Architecture And Design

The wild and dark history of the Empire State Building
February 18, 2021

The wild and dark history of the Empire State Building

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Known for its record-breaking height and sophisticated Art Deco style, the Empire State Building is one of New York City’s, if not the world's, most recognized landmarks. While the building is often used in popular culture as light-natured fodder—such as the opening backdrop to your favorite cookie-cutter rom-com or the romantic meeting spot for star-crossed lovers—the building's past is far more ominous than many of us realize. From failed suicide attempts to accidental plane crashes, its history casts a vibrant lineup of plot-lines and characters spanning the past 90 years.
Read about the dark side of the empire state building
Now asking $1.75M, Richard Meier designed this Essex County, NJ home for his parents in 1965

Photo credit: Compass

February 16, 2021

Now asking $1.75M, Richard Meier designed this Essex County, NJ home for his parents in 1965

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His first commission in private practice, architect Richard Meier designed this modernist home in New Jersey for his parents in 1965. The home is set on three-quarters of an acre overlooking the Essex Fells Country Club and because of this natural setting, the architect introduced large glass walls to blur the boundaries between inside and outside. His parents requested a one-story home that offered privacy unlike most suburban homes, so Meier incorporated an interior courtyard, as well as a roof garden. The home has only had one other owner since the Meiers, and they've now listed it for $1,750,000.
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Asking $750K, this 316-year-old Colonial in Huntington was home to Walt Whitman’s ancestors

Listing photos courtesy of Douglas Elliman

February 11, 2021

Asking $750K, this 316-year-old Colonial in Huntington was home to Walt Whitman’s ancestors

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In 1705, this home was built for Nehemiah Whitman, great-grandfather to Walt Whitman. It's also where the poet's grandfather, Jesse Whitman, was born. And in 1881, according to Douglas Elliman, Walt Whitman himself visited the property, stopping at its private cemetery where he "composed a lament on the graves of his ancestors." Since its construction, the Colonial has had only four owners, and after last selling in 1995, it's now on the market for $750,000. Known as the Whitman-Rome house, it retains tons of original details like pine-floorboards, ceiling beams, wooden doors, and four fireplaces.
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Take a look inside the penthouses at the High Line-straddling Lantern House

A four-bedroom penthouse at Lantern House is on the market for $12.975 million. Credit: Related Companies

February 11, 2021

Take a look inside the penthouses at the High Line-straddling Lantern House

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Thomas Heatherwick's unique condo project on the High Line is showing off its collection of penthouses ahead of the building's impending completion this year. Lantern House, located at 515 West 18th Street in Chelsea, consists of two towers that rise on either side of the High Line, one at 10 stories and the other at 22. Last October we got a peek inside the bubbled residences, and now new images have been released of a four-bedroom, four-and-a-half-bath penthouse with a large outdoor terrace, currently listed for $12.975 million.
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Three mixed-use buildings on historic Stone Street in FiDi ask $20.8M

All photos courtesy of Anthony Puopolo for Douglas Elliman

February 8, 2021

Three mixed-use buildings on historic Stone Street in FiDi ask $20.8M

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Here's an opportunity to influence the future of one of New York City's oldest streets. Goldman Properties is selling three of its mixed-use buildings located on Stone Street in the Financial District for $20.75 million. As the city's first paved street in New York, Stone Street's history dates back to the middle of the 1600s and today remains a car-free cobblestone-lined walkway with an outdoor dining scene that predates the pandemic. The portfolio includes three buildings with a total of ten free-market two-bedroom and three-bedroom loft rentals and three operating restaurants.
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$70M plan to build Manhattan’s first public beach moves forward

Credit: James Corner Field Operations, courtesy of the Hudson River Park Trust

February 5, 2021

$70M plan to build Manhattan’s first public beach moves forward

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What at first appeared a lofty dream is now closer to reality. The Hudson River Park Trust on Thursday announced three requests for proposals for the construction of Manhattan's first public beach. The project includes a 5.5-acre public park on the Gansevoort Peninsula in the Meatpacking District that would be home to a resilient "beach" with kayak access, a sports field, scenic lounge spots, and a large public art installation.
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On Long Island, a striking stone and glass home by modernist architect Norman Jaffe asks $3.6M

