Architecture And Design

The "unbridled luxury" promised for a townhouse at 357 West 17th street is taking shape. Architect Andres Escobar was tapped by Wonder Works Construction Corp., developer of Williamsburg's pricey Oosten condominium complex, to turn the five-floor, 25-foot-wide building into a 12,000-square-foot mansion with five bedrooms, eight (!) baths, a glass elevator, a swimming pool and a two-car garage. Wonder Works purchased the West Chelsea property for $9.35 million in 2014 from designer/developer Karim Rashid, who had lived in–and occasionally rented out–a candy-colored, neon-furnished loft in the existing townhouse. Now, CityRealty.com reveals new renderings from Wonder Works showing a rooftop deck, a chandelier-graced library, a sleek two-car garage and more.
Check out the mansion-to-be

September 8, 2016

Live in ODA’s stacked Long Island City rental for $850/month, lottery opens for 35 units

For those who think affordable housing and creative design don't go together, this Long Island City rental from ODA Architects could very well change their minds. Known as 2222 Jackson Avenue, the 175-unit, 11-story building features the firm's signature stacked cube shape and an exposed concrete facade that "maintains the structure’s seeming ability to change shape as natural light plays with the unique silhouette of the structure," according to the teaser site. As of tomorrow, 35 apartments here will be up for grabs through the city's affordable housing lottery. Units will range from $850/month studios to $1,274/month three-bedrooms, quite the deal considering residents will be living right across from MoMA PS1 in one of the city's trendiest 'hoods.
Find out if you qualify

September 7, 2016

Uniqlo’s NYC subway-inspired t-shirt collection hits stores

The New York City subway map is an icon of our modern urban culture, and it was only a matter of time before the popular graphics made their way on to a t-shirt in some trendy way. Uniqlo just released a new line of SPRZ NY tees featuring designs pulled from the The New York City Transit Authority Graphics Standards Manual, a graphic system designed by Massimo Vignelli and Bob Noorda in the late 1970s. The new line of tees were produced in collaboration with the MoMA and appropriately named, "The Subway and the City."
see more designs here

September 7, 2016

POLL: Are you in favor of the Pier 55 offshore park moving ahead?

As of late last month, summer construction work on the Barry Diller-funded Pier 55 was complete, with the first nine piles propping up the offshore park having been installed. It seemed as though all systems were a go at the $130 million futuristic park, but yesterday 6sqft reported that The City Club of New York, the civic group who was behind an earlier lawsuit and stop work order, may have a backer in none other than Douglas Durst. And today the Wall Street Journal shares that opponents had their first day in front a panel of state appellate-court judges to express environmental concerns and frustrations that the initial planning between billionaire Diller and the Hudson River Park Trust was done behind closed doors. What are your thoughts on the issue?
More details on the hearing, and tell us if you're in favor of Pier 55 moving ahead

Architecture And Design

September 6, 2016

Turn any image into a custom template for wallpaper and more with Morpholio’s ‘Stencil’ app

It's no secret that stencils are all the rage these days, and here in New York City we've been enjoying sites adorned with stencil-inspired graffiti for decades. Like many trends that start in the streets, the art of stencils have made their way into the design language of everything from t-shirts to pillows, magazines and most definitely interior design. As a response to these trends, Morpholio has just released Stencil, a new app that allows you transform any image you come across into a custom digital stencil to use with any of your designs.
find out more here

Dorm architecture: Admiring avant-garde student housing designs in New York

Image courtesy of SOM by James Ewing

September 6, 2016

Dorm architecture: Admiring avant-garde student housing designs in New York

By Cait Etherington

Historically, college dorms have been characterized by anything but great architecture. While many older institutions rent out rooms (“cells” may be a more apt description) in neo-gothic structures, newer institutions tend to house students in some of the world’s least inspiring modernist buildings (for an example, head over to the I.M. Pei towers that dominate NYU’s University Village). More recently, however, at least some colleges and universities have begun to acknowledge that where students live may have an impact on their performance. Financially savvy institutions have also started to link student housing options to student retention rates. As a result, on many campuses, drab gray concrete structures with prison-size windows are finally giving way to light, glass and wood and to an entirely new range of built-in amenities. This means that whether or not all students know it, a growing number of them are now living in buildings on the cutting edge of contemporary design.
Ahead, we highlight some of the best and most innovative in the new york area

Architecture And Design

September 6, 2016

Mogul vs. mogul: Is Douglas Durst trying to stop Barry Diller’s offshore park?

