Manhattan

Applications are currently being accepted to replenish the wait list for middle-income apartments at a Tribeca rental building. The 12-story tower at 89 Murray Street, dubbed Washington Mews, was constructed in 2007 and designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill's Mustafa Abadan. Qualifying New Yorkers must earn 175 percent of the area median income to apply for the $2,832/month two-bedrooms and $3,213/month three-bedrooms. While these prices rightfully seem steep, market rate two-bedrooms at the same building currently start at just under $6,000/month.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

‘Peeling’ away the history of NYC’s banana docks

“Banana Docks, New York” c. 1906. Via The Library of Congress

June 24, 2019

‘Peeling’ away the history of NYC’s banana docks

By Lucie Levine

If you’ve ever grabbed a bushel of bananas at your corner bodega, then you’ve nabbed a few of the 20 million bananas distributed around NYC every week. Today, our bananas dock at small piers in Red Hook, or, more often, make the journey by truck from Delaware. But, from the late 19th century until well into the 20th, New York was a major banana port, and banana boats hauled their cargo to the city’s bustling Banana Docks on the piers at Old Slip. Surveying that cargo in August 1897, The New York Times wrote that the banana trade thrived in New York year-round, but the bulk of bananas hit the five boroughs between March and September. “They are brought to New York in steamers, carrying from 15,000 to 20,000 bunches…There is quite a fleet of small steamers engaged almost exclusively in the banana trade, and during the busy season many more steamers of greater size are employed.”
Peel away at this story!

History

June 21, 2019

Inside the Elizabeth Collective, Elizabeth Taylor’s former Midtown mansion turned arts collective

By Dana Schulz

When you think of the heart of Midtown, the first thing that comes to mind is probably not a turn-of-the-century mansion dripping with historic details. But nestled amongst the office buildings on West 56th Street between 5th and 6th Avenues is just that. Designed by architects Warren & Wetmore of Grand Central fame, 10 West 56th Street has gone through several incarnations over its lifetime, from private residence (including the one-time home of Elizabeth Taylor!) to high-end retail space. Its most recent transformation was helmed by Roxana Q. Girand, founder of real estate development firm Sebastian Capital. Wanting to merge her expertise and passion in commercial space, art, and beauty, she opened the Elizabeth Collective this past fall as part art pop-up event space, part permanent studio workspaces. 6sqft recently visited Roxana at the Collective to get a behind-the-scenes look at the incredible French Renaissance Revival building, see how she's given the space a new life, and learn more about what's to come.
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Port Authority reveals $1B plan to make PATH trains less crowded, more efficient

Image via Flickr

June 21, 2019

Port Authority reveals $1B plan to make PATH trains less crowded, more efficient

With daily ridership on the PATH train hitting record highs, the Port Authority has announced a new plan to ease the crowds and provide improved service. Over the next three years, the PATH will get a new signal system, 72 new rail cars, and increase capacity by up to 40 percent on its Newark-World Trade Center Route—that means room for about 18,000 extra riders during rush hour—by running longer, nine-car trains. “We want this plan to be game-changing,” said Executive Director Rick Cotton.
All the details

Transit

Asking $16M, this charming Chelsea carriage house has two terraces, a garden, and a private garage

Photos by Travis Mark for Sotheby’s International Realty

June 20, 2019

Asking $16M, this charming Chelsea carriage house has two terraces, a garden, and a private garage

Photos by Travis Mark for Sotheby’s International Realty Carriage houses are often unique to begin with, possessed of private garages in former carriage quarters. This gem at 313 West 20th Street in Chelsea has all of the carriage house perks (including the garage and tons of curb appeal), but at 25 feet wide, with a "secret" garden, two terraces, and a separate top-floor two-bedroom apartment, no living space is sacrificed. Asking $15.8 million, this turn-of-the-20th-century home has four stories, historic details, and every modern comfort including new double-pane windows and central air.
Carriage house tour, this way

Distinctive Homes

Art Deco-inspired food hall opening in Midtown will offer Filipino fare, Hawaiian bites, and more

Rendering © DBOX, Inc.

