All articles by Michelle Cohen

Michelle is a New York-based writer and content strategist who has worked extensively with lifestyle brands like Seventeen, Country Living, Harper’s Bazaar and iVillage. In addition to being a copywriter for a digital media agency she writes about culture, New York City neighborhoods, real estate, style, design and technology among other topics. She has lived in a number of major US cities on both coasts and in between and loves all things relating to urbanism and culture.

June 9, 2017

Dramatic Sutton deco duplex that belonged to Sen. Jacob Javits asks $5.2M

By Michelle Cohen

New York City's classic pre-war co-ops are in an elegant class by themselves, with beamed high ceilings, big casement windows, entry halls and galleries, maid's rooms and gracious spaces in general. The more interesting among them tend to be those in which the customized luxury of their longtime residents has been preserved. Such is case with this spacious duplex at 322 East 57th Street in Sutton Place (where you'll find a lot of preserved customized luxury). The listing describes the three-bedroom deco-era co-op, listed for $5.195 million, as "exquisite, dramatic and unique." Designed in 1933 by renowned architect Joseph Urban, the 3,300 square-foot apartment was for 40 years the home of the late Senator Jacob Javits and his wife, Marian, who died earlier this year. And while it's likely that there are many updates to be made, there are also many surprising details that have returned with today's trends.
Check out the glass cube

New details revealed for Upper West Side’s starchitect-studded Waterline Square

L to R: One Waterline Square by Richard Meier, Two Waterline Square by KPF, and Three Waterline Square by Rafael Vinoly

June 8, 2017

New details revealed for Upper West Side’s starchitect-studded Waterline Square

By Michelle Cohen

As 6sqft previously reported, the three buildings that comprise the Upper West Side's Waterline Square are rapidly rising from a five-acre site overlooking the Hudson River. For the neighborhood's most exciting and ambitious project in decades, a group of the architecture and design world's most celebrated names was chosen by GID Development Group to create the master plan, with Richard Meier and Partners, Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates and Rafael Viñoly Architects each designing a residential tower. We've been graced with leaked renderings of what's to come on several occasions; now, the project's dream team has lifted the curtain on a comprehensive website that reveals so-far unseen renderings of the towers and their interiors, the 100,000 square feet of amenity space that will be shared between them and the three-acre park designed by Mathews Nielsen Landscape Architects.
See the latest renderings

June 8, 2017

Clever use of space is key in this fully customized $450K Gramercy studio

By Michelle Cohen

If you're looking for a (Manhattan) budget-friendly studio in a neighborhood like Gramercy Park, chances are you'll be seeing lots of tiny spaces. But we've seen some genius ways to turn a tiny apartment into a great place to live, and this studio co-op at 22 Irving Place (where everyone's favorite downtown Manhattan neighborhoods merge) showcases some fine examples. Outfitted with custom cabinetry that often does double duty and also looks great, this diminutive dwelling packs storage and modern amenities into a bright and cheerful home with treetop views overlooking a private garden.
See more of this clever studio

Distinctive Homes

June 7, 2017

Macy’s may add public park to rooftop of Herald Square flagship

By Michelle Cohen

As part of a strategy to shore up its flagging retail business, Macy's is considering providing New York City with more public park space right on the rooftop of its Herald Square flagship store, the New York Post reports. Doug Sesler, EVP of Real Estate for the chain, said in an investor presentation Tuesday that the store was "Exploring ways to activate upper levels (e.g.rooftop) and overall property while retaining Macy’s store and presence." To attract shoppers and add more excitement to the shopping experience, Macy’s execs are looking at plans to develop the rooftop of the 2.2 million square-foot 34th Street store, including restaurants, green space, trees and benches.
Why a park?

Uncategorized

June 7, 2017

Sprawling five-bedroom loft in Soho offers style and plenty of space for $20K/month

By Michelle Cohen

It doesn't get more Soho than Prince Street, once home to big-name artists, now home to big-brand sneaker stores and...a few big name artists who bought their lofts way back when. This sprawling full floor loft at 131 Prince Street in the center of it all spans 3,600 square feet including five bedrooms; while it's all loft, it also feels like a big rambling estate that has been in the family for years. You can experience this level of space, convenience and comfort with renovations that have integrated substance and style, provided you've got $19,995 a month rent.
Take the tour

Distinctive Homes

June 6, 2017

Central Park lampposts bear ‘secret codes’ to help you find your way

By Michelle Cohen

We can think of worse fates than getting lost in Central Park. With its winding pathways, lovely bridges, stunning gardens, and a magical lake, it’s the most visited urban park in the United States. But a few of those visitors are bound to take a wrong turn every now and again, and if you find yourself in that predicament, Central Park's 1,600 lampposts bear a secret code that will help you get your bearings and find your way.
Find out how to use the numbers to find out where you are