Once again in the news is media mogul Barry Diller's futuristic offshore cultural pier development at Pier 55 on the Hudson River. The proposed park project, known informally as Diller Park after its main backer, who is chairman of IAC/InterActiveCorp and is married to fashion designer Diane Von Furstenburg, is helmed by the Hudson River Park Trust. The New York Times reports that the project’s main opponent, a civic group called The City Club of New York, may have an equally powerful backer. According to Diller, there is a deep-pocketed "hidden hand” funding the legal actions against the park. In a recent interview, Diller said, “The backer of all this is one Douglas Durst.”
Find out more

September 4, 2016

Upstate home built in 1730 by a Revolutionary War captain asks $1.25M

By Emily Nonko

$1.25 million won't just buy you this home at 100 Old Lake Street in West Harrison, New York, it'll buy you a piece of history (h/t CIRCA). According to the listing, the oldest portion of this pre-Revolutionary War home is said to have been originally built in 1730 by Captain William Shelley and his brothers--they fought at Merritt Hill, the site of the Battle of White Plains, during the Revolutionary War. The house has since been expanded and modernized, although the building still has its original structural details.
Take a look at the historic interior

Developer proposes floating glass restaurant for Hudson River’s Glenwood Power Plant

Glenwood Power Plant was built in 1906 in Yonkers atop of 6,000 piles in the Hudson River for the electrification of the New York Central Railroad from Grand Central. After sitting vacant since the 1960s, the complex began a new incarnation in 2013 when developer Lela Goren embarked on a project to transform it into The Plant, a one million+ square foot conference, event, retreat, and performance venue, preserving its Romanesque Revival architecture and cultural history. Another local developer, however, has a vision of their own--to suspend a glass cube from Glenwood's two smoke stacks and have it function as a floating restaurant. First shared by ArchDaily, the conceptual plan from Big Foot Developers "aims to blend architecture and nature while having a minimal impact on the view of the site."
More details this way

Architecture And Design

August 31, 2016

FXFowle’s NOMA condo rises in ‘neo-Bauhaus’ style at the crossroads of Manhattan

By Ondel Hylton

Earlier this year, sales launched at The NOMA, a 55-unit ground-up condominium developed by Alchemy Properties and designed by Daniel Kaplan of FXFowle Architects. The 24-story building is distinguished by a gray-brick skin and ribbons of gridded windows that pay homage the area's industrious roots. The "neo-Bauhaus" exterior references the older loft buildings from the early 19th century, the clean lines of the Bauhaus movement, and the massing of the parade of newer residential towers that have cropped up along Sixth Avenue in Nomad.
Get the full scoop on the building

August 31, 2016

Superhero bookshelves transform your living room into a secret urban lair

Technically we all have to grow up, but that doesn't mean we can't always be kids at heart. Turkish product designer Burak Doğan helps us integrate this sense of play into our often serious adult lives with his series of superhero bookshelves. Now you can transform your dull living room into your very own superhero lair.
READ MORE

August 31, 2016

Kate Spade founder’s boho East Village townhouse returns as a $40,000/month rental

We'll take any opportunity to admire the four-story townhouse at 215 East 12th Street in the East Village, just south of the bustle of Union Square, and its appearance on the rental market for $40,000 a month is as good an excuse as any. Just a few months ago, the townhouse owned by Pamela Bell, one of the founders of fashion brand Kate Spade, popped up for sale at $16 million accompanied by many pretty pictures of its gently renovated historic-chic interiors and beautifully-preserved 1800s origins. Bell bought the house in 2007 for $4.3 million, so there's a tidy sum to be made if it snags a buyer; in the meantime, renters get a chance to experience nine-bedroom garden-filled townhouse living in a vibrant, 24-hour neighborhood.
Take the tour

August 29, 2016

Bono: A stylish aluminum composter perfectly sized for your countertop

Composting in New York City can be challenging to say the least. Not only are you dealing with the constant changing of the seasons, but space in this densely packed town is also sparse. However, with every challenge is also an opportunity, and much like many of the other problems associated with these limitations we look to design to keep us moving in the right direction. On the composting front Polish designer Ala Sieradzka's as made for us Bono, a compact countertop composter spun from powder-coated aluminum that comes with an equally stylish cork lid and base.
learn more here

August 29, 2016

Interview: Architect Cary Tamarkin on being his own developer

By Jillian Blume

Cary Tamarkin is the founder and president of Tamarkin Co., an architecture and real estate development company established in 1994 and based in New York City. He worked as an architect exclusively for many years before deciding to go into development. As it turned out, he was able to combine his passion for both architecture and […]

August 28, 2016

Fashion Stylist Scott Newkirk Goes Unplugged in His 14×14 Rough-Hewn Cabin

By Ana Lisa Alperovich

For many city dwellers bogged down by the hustle and bustle of everyday life, vacations are spent offline in far-away places, disconnected from technology and reconnected to nature. But fashion and interior stylist Scott Newkirk proves you don't have to go that far to have your own unplugged woodland dream. Located in Yulan, New York, just 90 miles northwest of NYC, Newkirk's charming wooden cabin is a mere 14x14 feet and is made entirely from salvaged and reclaimed pieces of wood.
Learn more about this rough and ready cabin

August 26, 2016

Where I Work: Inside Thompson Square Studios, Soho’s members-only co-working space