June 20, 2019

Art Deco-inspired food hall opening in Midtown will offer Filipino fare, Hawaiian bites, and more

Manhattan's Garment District is getting a new food and beverage concept in early September. Located at 231 West 39th Street, The Deco Food + Drink will include a food hall, cocktail bar, and event space aimed at appealing to both office workers in Midtown and tourists known to flock to the neighborhood. On Wednesday, the food hall released its list of vendors and the line-up promises to offer a variety of cuisines, from French baked goods to traditional Filipino fare.
Get the details

Food & Dining

Midtown’s 71-year-old Paris Theatre may be closing before the end of the summer

Image via Flickr

June 20, 2019

Midtown’s 71-year-old Paris Theatre may be closing before the end of the summer

The last standing single-screen movie theatre in the city, Midtown’s Paris Theatre, may be shuttering as early as July or August, Deadline reports. According to “buzz on the Gotham arthouse theater circuit,” the last screening of Ron Howard’s Pavarotti on June 27 could be the last at the arthouse theatre on 58th Street, unless “something drastic happens.” The 586-seat theatre opened across the street from the Plaza Hotel in 1948, with a ribbon-cutting by actress Marlene Dietrich. Its since been a go-to spot for indie and foreign films, with a predilection, as its name implies, for French titles.
Get the scoop

City Living

Federal government lists Paul Manafort’s seized Trump Tower condo for $3.6M

Via Flickr

June 20, 2019

Federal government lists Paul Manafort’s seized Trump Tower condo for $3.6M

Another Manhattan property forfeited by Paul Manafort has hit the market. The federal government is selling the Trump Tower condo once owned by the former Donald Trump campaign manager for $3.6 million, the New York Post reported. Earlier this month, the feds put Manafort's Soho apartment at 29 Howard Street on the market for $3.663 million.
Find out more

Celebrities

The Library After Hours. Image courtesy of NYPL.

June 19, 2019

Celebrate pride after hours at the library for talks, a literary drag show, cocktails and more

Celebrate Pride Month at the library! As part of the New York Public Library's "Love & Resistance: Stonewall 50" exhibition, the doors at the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building are staying open on Friday, June 21 for the "city's most cerebral happy hour." The after-hours event offers access to the Rose Main Reading Room and other gorgeous library spaces, artist and curator talks, readings from the archives by special guests, a literary drag show with Drag Queen Story Hour, music, food, drinks and more.
All the info, this way

Events & Things To Do

June 19, 2019

Asking $7M, this sprawling West Village condo has a two-level, three-season sky garden

Located in one of the city's most coveted locations in the quiet western reaches of the West Village, this 2,000-square-foot, three-bedroom condominium at 99 Jane Street, asking $6.995 million, is as classic a Manhattan home as they come. If size and location weren't enough to inspire envy, a 1,000-square-foot terrace with spectacular views from two levels is a garden lover's dream.
More magical sky garden, this way

Distinctive Homes

84 studios for low-income seniors up for grabs at new Essex Crossing building, from $331/month

Rendering courtesy of Beyer Blinder Belle

June 19, 2019

84 studios for low-income seniors up for grabs at new Essex Crossing building, from $331/month

The city launched on Wednesday an affordable housing lottery for 84 affordable studios on the Lower East Side exclusively for low-income seniors. The building at 140 Essex Street sits as part of the nine-site Essex Crossing development and contains 92 units total. Qualifying senior households earning between zero and 60 percent of the area median income can apply for the apartments, which range from $331/month to $761/month.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

Jennifer Lopez and A-Rod find a buyer for their short-lived 432 Park pad

432 via DBOX; Alex Rodriguez via Wiki Commons; Jennifer Lopez via Wiki Commons

June 19, 2019

Jennifer Lopez and A-Rod find a buyer for their short-lived 432 Park pad

By Annie Doge

Newly engaged couple Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez have found a buyer for their sky-high Midtown apartment, the New York Post reported Tuesday. The duo listed their pad at 432 Park Avenue--the tallest residential building in the Western Hemisphere--for $17.5 million in January, less than a year after they bought the three-bedroom apartment. It remains unclear who the buyer is and how much they ultimately paid.
Details here

$23M renovated Greenwich Village townhouse comes with a glass-walled lap pool

Listing photos courtesy of Prime Manhattan Residential

June 18, 2019

$23M renovated Greenwich Village townhouse comes with a glass-walled lap pool

By Andrew Berman of Village Preservation

The six-level, eight-bedroom townhouse at 109 Waverly Place, asking $23.5 million, already occupies the ultra-luxury zone with its 25-foot width, high-speed elevator and architect-led modern renovation. But an indoor lap pool and a rooftop Jacuzzi put the single family home spanning more than 8,300 square feet in a class by itself. Add to that exclusive combination 1,500 square feet of outdoor space and a cover spot on Interior Design magazine, and you might wonder why the historic Village address has been on the market since 2017, when it was listed for $28 million.
Take the tour