History

June 6, 2017

Sophisticated $16M Soho loft is part French farmhouse, part tropical palazzo

By Michelle Cohen

The listing calls this three-floor home atop a classic Soho loft building at 12 Greene Street a "reimagining of urban living" that "defies easy categorization," and we'd have to agree. But what's instantly recognizable is the design knowledge and creative eye that was behind the construction of each room's eclectic but beautiful balance of form and function, including layers of verdant garden-draped patios, decks and terraces. Records show that the current owner purchased this 4,500 square-foot co-op for $1.7 million in 2005, which in itself sounds like quite a feat; the triplex is now asking a far more 21st century $16 million.
Tour the enchanted spaces of this amazing home

Distinctive Homes

$2.75 congestion fee proposed for cars entering Manhattan south of 60th Street

Image via Pexels

June 5, 2017

$2.75 congestion fee proposed for cars entering Manhattan south of 60th Street

By Michelle Cohen

Image via Pexels Advocacy group Move NY has suggested that the city impose a congestion charge on motorists driving on Manhattan's most crowded streets. Similar proposals haven't fared well in the state legislature–but the group cites a 1957 state law that says cities with a population of over a million can toll their own roadways and bridges. The Wall Street Journal reports that Move NY will offer the City Council's transportation committee a new proposal today under which the city would impose a $2.75 charge on automobiles entering Manhattan's central business district below 60th Street. The fee for trucks would be higher; for-hire vehicles including taxis would pay a congestion surcharge based on trips within the zone.
Find out more

Transit

June 5, 2017

A fireplace and balcony make this $675K Upper West Side co-op a cozy all-season home

By Michelle Cohen

On a particularly picturesque and leafy Upper West Side block within steps of Riverside Park, this one-bedroom co-op at 312 West 107th Street is, to paraphrase the listing, a certifiable charm-and-chill zone with 15-foot ceilings, exposed brick, a wood-burning fireplace and a private terrace.
See more, this way

Distinctive Homes

June 2, 2017

Historic Bronxville Queen Anne home asks $4.2M

By Michelle Cohen

Situated on a corner lot in the Lawrence Park neighborhood in Bronxville, the home at 7 Valley Road, currently on the market for $4.2 million, is immediately recognizable by its stone and shingle facade, slate roof, stone turret, and sprawling wraparound porch. Prolific local Gilded Age architect William Augustus Bates designed this remarkable 7,000-square-foot home in the town's historic district. Completed in 1902, the seven-bedroom house combines the Queen Anne and Shingle styles with masterful turn-of-the-century workmanship that remains timeless today.
Tour this stunning turn-of-the-century home

Two-bedroom Harlem co-op asks a very reasonable $389K

By Michelle Cohen

This two-bedroom co-op at 214 Bradhurst Avenue in (pretty far) north central Harlem is sunny and sweet. It's a fourth-floor walkup, but it's competitively priced at $389,000, which might just make that trip worth it. The home overlooks Jackie Robinson Park, and it's about five blocks to the nearest subway, which is the 3.
Find out more and take a tour

Distinctive Homes

May 31, 2017

$469K Clinton Hill studio has vintage charm and the convenience of a condo

By Michelle Cohen

It's not too often that you find a condominium for sale that isn't in a new-construction building, usually sleek but generic unless it has been custom-designed. This pre-war condo studio at 940 Fulton Street in Clinton Hill, surrounded by historic buildings and a growing collection of newly-minted ones, has added vintage elements like reclaimed wood shelves and wide plank floors, with the flexibility, super-low common charges and contemporary comforts of a new development. The ask is $469,000.
Take a look around

Distinctive Homes

REVEALED: 23-story tower at South Williamsburg’s Dime Savings Bank site

Rendering of The Dime at 209 Havemeyer Street; rendering via Fogarty Finger Architects

May 31, 2017

REVEALED: 23-story tower at South Williamsburg’s Dime Savings Bank site

By Michelle Cohen

We know a little bit more of what to expect at one of Williamsburg's most important developments: The south 'burg site at 209 Havemeyer Street between South Fifth and Sixth Streets at the foot of the Williamsburg Bridge, anchored by the Neoclassical-style Dime Savings Bank of Williamsburgh building, will be getting a 23-story mixed-use tower with retail, office and residential space, CityRealty.com reports. The 109-year-old historic bank building will be preserved and restored, and will be integrated into the project at its podium according to details published by the developers. The 340,000 square-foot project will be known as the “the Dime.”
Find out more