Listing photos courtesy of The Corcoran Group

February 3, 2021

On Long Island, a striking stone and glass home by modernist architect Norman Jaffe asks $3.6M

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Norman Jaffe opened his first architecture practice in Bridgehampton in 1973, soon becoming famous for the many contempory residences he designed in the Hamptons. Throughout his 35-year career, he designed more than 600 projects, many of them notable for their sculptural forms, early inclusion of passive solar design, and glass and wood construction. This home in Old Westbury, which he designed early on in 1977, checks all three of those boxes, and is currently on the market for $3,595,000. It sits on more than two acres, with several decks and patios and a salt water pool, and is nearly 7,000 square feet with six bedrooms, a home movie theater, and even a spa.
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Long-plagued Midtown office tower will be reborn as 660 Fifth Avenue: See new looks

All renderings credit Brookfield Properties

February 3, 2021

Long-plagued Midtown office tower will be reborn as 660 Fifth Avenue: See new looks

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The office tower formerly known as 666 Fifth Avenue has shed both its superstitious address and its controversial connection to the Kushners. Brookfield Asset Management bought the 99-year ground lease for the 41-story Midtown office building between 52nd and 53rd Streets in 2018 from Kushner Cos., announcing the following year a $400 million overhaul designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates. Brookfield has now released new renderings of the 660 Fifth Avenue project, which will have a new glass facade and floor-to-ceiling windows, a new lobby and retail spaces, and new outdoor terraces when it's completed in 2022.
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Bjarke Ingels’ 66-story Spiral tower tops out at Hudson Yards

The Spiral as of October 2020, © CityRealty

January 28, 2021

Bjarke Ingels’ 66-story Spiral tower tops out at Hudson Yards

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Bjarke Ingels' new office tower with twisting terraces officially topped out at Hudson Yards this week. Aptly named The Spiral, the 66-story skyscraper reached its 1,031-foot pinnacle, developer Tishman Speyer announced on Tuesday. Upon its completion in 2022, the tower at 66 Hudson Boulevard will stretch a full block between West 34th and 35th Streets and contain 2.8 million square feet of office space and ground-floor retail.
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Historic cast-iron building in Soho once owned by William Waldorf Astor asks $17M

 All photos courtesy of Douglas Elliman

January 27, 2021

Historic cast-iron building in Soho once owned by William Waldorf Astor asks $17M

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A 19th-century custom-designed Soho building once owned by William Waldorf Astor is on the market for $17 million. Located at 435 Broome Street, the Victorian Gothic building was built in 1873 by famed architect William Appleton Potter and features five tall loft stories framed by exterior cast-iron colonnettes and capitals. As the listing describes, the property, located between Broadway and Crosby Street, is the "perfect multi-functioning property for retail, office, or residential mixed-use."
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See the shiny, amorphous tower imagined for Lower Manhattan

All renderings by Hayri Atak Architectural Design

January 26, 2021

See the shiny, amorphous tower imagined for Lower Manhattan

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Turkish firm Hayri Atak Architectural Design has proposed something extremely unique for the downtown skyline. Called the Sarcostyle Tower, the shining structure is a large rectangle with sinuous, carved-out sides. Conceptually placed amidst the historic landmarks and mid-century office towers of lower Manhattan, the 689-foot building was inspired by human anatomy and cells. An actual sarcostyle is a muscle fiber, so it makes sense that the firm decided upon this name for theior biologically inspired project.
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Preservationists, pols fight to save Washington Heights home with Underground Railroad ties

The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Photography Collection, The New York Public Library. (1937). Riverside Drive, no. 857, at 159th Street, Manhattan, courtesy of the New York Public Library.

January 25, 2021

Preservationists, pols fight to save Washington Heights home with Underground Railroad ties

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Preservationists and local politicians are pushing the city to reverse their decision to not landmark a historic home with abolitionist history in Washington Heights. The two-story wood-frame home at 857 Riverside Drive in Upper Manhattan was owned by anti-slavery activist Dennis Harris who may have also been an Underground Railroad conductor. Despite a demolition permit filed by the current owner, the Landmarks Preservation Commission last November still rejected landmark status for the home because of the architectural alterations made to the original structure.
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Norman Foster’s splashy new office tower at 425 Park Avenue nears completion

