Chelsea

If you're going to live in a really small apartment, you may as well get it custom designed to maximize as much space as possible. Such is the case with this very cozy one bedroom at 221 West 21st Street, a nondescript five-story co-op building in Chelsea. This unit has been gutted, renovated and redesigned by MySuites & Co., a boutique real estate and design firm based in Soho, and furniture and textile designer Nightwood New York. The result–the Chelseagold. MySuites says it feels more like a 700-square-foot apartment than a 500-square-foot pad, and we think the charming interior design almost makes up for the lack of space.
See the rest of the micro apartment

Distinctive Homes

February 11, 2016

Construction Begins on 40-Story Marriott Hotel Replacing Antiques Garage in Chelsea

After an 11-year run, the popular Antiques Garage flea market, where bargain hunters haggled over an eclectic assortment of used goods, shuttered its weekend fairs in the summer of 2014. Like many soft sites around the Flower District, the parking garage used by the market at 112 West 25th Street was purchased by development interests, namely Extell, who later sold to Lam Generation for $68 million. Since the purchase, the three-story garage has been razed and groundwork has finally begun for a 330-room, four-star Marriott Renaissance Hotel. With the help of some unused neighboring development rights, Lam's tower will grow to 140,000 square feet of floor area and stand roughly 450 feet high over its mid-rise Chelsea locale. The neighborhood's current tallest building, Chelsea Stratus, is just one lot away and rises 25 feet higher than Lam's upcoming tower.
More details ahead

Pace Gallery Files for New West Chelsea Building Designed by Bonetti/Kozerski Studio

Rendering of new building (L) and view of current site (R) via Weinberg Properties and Pace Gallery

February 1, 2016

Pace Gallery Files for New West Chelsea Building Designed by Bonetti/Kozerski Studio

Last week, Weinberg Properties filed building permits to construct an eight-story gallery and office building for Pace Gallery at 534-540 West 25th Street. Sited squarely in the Chelsea arts district between the High Line and Eleventh Avenue, the 50,000-square-foot structure will replace an existing one-story building that has served as Pace's flagship location. The renowned international contemporary art gallery has three other locations in the city, as well as outposts in Menlo Park, London, Beijing, and Hong Kong. According to a press release (PDF) from last spring, "Bonetti/Kozerski Studio, in coordination with Pace’s President Marc Glimcher, have conceived an exciting design concept that re-imagines the conventional functionality of a contemporary art gallery."
Get the scoop on the new design

January 26, 2016

Could This Modern Residential Tower Replace the Historic Barney’s Building at 115 Seventh Avenue?

Bargain hunters were distraught when Loehmann's shuttered their NYC locations two years ago. It perhaps hit hardest at their Chelsea location, at the northeast corner of 16th Street and Seventh Avenue. Later that year it was announced that upscale retailer Barney's would be opening a five-level store in the space, which also happens to be the site where they were founded in 1923, and remained until 2007. Next door, at the southeast corner of Seventh Avenue and 16th Street, also once part of Barney's downtown flagship, 6sqft has uncovered a rendering showing a modern residential tower with a retail base that may replace the historic Romanesque-style building.
Get the full story right here

January 25, 2016

Chelsea Loft Designed by Award-Winning SYSTEMarchitects Wants $2M

This two-bedroom live/work loft comes from 249 West 29th Street, a prewar Chelsea co-op built in 1929. The building may be older, but this particular loft, now on the market for $2.15 million, is quite modern. It was designed by SYSTEMarchitects, a prominent firm that's won awards everywhere from the American Institute of Architects to the Museum of Modern Art. They also designed this other Chelsea loft, distinguished by a wood boat hull that was built out in the mezzanine. There's nothing quite as striking in this loft, although it does have a very interesting design element in the master bedroom.
See what it is

Distinctive Homes

January 21, 2016

Victoria’s Secret Angel Lais Ribeiro Struts Into $2.5M Chelsea Condo

Victoria's Secret Angel and top model Lais Ribeiro recently closed on a 1,279-square-foot, two-bedroom unit in the Karl Fischer-designed Slate condo at 165 West 18th Street listed at $2.49M (h/t NYP). The 25-year-old Brazilian model has walked for Chanel, Louis Vuitton and Marc Jacobs among others, and has a seven-year-old son, Alexandre. The unit–for which Ribeiro reportedly paid close to the $2.49 million ask–has a private balcony, walls of floor-to-ceiling windows, and Brazilian hardwood floors.
Check out the new model HQ

