New York City will open next summer in Brooklyn and be named after Shirley Chisholm, the first black woman elected to Congress and a native of the borough. Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Wednesday that the first phase of the 407-acre park on Jamacia Bay will be completed in 2019. The site, formerly home to two landfills, will be converted into parkland with 10 miles of trails for hiking and biking, kayaking, picnic areas, educational facilities, an amphitheater and more.
Learn more

Architecture And Design

There will be no G-train service between Bed-Stuy and LIC every weekend in September

Via Wikimedia

September 5, 2018

There will be no G-train service between Bed-Stuy and LIC every weekend in September

By Devin Gannon

Making weekend plans in Brooklyn this month will be a bit trickier than normal. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is suspending service between Bed-Stuy's Bedford-Nostrand station and Long Island City's Court Square station every weekend in September for "track maintenance." There will be free shuttle buses available for North Brooklyn-bound straphangers (h/t Brooklyn Paper).
OH G

Transit

Update 9/7/18: The de Blasio administration on Thursday said the city will not provide any funds to help finish the New York Wheel, NY1 reported. According to an official from NYCEDC, “public funds are too scarce and valuable to be leveraged for this venture.” The New York Wheel has until Sept. 11 to determine whether its project can continue.

September 5, 2018

If New York Wheel doesn’t restart construction in one week, the project could be done for good

By Devin Gannon

The New York Wheel, a project plagued by years of delays and legal battles, has one week to recommence construction or work on the Staten Island job will stop. In May, developers were given 120 days, by Sept. 5, to find funding and a new contractor for the 630-foot Ferris wheel. In court papers filed Tuesday, the New York Wheel asked for a one-week extension, until Sept. 11, to find ways to restart construction, Staten Island Advance reported.
More here

Policy

Perkins Eastman reimagines Manhattan’s street grid with more pedestrian-friendly space

Rendering via Perkins Eastman

September 4, 2018

Perkins Eastman reimagines Manhattan’s street grid with more pedestrian-friendly space

By Devin Gannon

As a solution to Manhattan's growing gridlock, planning and design firm Perkins Eastman is proposing a physical redesign of New York City's street grid. In a CityLab article penned by Jonathan Cohn, who leads the firm's transportation and public infrastructure studio, and Yunyue Chen, the recipient of Perkin Eastman's 2017 Architectural Fellowship for the Public Realm, they argue the city should "transform the streets radically, dedicating them to pedestrians." This includes grouping blocks into larger neighborhoods and organizing them into either thoroughfares and local streets.
Get the details

September 4, 2018

Brooklyn Heights’ oldest home returns to the market after a $2M price chop

By Devin Gannon

Owning a piece of New York City history just got a little cheaper. The oldest home in Brooklyn Heights, located at 24 Middagh Street, has hit the market again, this time asking $4.5 million, a price drop of over $2 million from when it was listed last year. The five-bedroom Federal-style home boasts a private, landscaped courtyard and a separate two-bedroom carriage house.
Enough of a discount?

Study recommends creating a High Line-style park along Brooklyn’s Prospect Expressway

Rendering via BHA

August 31, 2018

Study recommends creating a High Line-style park along Brooklyn’s Prospect Expressway

By Devin Gannon

A new study recommends building a cantilevered linear park to run along the Prospect Expressway in Brooklyn, akin to the High Line. Developed by students from NYU Wagner's capstone program, PX Forward proposes ways to reimagine the 2.3-mile-long corridor, whose construction was led by Robert Moses between 1953 and 1962. As it stands today, the expressway cuts through neighborhoods like South Slope, Windsor Terrace, Greenwood Heights and Kensington, exposing residents to unsafe conditions due to high traffic and noise pollution.
More here