Trading floor rendering courtesy of L&L Holding

January 20, 2021

Norman Foster’s splashy new office tower at 425 Park Avenue nears completion

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It's been more than five years since L&L Holding Company broke ground on the 47-story Norman Foster-designed office tower at 425 Park Avenue, but it's finally nearing the finish line. The 897-foot building is notable for its triple-height diagrid floors and the set of three ornamental fins at the crown that will be illuminated at night. It will be the first full-block tower along this stretch of Park Avenue in half a century, joining the likes of the Seagram Building and Lever House.
More info here
See inside the new light-filled Moynihan Train Hall

Photo © Max Touhey

December 30, 2020

See inside the new light-filled Moynihan Train Hall

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As one of the few bright spots during a very dark time in New York, the new Moynihan Train Hall opens to the public on Friday. The new transit hub expands Penn Station into the landmarked James A. Farley Post Office Building on Eighth Avenue, increasing capacity at the busiest railroad station in the country by 50 percent. On Wednesday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo celebrated the opening of Moynihan Train Hall, which was inspired by the design of the original Penn Station that was demolished in the 1960s. Ahead, get a look inside the new train hall, including the 92-foot-high massive skylights that total one acre and the new waiting areas for the Long Island Rail Road and Amtrak.
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For $1.2M, a 19th-century Hudson Valley castle with Tiffany fixtures and river views

All photos courtesy of RMC Real Estate Photography for Ellis Sotheby’s International Realty

December 18, 2020

For $1.2M, a 19th-century Hudson Valley castle with Tiffany fixtures and river views

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In New Windsor, a 19th-century stone castle is on the market for $1.225 million. Located on two acres of land overlooking the Hudson River, the Roe Brewster Castle at 11 Oak Ridge Drive was constructed in 1870 and features fixtures designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany. The 8,400-square-foot estate has six bedrooms and seven baths but has operated as a multi-family rental property.
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Mixed-use proposal for Long Island City would have a residential village, a waterfront pool, and oyster beds

All renderings by CAZA

December 18, 2020

Mixed-use proposal for Long Island City would have a residential village, a waterfront pool, and oyster beds

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First spotted by CityRealty, this mixed-use proposal for the Long Island City waterfront is part futuristic, part industrial, and part sustainable. The architects at Brooklyn-based studio CAZA conceptualized a plan for a swath of land just north of the site that was almost home to Amazon. Called Long Island City Oyster, their development would include an office tower, residential tower, and low-scale residential village. More distinctly, it would also include year-round indoor and amenities such as a waterfront ice skating rink that converts into a pool, a restored oyster-bed wetland, a sandy beach, and a ferry landing.
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340-year-old East Hampton home reimagined with a modernist design asks $4.5M

All photos courtesy of Douglas Elliman

December 15, 2020

340-year-old East Hampton home reimagined with a modernist design asks $4.5M

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An East Hampton Village home with roots dating back to the 17th-century is on the market for $4.495 million. The property at 177 Main Street was originally a Colonial saltbox built in 1680 and owned by John Mulford, one of the founders of the village. The home was named Congress Hall in the mid-19th-century as then-owner David Mulford used the space for local men to gather and talk about politics. After the site sold in 2012, owners transformed the property into a 5,500-square-foot compound with five bedrooms and five-and-a-half baths.
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Frederick Law Olmsted’s farmhouse on Staten Island recognized as national landmark

Photos courtesy of New York State Office of Parks, Recreation & Historic Preservation

December 8, 2020

Frederick Law Olmsted’s farmhouse on Staten Island recognized as national landmark

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The National Park Service this month placed a Staten Island farmhouse once owned by Frederick Law Olmsted on the National Register of Historic Places. Formerly part of a 130-acre farm, the property, known as the Olmsted-Beil House, is significant for the role it played in Olmsted's discovery of landscape design and parks as a public good, which later influenced his ideas for Central Park and Prospect Park. Despite its designation as a city landmark in 1967, the house, while intact, has deteriorated over the years and requires significant restoration work.
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For $3M, live in the original bell tower of this historic Hoboken church

All photos courtesy of Brown Harris Stevens

November 25, 2020

For $3M, live in the original bell tower of this historic Hoboken church

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All photos courtesy of Brown Harris Stevens An apartment inside a historic church building in Hoboken is now asking $3.05 million. Constructed in 1890, the Romanesque Revival First Baptist Church at 901 Bloomfield Street was converted into a luxury condominium, known as The Raphael, in 2017 with just six residences. The available unit contains three bedrooms, three and a half baths, and a studio loft in the building's original bell tower. While the conversion led to sleek modern interiors, stunning unique details, including the double-height ceilings and arched windows, were preserved.
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NYC unveils $9M plan to restore Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn

Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Arch lighting design test in 2019; Photo courtesy of Jordan Rathkopf/ Prospect Park Alliance

November 23, 2020

NYC unveils $9M plan to restore Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn

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Plans to renovate Brooklyn's Grand Army Plaza were unveiled this week, the first major restoration of Prospect Park's historic entrance in decades. The $8.9 million revamp focuses on the Soldiers' and Sailors' Memorial Arch, including replacing the arch's roof, cleaning and restoring the brick and stone structure, repairing the interior staircases, and adding modern lighting to the exterior. Surrounding plaza and landscape berms that frame the plaza will also be restored and new native trees and shrubs will be planted.
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For $11.5M, own Amagansett’s legendary Windmill house that Marilyn Monroe once rented

Listing photos courtesy of Douglas Elliman

November 18, 2020

For $11.5M, own Amagansett’s legendary Windmill house that Marilyn Monroe once rented

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Living in a windmill is unique on its own, but living in the same windmill that Marilyn Monroe once rented is really something else. Built in 1830, the Amagansett windmill was converted to a residence in the 1950s by Samuel Rubin, creator of the Faberge perfume company. Over the years, it was rented by many famous names, including Kurt Vonnegut, Terrance Stamp, and, in 1957, Marilyn Monroe and Arthur Miller, who were looking to get away from the press in the city. The two-bedroom home sits on nearly five-and-a-half acres and is for sale asking $11,500,000.
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Prospect Park’s 150-year-old Endale Arch returns with stunning original details after restoration

Photos by Paul Martinka

November 16, 2020

Prospect Park’s 150-year-old Endale Arch returns with stunning original details after restoration

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An original architectural element of Prospect Park that dates back to the 1860s has returned to Brooklyn's backyard. Following a five-year restoration, the Endale Arch reopened to the public last week, with parts of its stunning design envisioned by park creators Frederick Olmsted and Calvert Vaux on display for the first time this century.
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Go inside the new glass dome atop Union Square’s Tammany Hall

Photo by Christopher Payne | ESTO

November 16, 2020

Go inside the new glass dome atop Union Square’s Tammany Hall

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If you've walked by Union Square over the past year, you might have spotted something different. Rising atop  Reading International's landmarked Tammany Hall is a modern glass-and-steel dome. BKSK Architects designed the addition, which can house a variety of commercial uses, with the building's history in mind. Though many associate Tammany Hall's history with political corruption, BKSK wanted people to understand that its namesake is actually Lenape Chief Tammanend, who worked towards a peaceful relationship with 17th-century European settlers. Ahead, see amazing photos of the dome's exterior and interior and hear from BKSK partner Todd Poisson about its construction and how it was conceived to resemble a turtle breaking out of water.
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David Adjaye and Aston Martin collaborate on residences and luxury car at 130 William in FiDi

All residence images courtesy of Aston Martin

November 12, 2020

David Adjaye and Aston Martin collaborate on residences and luxury car at 130 William in FiDi

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Five apartments for sale at Sir David Adjaye's first New York City tower have been custom-designed by luxury carmaker Aston Martin. Located on the 59th and 60th floors of 130 William, a 66-story condo in the Financial District, the exclusive units come with a special edition Aston Martin DBX, an SUV designed in collaboration with Adjaye. The five condos include two penthouses, one priced at $11.5 million and the second at $10.5 million, and three loggia residences, priced at $3.985 million, $5.985 million, and $10 million.
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See New York City’s newest public park at the Upper West Side’s Waterline Square

All photos courtesy of Elizabeth Felicella

November 12, 2020

See New York City’s newest public park at the Upper West Side’s Waterline Square

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New photos of the public park at the Waterline Square development were released this week, showing off the nearly three acres of green space designed by MNLA. Positioned in the middle of the three glassy Upper West Side towers, Waterline Square Park offers a tucked-away oasis for the community, along with a huge playground and unique water features. When it officially opened this summer, the park hosted a number of socially-distanced events including live music performances and yoga classes.
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