January 18, 2016

This $3M Chelsea Loft Condo Works Two Ways, Depending on Your Lifestyle

This 1,500 square-foot modern loft in the Chelsea Mercantile building at 252 Seventh Avenue, with interiors by popular decorator and current owner Anthony Baratta, has at its center a 600-square-foot living room, making it the perfect home if you entertain regularly; a wall of windows in said living room also makes for an easy upgrade if you'd prefer to add another bedroom instead. That, plus the popular building's impressive landscaped roof deck and celebrity cachet have undoubtedly figured into its $2.995 million ask.
Take a look

Distinctive Homes

January 14, 2016

Jonas Brothers Get Back Together to Check Out a $10M Chelsea Penthouse

Fans looking for a Jonas Brothers comeback will be happy to know that the trio was recently spotted checking out an apartment together, reports the Post. Though this doesn't come with news that Joe, Nick, and Kevin will be getting on stage together again, it does hint that they're working on something here in Manhattan. The musicians looked at a swanky penthouse unit at 560 West 24th Street in Chelsea. The $10.25 million duplex spread has three bedrooms (how appropriate), a glass-enclosed living area with soaring 13-foot ceilings, and a large terrace complete with an outdoor fireplace.
Check it out

December 31, 2015

Isay Weinfeld’s Jardim Condominium Rises to Street Level Along the High Line

Foundation work for Isay Weinfeld's Jardim condominium is finally wrapping up and portions of the Chelsea development are now climbing to street level. Rising from the swampy banks of a bygone stream, the mid-block site at 525 West 27th Street is giving way to a set of two 11-story condo buildings encasing an elevated garden oasis. A partnership between Centaur Properties and Greyscale Development Group is responsible for the 95,000 square-foot complex; they purchased the site formerly occupied by the Pink Elephant nightclub in 2014 for $45 million.
Find out more

December 11, 2015

A Wood Boat Hull Makes Up the Mezzanine of This Colorful Chelsea Loft

By Rebecca Paul

There is an abundance of cool lofts in Chelsea, and we love exploring the interiors of these impressive open spaces. The best part is that the design of each individual unit is often left up to the tenants, resulting in some truly unique layouts. However, it's not so often that we see two units with different owners following they same program, but for the families living in these two adjacent apartments it was the perfect solution. Together they hired SYSTEMarchitects to create two bedrooms in each of their narrow spaces, as well as access to an exterior deck that maximizes natural light and air. Plus, both spaces' 11-foot ceilings gave the design team enough room to create a sleeping and storage mezzanine, which was inspired by a wood boat hull.
See the entire space

December 4, 2015

Cute Chelsea Studio Maximizes Space With Casement Windows and Private Terrace

This is not your average studio apartment. For starters, it's located inside a brownstone at 405 West 21st Street, in Chelsea. (The five-story property has actually been split into 12 different apartments.) It is also lofted, to create some more space in the otherwise cozy apartment. And a beautiful wall of casement windows brings in tons of light. But the big perk of this studio is that those windows look out onto private outdoor space, which is definitely not a typical offering of a tiny pad. This lovely private patio, which looks out onto the surrounding townhouses, adds an extra 400 square feet. All this—including the fact that it's furnished—makes for quite the pricy studio apartment, at $4,500 a month.
Take a look

Distinctive Homes

December 4, 2015

Celeb Photographer David LaChapelle Makes a Sale on His Charming Chelsea Abode

After placing his West Chelsea home on the market just five months ago, it looks like famed photographer David LaChapelle (he's shot everyone from Madonna to MJ to Leo and Lady Gaga) has made a sale. LaChapelle's bright beauty at 427 West 21st Street sold for its $2.46 million asking price, providing a pretty tidy profit for the artist who paid just $1.74 million for the space in 2011. According to the Observer, LaChapelle decided to shed the apartment because he now spends most of his time in LA and Hawaii—the latter where he owns a remote 18-acre forest on the island of Maui. But while LaChapelle enjoys warmer West Coast and island climates, the new buyer of his Chelsea pad should find themselves just as comfortable in his former residence. The one-bedroom home is quite a unique space with plenty of historic details highlighted by lots of light.
Have a look inside the photographer's former home

December 4, 2015

First Look at Private Chelsea Residence Designed by TEN Arquitectos

Here's a first look at the mysterious home being built at 217 West 20th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in Chelsea. Plans filed with the Department of Buildings in 2014 detail the construction of a six-story, 10,000-square-foot, single-family residence designed by Enrique Norten's TEN Arquitectos. The occupancy schedule indicates that the first level will contain a garage, and a single dwelling unit will encompass all floors above. The exterior rendering posted on the project's construction fence depicts an impervious-looking first floor clad in a bronze-colored material. The next five levels are enclosed in a transparent glass curtain wall with brise-soleil screens floating beyond the building face. TEN has used this sun-shading and privacy tactic for many of their Latin American projects and the nearby Americano Hotel in West Chelsea.
More here