May 30, 2017

Artist installs ‘Pissing Pug’ next to controversial ‘Fearless Girl’ statue in Wall Street standoff

By Michelle Cohen

Image: Gabriella Bass via @dawn_images via Instagram You can almost guarantee that if you put something out in public in NYC, it's going to attract more than just attention. As 6sqft previously reported, Kristen Visbal's “Fearless Girl” statue, installed by asset manager State Street Global Advisors and advertising firm McCann back in March to challenge sculptor Arturo Di Modica’s “Charging Bull” with her defiant gaze attracted controversy and selfies, seen as both an empowering statement and corporate drivel. According to the Post, NYC-based artist Alex Gardega’s Memorial Day weekend installation of "Pissing Pug"–a crudely rendered statue of a dog lifting its leg on the steadfast “Girl”–was his reaction to “corporate nonsense,” and that the fearless female “has nothing to do with feminism, and it is disrespect to the artist that made the bull."
New Yorkers are a tough crowd

Events & Things To Do

Redeveloping NYC’s armories: When adaptive reuse and community building bring controversy

Park Avenue Armory, image © PBDW Architects

May 30, 2017

Redeveloping NYC’s armories: When adaptive reuse and community building bring controversy

By Michelle Cohen

Constructed between the 18th and 20th centuries to resemble massive European fortresses and serve as headquarters, housing, and arms storage for state volunteer militia, most of America’s armories that stand today had shed their military affiliations by the later part of the 20th century. Though a number of them did not survive, many of New York City’s historic armories still stand. While some remain in a state of limbo–a recent setback in the redevelopment plans of Brooklyn's controversial Bedford-Union Armory in Crown Heights raises a familiar battle cry–the ways in which they've adapted to the city’s rollercoaster of change are as diverse as the neighborhoods that surround them.
Find out how the city's armories have fared

May 30, 2017

Muppet set designer’s Catskills ‘tower house’ is a playful sculpture you can live in, for $1.2M

By Michelle Cohen

At the heart of this thoroughly trippy house near Woodstock, N.Y. are tales of the Muppets and Jim Henson, The Grateful Dead, and their biggest LSD supplier, and that's not even the half of it. The real visionary here was the home’s first owner, artist, engineer and master set designer John Kahn, who built the one-of-a-kind house over 15 years. Kahn was a friend and collaborator of the late Muppet creator, and he designed sets for the "Fraggle Rock" touring company and more. Kahn used re-purposed materials including slate, copper, aircraft-grade aluminum and redwood as well as local wood and bluestone to craft this cylindrical work of art that never seems to look the same way twice. The three-bedroom home spans 3,518 square feet and is asking $1.2 million.
Take a long, strange trip through this unbelievable house

May 29, 2017

$700K modern ‘tree house’ on Fire Island is a minimalist’s dream summer getaway

By Michelle Cohen

A long weekend that heralds the start of summer living is a good time to think about beach house possibilities. This thoughtfully-designed house at 10 First Walk in the in Davis Park area of Fire Island feels like an airy cabin or a more polished tree house–or a little bit of both (h/t Brick Underground). With three bedrooms and a well-appointed kitchen and dining area, and a location that's a block from the ocean, it's got just enough going on to keep things focused on enjoying your summer getaway.
See more of this seaside retreat

May 26, 2017

This little renovated slice of Williamsburg could be yours for $360K

By Michelle Cohen

It's rare to see a habitable—much less chic and renovated—apartment in most of Williamsburg for anything even close to the $360,000 this cozy co-op is going for. There's a reason, of course; this "junior-one" at 648 Grand Street is an HDFC co-op, though the income cap isn't mentioned in the listing yet. For a qualified buyer the bright, cozy space offers a home that's easy on the eyes as well as the wallet.
Get a closer look

Distinctive Homes

May 25, 2017

Robert Moses’ former Yorkville home lists for $2M

By Michelle Cohen

"Master builder" Robert Moses–he of the 13 expressways that crisscross New York City–spent the 1970s living with his wife, Mary Grady Moses, in a three-bedroom co-op at 1 Gracie Terrace in Yorkville on Manhattan's Upper East Side (h/t NYPost). We can see how the home's sweeping river views would inspire the subject of Robert Caro’s Pulitzer Prize-winning book, “The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York,” when pondering the conflicting issues of a complicated and changing city. The apartment is now for sale asking $1.95 million.
See more

