With the installation of its first steel column, One Vanderbilt, soon to be New York City’s second-tallest skyscraper, officially began vertical construction on Friday. Banker Steel Company provided the 26,000 tons of domestically milled and fabricated structural steel for development, which included the first 20-ton column installed. According to the team, the construction of One Vanderbilt is three weeks ahead of schedule. SL Green Realty and AECOM Tishman say the supertall skyscraper will add to the modernization of East Midtown’s business district, as the office building will boast column-free floors, floor-to-ceiling windows, and 360-degree views.

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This parlor floor co-op at 135 Perry Street in the West Village is more than meets the eye: Listed as a one-bedroom for $3,500 a month, it’s configured as a studio–and according to the listing, it was once a two-bedroom. So whatever you imagine for the space, it could be a reality. Of course, you’ll have to get permission from the owner as it’s currently being offered as a rental. And we’re guessing the co-op board will need to be involved. If you leave it the way you found it, you’ll still have a stylish if somewhat linear home in a neighborhood everyone’s fighting over.

Have a loook

Actor Topher Grace of “That ’70s Show” fame bought this full-floor loft at 59 Bank Street for $2.2 million in 2006, but ever since 2011 he’s been renting it out, first for $14,000 a month and several years later for $16,000. After unloading his Los Angels home for $1.7 million in the summer of 2015 and marrying actress Ashley Hinshaw in May 2016, Grace is finally ready to unload the West Village condo, as LL NYC tells us that it’s hit the market for $4.25 million.

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Singer Sheryl Crow has sold her Noho nest at 46 Great Jones Street. The second floor loft just sold to J.P. Morgan managing director Fadi Hanna for $2.72 million according to city records (h/t New York Post).

Take a look

This East Village rental, at the Pear Tree Place condo at 203 East 13th Street, is rich in prewar material. The 11-and-a-half-foot ceilings are lined with wood beams, the walls are covered with exposed brick and the floor with a maple wood. The three-bedroom pad, on the rental market for $13,995/month, also comes with some perks: a planted terrace off the kitchen, an audio/visual system with two drop-down movie screens, and heated floors in the bathrooms.

Now go see it

Just a week ago, Meg Ryan dropped $9.4 million on an apartment in Tribeca‘s “paparazzi-proof” 443 Greenwich Street, joining fellow residents Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel, Jennifer Lawrence, Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively, and Harry Styles. This ever-growing list of celebs has now gotten even longer, as The Real Deal reports that Jake Gyllenhaal picked up an $8.63 million pad here through his Woodrow Trust.

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The gardens are open to the public but the views are all yours from this well-configured studio at 257 East 7th Street in the easternmost reaches of the East Village. The block is, as the listing suggests, one of the neighborhood’s most picturesque, with a history of community pride by longtime homeowners and a rare eclectic collection of historic townhouses. The verdant Flowerbox building, one of the neighborhood’s first and most beautifully-designed luxury developments, is next door, and the East River Park foot and bike path is steps away. This charming studio is asking $775,000.

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Last June, President Obama formally recognized Greenwich Village’s Stonewall Inn and its surrounding area as a national historic monument, creating the first National Park Service unit dedicated to the gay rights movement. To expand the reach of this monument, Senator Chuck Schumer announced on Sunday a $1 million grant from Google to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center to begin a project preserving the oral histories and human experiences from early LGBTQ leaders present during the Stonewall Inn riots. According to the New York Times, the initiative will create an educational curriculum for students and a digital platform that’s expected to launch by the 50th anniversary of the protests in 2019.

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Located on the top floor of the Hell’s Kitchen co-op 857 Ninth Avenue and decked out with skylights (with their own retractable shades!), this $625,000 pad feels like it’s perched up in the clouds. 11.5-foot ceilings and two lofts, above the bedroom and kitchen, don’t hurt either. Nor do the Manhattan cityscape views from the Eastern facing windows. This home last sold for $549,000 in 2016. We’re guessing it got some upgrades before it was listed again this year.

See the interior for yourself

Two Waterline Square; Image: Noe & Associates with The Boundary

GID Development Group announced today that the Upper West Side‘s Waterline Square mega-development will be getting the first-ever experiential food market by the Cipriani family. Located within Two Waterline Square, the new Cipriani food hall will be designed by London-based interior designer Martin Brudnizki. Within the 28,000-square-foot space will be a large-format culinary experience with multiple food and beverage establishments including a market, restaurants, and casual outlets.

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Space and storage are what this East Village loft has to give. The unit is from 300 East 4th Street, a brick cooperative built in the 1940s. While you can pick up a unit here for $1.299 million, this one is actually up for rent at $4,600 a month. With over 850 square feet, there are two mezzanines to hold a bedroom and a flexible bonus space. Custom closets were added, and built-ins line the walls, offering storage galore. Best of all, this lofty space takes in tons of light from five large windows.

Take the tour

Just a day after Penn Station‘s long-awaited West End Concourse revealed itself to the public, for the first time allowing Amtrak, Long Island Rail Road, and NJ Transit passengers to enter and board trains through the historic James A. Farley Post Office across 8th Avenue, Governor Cuomo has announced that Empire State Development signed the final financial agreement with Related Companies, Vornado Realty LP, and Skanska AB for the $1.6 billion Penn-Farley Complex. After decades of delays, construction will now begin to transform the historic post office into the Moynihan Train Hall, a new 255,000-square-foot train hall housing both Amtrak and LIRR ticketing and waiting areas, as well as 70,000 square feet of new commercial, retail, and dining space. But a development announcement from the Governor is never complete without a fresh set of renderings, and Cuomo did not disappoint this time.

All the renderings and details ahead

Last summer, the Department of Buildings halted progress on developers J.D. Carlisle and Fosun Group’s planned condo tower at 15 East 30th Street over the fact that a planned second-floor outdoor space didn’t meet minimum space requirements. Presumably having ironed that out, (though we’re not sure the same can be said for the neighbors angry about losing their views) designers Handel Architects have released a slew of new renderings of the 756-foot-tall tower, which will have 180 units spread over 51 floors. Uncovered by Yimby, the views show a narrow, glassy structure with a jagged pinnacle and undulating base.

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If anyone can convince a buyer to part with $4.6 million for a four-story townhouse in an historic and happening part of Harlem, it’s a magician. This four-story 18th century townhouse at 278 West 113th Street, on the market for the first time since 1991, has certainly got one in the form of master escape artist Harry Houdini, illusionist, magician and one of the buzziest celebrities of the early 20th century. Houdini–born Erich Weiss, son of a rabbi from Budapest–and his wife, Bess, lived at the Harlem home for 22 years until his death in 1926 (h/t Curbed).

This house is no illusion