December 3, 2015

15 Hip Holiday Markets and Indie Pop-Up Shops in NYC

December's first days bring dozens of holiday gift markets whose aim is to find new homes for a wealth of shiny goodies and crafty gifts. We're all familiar with the big NYC markets, but some of the best scores–and the most fun–can be found at smaller, cooler pop-ups and local markets throughout the city. Some are only around for a weekend, others for the whole month or longer. In addition to locally-made jewelry and crafts, vintage finds, artfully curated fashions, home items and other things we didn't know we needed, these hip retail outposts offer up DJs, drinks, food, tarot readings, nail art, music, and family fun to keep shoppers' spirits bright.
Find out where to get the goods, this way

November 22, 2015

Revealed: Boutique Condos Coming to 231 West 26th Street in Chelsea

Here's our first look at a seven-unit boutique condominium slated for a mid-block site at 231 West 26th Street in northern Chelsea. The developer is the New York-based Azimuth Development Group who plans to supersize the existing four-story building between Seventh and Eighth Avenues. Permits were filed and approved earlier this year and DOB signs have already been posted on the doorway. The 24-foot addition will blot out a few floors of lot-line windows of the adjacent co-op 233 West 26th Street, where a three-bedroom home is on the market for $4.5 million, a price that will likely be similar to its new neighbor.
More details ahead

November 19, 2015

South American Financier Transforms Small Chelsea Apartment Into Tailor-Made Luxury Hotel Room

By Rebecca Paul

New York apartments take all different shapes and sizes, but we're particularly interested in seeing inside the homes of city dwellers who use design to maximize space and livability. This elegant pied-a-terre from Michael Rubin Architects is located in Chelsea and owned by a South American financier who visits New York as often as his schedule allows. More often than not, his visits are last-minute, and his limited use of the apartment has allowed for some wiggle room in the design of the kitchen as well as other areas inside the home. The outcome, an open airy space that features funky design concepts and an out-of-the box approach.
More views inside here

Distinctive Homes

November 16, 2015

New Renderings of SuperPier: Google’s New NYC Digs + Bourdain Food Market To Arrive in 2018

Last month at the Municipal Arts Society's (MAS) 2015 Summit for NYC, Seth Pinsky, executive vice president at RXR Realty, shared a presentation regarding the development of the long-planned rehabilitation and conversion of Pier 57 aka "SuperPier." In addition to some new looks at the project, he revealed that the developers have largely secured financing and are finalizing talks with the Hudson River Park Trust. RXR are co-developing the project with Young Woo & Associates, and Handel Architects and !Melk Landscape Architecture and Urban Design are the commissioned designers. According to Pinsky, the 450,000-square-foot development will invest $350 million of private capital to redevelop the structure, and in return create hundreds of jobs, generate millions of dollars of revenue for the Hudson River Park Trust, and create a new destination for New Yorkers and visitors alike. The former NYCEDC head confirmed that the project will include 250,000 square feet of office space for a major technology company [Google], a 170,000-square-foot food and retail market [Anthony Bourdain], and an elevated park with an outdoor movie and performance amphitheater on the roof to be used for screenings for the Tribeca Film Festival. He also noted construction will begin during the first half of next year, with completion aimed for early 2018.
Lots more renderings and details ahead

October 30, 2015

Listings Launch for Zaha Hadid’s High Line Condos

By Dana Schulz

Though sales launched earlier this month at Zaha Hadid's curving High Line condo building, her first commission in NYC, there were no public listings. The wait is over, though, as they've just gone live, providing long-anticipated pricing and floorplans. The eleven-story building at 520 West 28th Street in Chelsea will offer 39 two- to five-bedroom homes, all of which take advantage of the starchitect's signature swooping construction. They'll range from $4,950,000 to $50 million for the largest penthouse, but the three residences listed on Corcoran are a $6.4 million two-bedroom unit; a $9.4 million three-bedroom; and a $16 million four-bedroom.
Ogle the floorplans and renderings

October 22, 2015

Cool Co-op Asks $2.195 Million in the Thomas English Muffin Building

The English muffin has a pretty notable history in New York City. In 1874, Samuel Bath Thomas–yes, that Thomas–left England to sell English muffins to the New York masses, and his recipe was a hit. For a long time, he baked underneath the Chelsea townhouse at 337 West 20th Street, between 8th and 9th Avenues, which you can read all about here. But before he baked there, he got his start at another Chelsea building, at 161 9th Avenue. This very first New York bakery of his is now the site of the two-bedroom co-op on the market for $2.195 million. It's a cool duplex space with an even cooler private garden.
See the whole place