Architecture And Design

August 31, 2018

Upcoming walking and bike tours explore NYC’s historic and hidden waterways

By Devin Gannon

Being the concrete jungle it is today, it’s hard to believe New York City was once a maritime powerhouse, its surrounding harbor waters serving as a vital trading port for the rest of the country. Before paved over and developed, Manhattan boasted forests and wildlife, supported by many freshwater ponds and streams. Today, some of the city's oldest waterways remain hidden in plain sight, their pathways relegated underground. NYC H20, a nonprofit who aims to educate New Yorkers about the city's water, is hosting five walking and bike tours of historic waterways throughout the month of September, giving New Yorkers a chance to get their feet wet with knowledge about NYC's water.
Learn more

With a higher cost and shorter route, de Blasio’s BQX streetcar plan is back on the table

Rendering via NYCEDC

August 30, 2018

With a higher cost and shorter route, de Blasio’s BQX streetcar plan is back on the table

By Devin Gannon

The long-delayed plan to bring a light-rail trolley between Brooklyn and Queens has been revived, following the completion of a two-year feasibility study, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Thursday. But the proposal differs from the original idea for the Brooklyn Queens Connector (BQX) the mayor had first released in 2016. The cost of the revised project has jumped to $2.7 billion from $2.5 billion, the number of miles on the route has dropped from 16 miles to 11 miles and the city expects the cars to run by 2029, instead of the original projection of 2024.
Find out more

Measuring the quietness of New York City in August

Photo via Elliott Scott via Flickr

August 29, 2018

Measuring the quietness of New York City in August

By Devin Gannon

You might notice it the first time you get your choice of seat on the subway during the morning rush or when your wait time in line at Whole Foods drops considerably. It's August in New York and the five boroughs are eerily quiet. While you can feel the emptiness, are the numbers there to back it up? The New York Times attempted to quantify this feeling of vacancy and did report a drop in subway ridership and beach attendance. But finding this data wasn't easy. The city is on vacation.
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City Living

See new photos of Jeanne Gang’s ‘solar carving’ tower take shape along the High Line

Photo by Timothy Schenck

August 29, 2018

See new photos of Jeanne Gang’s ‘solar carving’ tower take shape along the High Line

By Devin Gannon

Four months after topping out, Jeanne Gang's tower at 40 Tenth Avenue is getting its geometric glass installed. New images released by Studio Gang show the 10-story commercial building taking shape between the High Line and the Hudson River, as well as its unique glazing system on the lower levels (h/t designboom). Formerly dubbed the Solar Carve Tower because of the way the building is "sculpted by the angles of the sun," 40 Tenth Avenue features a curtain wall made of diamond-shaped panels facing downward, with four triangular pieces around it.
See its progress

Kushner Cos., Michael Cohen accused of falsifying construction permits at rent-controlled NYC buildings

237 Henry Street via Google Earth

August 28, 2018

Kushner Cos., Michael Cohen accused of falsifying construction permits at rent-controlled NYC buildings

By Devin Gannon

Kushner Companies, run by the family of Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, allegedly falsified construction permits as a way to remove rent-regulated tenants from their New York City buildings, the New York Times reported. The city's Department of Buildings on Monday fined the Kushner Cos. $210,000 for 42 violations of submitting false applications across 17 buildings. According to a tenant activist organization, Michael Cohen, Trump's former attorney, also falsified documents at three of his properties in Manhattan at 237 Henry Street, 172 Rivington Street and 235 East 27th Street.
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Policy

1,000 new affordable homes for NYCHA seniors coming to Central Brooklyn

Photo of Bed-Stuy via Wikimedia

August 27, 2018

1,000 new affordable homes for NYCHA seniors coming to Central Brooklyn

By Devin Gannon

New York State will finance 1,000 affordable homes for seniors who are residents of the city's public housing system, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on Sunday. The 100 percent affordable units will be constructed on underutilized land in Central Brooklyn that is owned by NYCHA. The $15 million plan falls under the governor's $1.4 billion Vital Brooklyn initiative, which aims to bring affordable housing, open space and recreation, new jobs and better healthcare services to the area, which includes the neighborhoods of Bed-Stuy, Brownsville, Ocean-Hill, Bushwick, Crown Heights and East New York.
More here

Affordable Housing

All articles by Devin Gannon

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