May 25, 2017

Beautifully preserved 1827 West Village Federal row house asks $13.9M

By Michelle Cohen

One of a pair of Federal-style row houses on the longest unbroken stretch of Federal/Greek Revival homes in New York City, 39 Charlton Street was built in 1827 to exacting standards by a builder-carpenter at a time when the area, now a tony enclave where the West Village meets Soho, was known as Richmond Hill. This 25-foot-wide home has been called one of the city's finest examples of Greek Revival/Federal houses. The house and its neighbor are regarded by the Landmarks Preservation Commission as “the two best (and best preserved) examples...whose exquisitely detailed entrances with original doors and leaded glass sidelights convey many of the style’s most distinctive qualities.” Both the interior and exterior of this unique home, now on the market for $13.85 million, have retained an extraordinary level of original detail.
Tour this historic home

The Shed via Wikipedia

May 24, 2017

Michael Bloomberg gives $75 million to Hudson Yards arts center The Shed

By Michelle Cohen

Michael R. Bloomberg has added a $75 million contribution to what the New York Times calls "New York's first new cultural institution in recent memory," the arts center known as The Shed, part of the new Hudson Yards development on Manhattan's far west side. The former mayor's gift brings the total raised for the project to $421 million of its $500 million capital campaign. The new arts center has gotten much of its funding from a small group of billionaires that includes Related Companies' Stephen M. Ross and media mogul Barry Diller. Set for completion in 2019, the eight-level structure, designed by Diller Scofidio & Renfro in partnership with the Rockwell Group, will host performances, concerts, visual art, music and other events.
A 'tool kit for artists'

May 24, 2017

Greet the sun from your solarium or tech-friendly garden in this $1.7M East Village duplex

By Michelle Cohen

This unusual East Village one-bedroom duplex condo in the Village Mews at 407 East 12th Street checks all the boxes without shouting–that is, it lets a rare and fabulous garden paradise do the talking, which in this case means asking for $1.695 million. The 750-square-foot home was recently renovated from tip to toe, and the design is tasteful without being generically "luxe." And while this not-huge condo wouldn't work for a growing family or a communal crew, it looks heavenly for anyone seeking, an "oasis away from city living" while situated on a lovely street in the heart of what could be called an oasis of city living, with its 24-hour energy and unending list of destinations of every kind.
Here comes the sun

Distinctive Homes

May 23, 2017

For $1.25M, this Downtown Brooklyn loft may need some layout changes

By Michelle Cohen

With two exposures, 11-foot ceilings and walls of windows, this 1,100-square-foot two-bedroom loft condo in the Toy Factory Lofts at 176 Johnson Street has its heart in the right place–even if its bathroom isn't. The historic 1926 building–once the home of Tudor Metal Products and birthplace of many mid-20th-century toys–lends itself to authentic loft living in ever-changing Downtown Brooklyn. A modern renovation makes loft living easy–with a possible exception or two–and the $1.25 million ask comes with low carrying costs.
About that bathroom

Distinctive Homes

Pier 55 project files appeal to stop work order; Durst says he backed opposition

Photo via Pier 55 Inc.

May 23, 2017

Pier 55 project files appeal to stop work order; Durst says he backed opposition

By Michelle Cohen

6sqft reported in March on the latest developments in the on-again-off-again status of the $200 million Barry Diller-funded offshore park/performing arts center proposed for Pier 55 on the Hudson River; though construction began last November, opponents of the project, led by the City Club of New York, gained a victory in the form of a ruling by Judge Lorna G. Schofield that agreed with group’s claim that the Army Corps of Engineers had not conducted a sufficient environmental review on how the 2.4-acre park would affect fish and wildlife. The judge ordered that work stop at the site and called for a review of alternatives for building along Hudson River Park, a maritime sanctuary. Now, the New York Times reports that the Corps of Engineers, with the project's sponsor, the Hudson River Park Trust, has filed an appeal of the decision.
And what about that Diller-Durst feud

May 22, 2017

Three tiny beach cabins are up for rent on NY Harbor this summer

By Michelle Cohen

If smelly subway platforms and sweaty tourist hordes start to loom large this summer, there might be cabin for two on the shores of New York Harbor with your name on it. Gateway National Recreation Area–which includes Fort Tilden, Jacob Riis Park, Floyd Bennett Field, Great Kills Park, Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, and Canarsie Pier–and Getaway, a company that provides pop-up camping houses, are placing three tiny cabins along NYC's harbor shore to provide a place to spend a quiet summer night in a national park, reports Gothamist.
Check it out

Getting Away

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