Distinctive Homes

October 15, 2015

For $1.5M, a Neon Yellow Spiral Staircase and Private Roof Deck in a Chelsea Modernist Gem

We don't know the exact size of this Chelsea duplex-plus-roof-deck penthouse at 365 West 19th Street, but it's configured as a one-bedroom with office space, and from the floor plan there's not much extra room to spare. That said, the spaces that have been created in this out-of-the-box home are as easy on the eyes as they'd be to live in. And its price tag of $1.5 million—especially given its prime location and architectural uniqueness—seems almost reasonable.
Explore all three levels, this way

Distinctive Homes

October 9, 2015

REVEALED: Chelsea Atelier’s Mixed-Use High Line Development With Viewing Decks

Another forward-looking project may be coming to the banks of the High Line, this time for a T-shaped lot near the corner of Tenth Avenue and West 17th Street. While still in its conceptual stage, the design of 455 West 17th Street is being handled by architecture and project management firm Chelsea Atelier. The two-wing project consists of a four-story Tenth Avenue wing, to contain a small hotel or offices, and a larger 11-story wing that would house residential condominiums. Amir Shouri, senior designer at Chelsea Atelier, says the design seeks to create viewing decks to capture glimpses of the High Line and the Hudson River. The blurred boundaries between inside and out will ceaselessly showcase the "live urban activity of the High Line during the day and motivate inhabitants to go out an enjoy the area's many amenities."
More details this way

October 8, 2015

There’s an Historic English Muffin Oven Hiding Underneath This Chelsea Co-op

Although the popular song would have you believe that the muffin man lives on Drury Lane, he actually has digs right here in Chelsea on West 20th Street. 337 West 20th Street, between 8th and 9th Avenues, is a nondescript, four-story brick building that is officially known as "The Muffin House." Looking at the building from outside, you wouldn't think there's anything special to it. But underground, preserved below what is now a modest co-op complex, there's a massive bakery oven. And not just any old oven, although that discovery is unique in and of itself. This is the oven once operated by a very well-known baker, the one responsible for introducing English muffins to the United States.
His name was Samuel Bath Thomas

October 6, 2015

Academy Award-Nominated Director Jason Reitman Sells His Classy Chelsea Home for $3M

The fate of Jason Reitman's Chelsea pad is no longer up in the air. After just 32 days on the market, the director/producer/screenwriter, best known for the beloved indie flick "Juno," as well as well as the aforementioned pun starring George Clooney, has sold for $3.05 million. As noted by the Observer, the 1,600-square-foot space at 434 West 20th Street was purchased by Reitman with his then-wife Michelle Lee back in 2011 for $2.15 million, with the pair said to be drawn in by the home's prewar detailing and its location just across from the New York Seminary's gorgeous gardens.
More photos inside the beautiful apartment

October 6, 2015

$4M Chelsea Loft Boasts Tons of Stylish Space Inside and Out

This Chelsea co-op, located at 139 West 19th Street, has got lots of things going for it: it's super stylish, has some great interior details, there's an expansive living room along with two full bedrooms and bathrooms, and it has a huge backyard that will incite envy. It's also located in a charming central location on 19th Street between 6th and 7th avenues. The cost for all this good stuff comes in at $3.895 million.
Take the tour

Distinctive Homes

October 2, 2015

Zaha Hadid Launches Sales at Her High Line Condos, Talks the Evolution of NY Architecture

Related Companies has officially launched sales for their highly-anticipated upcoming condominium, 520 West 28th Street. Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect and artist Zaha Hadid, the eleven-story building will be Hadid's first ground-up structure in New York and will offer 39 distinctive two- to five-bedroom homes priced from $4,950,000 to $50 million for the largest penthouse. The under construction building, now five-stories up, rises alongside the High Line elevated park from an L-shaped parcel between West 27th and 28th Streets in the center of West Chelsea's art gallery district. Related Companies purchased the site for $65 million in 2012 and soon after commissioned the Iraqi-British designer, who beat out the likes of fellow Brit, Norman Foster. Yesterday, at the development's launch, Hadid said she has "always been fascinated by the High Line and its possibilities for the city. "
More from the event here

October 2, 2015

Unleash Your Inner Iron Chef at Bobby Flay’s $8M Chelsea Duplex