Rendering of the proposed northeast pavilion. All renderings courtesy of the Prospect Park Alliance

The city’s Parks Department and the Prospect Park Alliance this week unveiled plans for the restoration of the Vale of Cashmere. The proposal, presented during a Landmarks Preservation Commission hearing on Tuesday, includes a new pollinator garden, natural exploration play areas, a planted arbor, and a wooden pavilion with a green roof and bathrooms. Several LPC commissioners, preservationists, and LGBTQ+ advocates opposed the proposal for the Upper Vale, with most taking issue with the plan’s erasure of the site as a significant meeting spot for the city’s queer community as well as the disregard for the original vision of the Vale.

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Photos courtesy of Covered Bridge Realty

This early modernist home tucked away on the western shores of Lake Champlain in the Adirondacks was designed by Philip Johnson in 1948, the same year the noted architect designed his iconic Glass House. Asking $3,500,000, this unusual property at 314 Point Road in the northern New York town of Willsboro, which Johnson designed with partner Landis Gores (both were members of the famed Harvard Five architectural group that also included Marcel Breuer, John Johansen, and Eliot Noyes) appears in the book “Houses of Philip Johnson.” Known as Paine House, the home’s two subsequent owners have maintained it in its original state. Situated on 20 acres surrounded by forest and lake (with 850 feet of waterfront), the home’s seclusion has kept it from the public eye.

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Renderings courtesy of Adjaye Associates

Plans to transform Brooklyn’s Restoration Plaza into a global cultural and economic hub were unveiled this week. Non-profit Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation on Thursday released renderings and new details of its plan to reimagine its headquarters with an 840,000-square-foot mixed-use campus designed by renowned architect Sir David Adjaye. The plan expands and modernizes existing space, adds office and retail space, and creates new public open space in the heart of Bed-Stuy. According to the developer team, the Innovation Campus is a direct response to the country’s racial wealth gap, particularly the economic barriers Black New Yorkers face in Brooklyn.

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Image courtesy of Evan Joseph

New images of a fully-furnished penthouse atop Pritzker-Prize-winning architect Jean Nouvel’s tower 53 West 53 were released this week, showing off the one-of-a-kind duplex apartment’s soaring ceiling heights, expansive living spaces, and breathtaking views of Central Park and the city skyline. The four-bedroom, three-and-a-half bathroom penthouse was designed by Fox-Nahem Associates in collaboration with Elle Decor and spans nearly 8,000 square feet across the 76th and 77th floors of the Midtown Manhattan skyscraper. Although this penthouse is not currently on the market, the identical unit above it, Penthouse 78, is available for $64,730,000.

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Photo by Evan Joseph

The top of the tallest tower in Brooklyn is now complete, cementing its status as New York City’s newest landmark. The Brooklyn Tower rises 93 stories from a marble base with a facade of repeating vertical columns and alternating panels of colored metals that fade from bronze to black as it moves upward to the neo-Deco crown. The spired pinnacle reaches 1,066 feet, making the Brooklyn Tower the tallest building in the borough.

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All renderings courtesy of Samson Stages

Architecture firm Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) is designing another film studio in New York City. Production company Samson Stages announced plans for a new 330,000-square-foot production facility on the waterfront in Red Hook, Brooklyn. Designed by BIG, the firm also behind Robert De Niro’s under-construction Wildflower Studios in Astoria, the Samson Stages Red Hook Studio will include a building with eight stacked stages and a public park.

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Photo credit: Fortem Media for The Corcoran Group

This four-bedroom condo in The Residences by Zaha Hadid at 520 West 28th Street is a rare opportunity to live in the late starchitect’s residential masterpiece. The unique loft-like 3,840-square-foot residence, asking $10,495,000, features Hadid’s signature curves, curated amenities, and a balcony with views of the architecturally significant Chelsea skyline. Details include 10-foot-wide motorized windows with distinctive curved detailing, high ceilings, and generous proportions.

Tour this curvy, curated Chelsea home

The Library’s fritted glass facade is wrapped in a graphic print inspired by the verdant tree canopies of The Bronx. Credit: © Snøhetta & LMNB

World-renowned architecture firm Snøhetta last week unveiled its design for a new library in the Bronx. The 12,000-square-foot Westchester Square Library, which will sit next to the historic Huntington Free Library on Glebe Avenue, will feature a striking green glass facade with abstract views of the neighborhood’s trees, a way to pay homage to the Bronx’s status as the city’s “greenest borough,” according to the firm. The library is being developed with the city’s Department of Design and Construction and the New York Public Library. See the design

View of the Upper and Lower Promenades, Cafeteria, and South Loggia, Looking South (1936); Images courtesy of Marvel/ NYC Parks/ NYCEDC

Construction kicked off this week on a project to reconstruct the historic bathhouse and pavilion at Orchard Beach in the Bronx. The city’s Parks Department and the Economic Development Corporation on Tuesday broke ground on the $87 million reconstruction of the 140,000 square-foot landmarked pavilion, which includes a major renovation of its historic architecture, new amenities for the community, and increased accessibility.

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All photos © Alan Karchmer for Santiago Calatrava unless otherwise noted

The only house of worship that was totally destroyed during the September 11 attacks finally reopened to the public this week. Designed by Santiago Calatrava, the new St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine, now located at 130 Liberty Street, resumed regular parish life with a prayer service on Monday. Inspired by Byzantine architecture, Calatrava designed a facade that appears to glow from within; the church will be illuminated every night as a beacon of hope at the site.

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