Images of the 108 Leonard’s newly restored facade courtesy of Hundred Stories PR

Update 4/1/19: The New York State Court of Appeals on Thursday ruled against a group of preservationists who sued to stop developers from turning a historic clock tower into a penthouse. According to the judge, the LPC does not have the authority to give access to the building and the agency’s plan to make the 19th-century clock run electronically is reasonable.

Developers had big plans for the luxury condominiums they were creating at the block-long former site of the New York Life Insurance Company at 346 Broadway (also known as 108 Leonard Street) since purchasing it from the city in 2014. The new residential project would hold 140 units starting at $1.5 million, capped by a stunning penthouse that would be priced at over $20 million. The one snag in this golden opportunity: The building’s iconic Clock Tower–sometimes called New York’s ‘Big Ben,’ which sits atop the building and was designated an interior landmark in 1987. The clock must be wound by hand, a process which requires access through, as the New York Times reports, the future penthouse. A case against the developers’ plan and a subsequent appeal were both won by the opponents, saying the LPC couldn’t unwind the clock’s landmark status–but an appeal in the state’s highest court, the Court of Appeals, is still pending.

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Designed by noted architect Stephen Decatur Hatch, the classic loft building at 165 Duane Street, now a boutique co-op residence, was built in 1882 as coconut processing and packaging factory. This Tribeca loft retains the foundation of its industrial past with exposed wooden beams and columns and 14 windows, yet this three-bedroom home set high above Duane Park has the polished appearance of a classic Manhattan co-op. Asking $3.195 million, the loft has been fully renovated, adding modern convenience and considered design choices in fixtures and finishes.

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With a private entrance on Collister Street—a quiet alley in Tribeca named for its past association with Trinity Church—this 4,500-square-foot home feels like a townhouse but comes with all the convenience and amenities of the full-service condominium it’s housed in at 7 Hubert Street. Spanning three floors with three bedrooms, a finished basement, and a charming ground floor complete with high ceilings, casement windows, and a furnished garden, this turnkey residence just hit the market for $8,950,000.

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Listing images by Will Ellis of Donna Dotan; courtesy of the Corcoran Group

Once featured on the cover of Architectural Digest, this penthouse in the landmarked American Thread Building at 260 West Broadway just hit the market for $14,800,000. The current owners, an art collector and his fashion executive partner, bought the space in 2013 and have filled the 3,777-square-foot Tribeca residence with art by the likes of Richard Serra, Gerhard Richter, and Ai Weiwei to name just a few. Their collection extends to furniture and includes Nanda Vigo chairs from the ’70s, a 19th-century baker’s table from Marseille, and a Karl Springer acrylic table from the 1980s. They describe the blend of period architecture, contemporary art, and design accents as a “speakeasy atmosphere” perfect for entertaining. Speaking to Architectural Digest, the owner revealed that “when we closed on the place, the super took me aside and reminded me that we had a huge responsibility. ‘You’ll be living in one of the most incredible spaces in the city,’ he told me. ‘And you’d better not mess it up.’”

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Rendering by Anish Kapoor.

Herzog & de Meuron’s striking “Jenga” condo tower at 56 Leonard Street in Tribeca is a conversation piece on its own, with its cantilevered rectangles of glass rising into the sky. The long-anticipated flourish that will anchor the skyscraper–artist Anish Kapoor’s reflective bean-shaped sculpture–is finally on the way, as evidenced by an intricate set of circles and arrows that just arrived on the building’s sidewalk. The spray-painted outline will inform installation of the sculpture, which resembles a similar public art icon in Chicago, where Kapoor’s “Cloud Gate” sculpture apparently attracts millions of tourists every year and has become an Instagram staple.

What’s taking so long, the anticipation is killing us

Google Street View of 153 Franklin Street; Taylor Swift via Wiki Commons

Some good news for Taylor Swift: According to The Real Deal, Manhattan federal court judge Jesse Furman has dismissed the lawsuit that Douglas Elliman had leveled against the pop star/welcome ambassador/real estate investor claiming she’d stiffed a broker on the commission for an $18 million Tribeca townhouse at 153 Franklin Street that she bought in October of 2017. Swift’s management company, Firefly Entertainment, filed a motion to have the brokerage’s $1 million suit dismissed, claiming the lawsuit was “the latest in a long line of lawsuits” by Elliman and that the real estate agency had little if any involvement in the townhouse deal.

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With exposed brick throughout, original weathered warehouse floors, soaring ceilings, and skylights, this Tribeca duplex is a classic downtown loft. The 3,636 square-foot condo at 37 Walker Street — currently on the market for $2,350,000 — has three bedrooms, 1.5 baths, and a private roof terrace. With a flexible open plan, it could easily be reconfigured or renovated, though lovers of the shabby-chic aesthetic will embrace the unit’s charming peeling walls and original details.

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After dropping its price from $25,000 to $18,500 a month on November 12th, Michael Cohen’s ill-fated Tribeca condo went into contract on Tuesday, 6sqft uncovered. The timing could not be more perfect for Trump’s former personal lawyer, who pled guilty today in federal court to lying about previous dealings with Russia. Cohen bought the condo at 111 Murray Street for $6.7 million in July but promptly put it on the rental market in August. Apparently, he bought the apartment as an “investment” when he faced pressure to defer the taxes on the $3.3 million sale he made last year on his Trump World Tower apartment. As we explained. “by closing on a new unit, he was able to take part in the 1031 exchange that allows investors to roll proceeds from one transaction over to another.”

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Located in what was once a cheese warehouse at 14 Harrison Street in Tribeca, this 4,500-square-foot loft has been the home of American playwright Edward Albee since 1977. According to Mansion Global, Albee held his famed annual Christmas party here, with luminaries like Lauren Bacall and Kathleen Turner in attendance. The duplex co-op spanning the building’s fifth and sixth floors is a fascinating home even without the literary connection; the classic loft, with an elevator that opens on each floor, is currently for sale asking $8.995 million.

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Just about three years ago, 6sqft reported that one of Tribeca‘s more unusual architectural offerings, the 8,170-square-foot townhouse at 9 Jay Street that includes the famous Staple Street Skybridge, was for sale. The building, the pedestrian skybridge and loft condo it connects to–once the home and studio of iconic 1980s fashion designer Zoran Ladicorbic–were asking $50 million. Now, the quirky collection is back on the market with a hefty $15 million price chop, asking $35 million. The new ask comes with 4,080 square feet of air rights, and from the looks of the building’s wide open interiors, the options for a new buyer are many.

What’s inside?