6sqft’s series “Where I Work” takes us into the studios, offices, and off-beat workspaces of New Yorkers across the city. In this installment, we take a tour Thompson Square Studios, a private members club-style co-working space in Soho. Want to see your business featured here? Get in touch! After starting his career as an architect in London, Robert Herrick went on to found Visualhouse, a "creative ideas" agency focusing on the architecture and design fields, in 2006. With offices now in London, New York, Los Angeles, Miami and Hong Kong, Visualhouse has produced work from branding campaigns to digital renderings for the likes of Zaha Hadid, Norman Foster, and Rafael Vinoly. In 2013, Robert took his expertise and created the Thompson House Group with the goal of delivering private member experiences in workspaces, hotels, and restaurants. The Group's first project was Thompson Square Studios, a "private member club for work and play." Unlike traditional co-working spaces, the Studio has a membership board that selects tenants from the creative industries based on what they can bring to the collective whole. 6sqft recently caught up with CEO and founder Robert, who took us on a tour of the impeccably designed space filled with copper accents, industrial decor, and sleek yet moody furniture. We also got a look at how Visualhouse operates within the club.
Tour the space and hear from Robert

August 26, 2016

A charming former schoolhouse asks just $310K in Upstate New York

By Emily Nonko

This brick schoolhouse—located at 2 Moffat Road, in the upstate town of Blooming Grove—served students all the way from 1870 to the 1960s. Then, it was converted into a residence before getting a second makeover in the 1990s. The two-bedroom, two-bathroom home, which sits on nearly an acre of land, is true country living, with an interior decorated with exposed, reclaimed wood beams, a cathedral ceiling, wide plank wood floors and a wood burning fireplace. $310,000 won't get you much more than a studio in New York City, but it'll buy you this old school located just 70 minutes outside Manhattan.
Take a tour

City releases Midtown East Rezoning plan; could add 16 new towers

Conceptual image depicting all the proposed sites of the East Midtown rezoning fully built out. Courtesy CityRealty

August 25, 2016

City releases Midtown East Rezoning plan; could add 16 new towers

After Mayor Bloomberg's failed 2013 attempt, the city has released its long-awaited Midtown East Rezoning plan, a controversial upzoning of the area bound by Madison and Third Avenues and 39th and 50th Streets, which would encourage taller, more modern office towers in an area that many feel is no longer attracting commercial tenants. According to Crain's, their proposal, the first step in the formal rezoning process, would allow the tallest buildings around Grand Central, increasing the maximum density by 30 percent. Along Park Avenue and near subway stations north of the Terminal, density would be increased, too. The proposal also will permit owners of landmarked buildings to sell their air rights across the district, rather than just to adjacent properties like the current law dictates.
More details ahead

August 25, 2016

Will a (rent stabilized) Williamsburg address make a shower in the kitchen hip?

It's always fun when yet another listing with a shower in the kitchen surfaces; 6sqft has covered versions of the quirky New York City phenomenon previously. The East Village and LES are the usual suspects, and this Bed-Stuy brownstone home makes the kitchen shower look positively chic. But once again, lovely, expensive Williamsburg draws the short straw. For a mere $1,574 a month ($1,604 for a two-year lease), you, too, can discover the joys of the shower beer. To be fair, the one-bedroom at 18 Skillman Avenue has some definite selling points. It's rent stabilized, for one, and the neighborhood is popular, convenient (except for that year without the L train) and fun.
The apartment's actually pretty cute

August 24, 2016

Summer work on Barry Diller-funded futuristic offshore park complete

By Diane Pham

Work on the Barry Diller-funded Pier55 park is advancing nicely, even after being slapped with a lawsuit and a stop work order in June. As the Hudson River Park Trust (HRPT) and Pier55 Inc. announced this afternoon, the first nine piles propping up the 2.7-acre undulating park have been installed. Per the pair's press release, the milestone marks the completion of summer work and is part of the initial work of the first phase of construction.
more on the progress here

August 23, 2016

BioLight’s PizzaDome brings wood-fired pizza to your campground

While the majority of the NYC's five boroughs are a rough and tumble concrete jungle, just beyond the bridges, highways and waterways, city slickers can find solace in the tranquil forests of the northeast. However, there are some city conveniences, if given the option, we'd never want leave behind, and good pizza is definitely one of them. To add to their already cool roster of camping gadgetry, BioLight bring us "PizzaDome," the very first portable wood-fired pizza oven designed specifically for the campground.
READ MORE

August 19, 2016

Tour the American Copper Buildings’ skybridge and roof, first look at its floating lap pool

After last week's rush of news surrounding the American Copper Buildings--the launch of its affordable housing lottery for 160 units and the first reveal of its interior renderings--6sqft decided to take a tour inside the SHoP Architects-designed project. JDS Development Group's dancing East River towers have become best known for their copper facade (made up of 5,000 metal panels) and its three-story, amenity-filled skybridge that hovers 300 feet above the site at 626 First Avenue. Not only did we walk through the bridge, but we also took a peek at the buildings' already greening copper patina, had a first look at the lap pool on the 28th floor that will float between the towers, and also checked out the insane views from the roof.
See it all this way

Architecture And Design

August 19, 2016

Car company MINI creates stylish, micro co-living concept