Distinctive Homes

June 17, 2019

23 LGBT landmarks of the East Village and Noho

Their neighbor to the west Greenwich Village may be more well known as a nexus for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender history, but the East Village and Noho are chock full of LGBT culture as well, from the site of one the very first LGBT demonstrations to the homes of some of the greatest openly-LGBT artists and writers of the 20th century to the birthplace of New York’s largest drag festival. Ahead, we round up 23 examples, from Walt Whitman's favorite watering hole to Allen Ginsberg's many local residences to Keith Haring's studio.
Learn the history of all the spots

History

Dorrance Brooks Square Historic District, St. Marks United Methodist Church. Image courtesy of NY State Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.

June 17, 2019

Historic places in the UWS, Harlem and Sunset Park are recommended for state and national designation

Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced on Friday that the New York State Board for Historic Preservation has recommended adding 18 properties, resources, and districts to the State and National Registers of Historic Places. The new nominations include the Upper West Side home of author and civil rights activist James Baldwin, the Dorrance Brooks Square Historic District and the former 32nd Precinct Station House complex in Harlem, and the Fourth Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church in Sunset Park, Brooklyn in addition to 14 other nominated places throughout the state.
Find out how New York continues to recognize varied historic places

City withdraws plan for mixed-income tower proposed for Upper East Side playground

Previous rendering of the original project; Via NYCHA

June 17, 2019

City withdraws plan for mixed-income tower proposed for Upper East Side playground

The New York City Housing Authority has ditched plans to build a private 47-story apartment building on top of a playground on the Upper East Side, agency officials said Friday. The original plan called for a 300-unit tower to replace the playground at the Holmes Tower public housing complex with half of the units affordable and the other half at market-rate, the latter meant to raise funds for repairs at the tower. The new plan for the site will increase the number of market-rate apartments in order to collect more money, NYCHA officials told THE CITY.
Get the details

Affordable Housing

“Harlem Street Scene Showing Local Businesses,” 1939, Photographer: Sid Grossman, Street Scenes Collection, Photographs and Prints Division, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture courtesy of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture

June 14, 2019

New Schomburg Center exhibit explores 20th-century Black placemaking in Harlem

By Lucie Levine

"A Ballad for Harlem," the new exhibit now on view at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, explores the history of the neighborhood and celebrates Black placemaking in 20th and 21st century America. The exhibit uses photographs, manuscripts, objects, art and sculpture from the Schomburg's collection to revisit "Harlem’s places, people, and moments—both known and underrepresented—that capture the realities of community and hardship experienced by Black Americans." Ahead, hear from curator Novella Ford to learn more about the show.
READ MORE

June 14, 2019

This $17.5M historic Tribeca townhouse has a jazz club in the basement

The Bogardus Mansion at 75 Murray Street is an original cast iron treasure. Perfectly configured for conversion to a single family home, the 25-foot-wide Tribeca building, asking $17.5 million, is a true piece of New York City history, with original details and plenty of possibilities, from the noted 75 Club jazz venue in the building's basement to the owner's penthouse with a conservatory, roof deck and stunning lower Manhattan views.
Five floors, a penthouse and a unique speakeasy

Distinctive Homes

10 businesses including Tracks Bar will be shuttered in $600M Penn Station revamp

Photo of Tracks Bar by 6sqft

June 14, 2019

10 businesses including Tracks Bar will be shuttered in $600M Penn Station revamp

Recently-revealed renderings show the final design for the new main entrance to Penn Station. It's no surprise that, as the Wall Street Journal reports, the overhaul will mean the eviction of 10 businesses including popular commuter watering hole Tracks Bar. Real estate developer Vornado will be making the decision about which, if any, of the businesses–other than Tracks, mostly chain restaurants–can return when renovations are done.
Find out more

June 13, 2019

Chelsea condo once owned by NSYNC member Lance Bass is asking $2.5M

By Annie Doge

A two-bedroom condo in Chelsea once owned by boy band star Lance Bass hit the market this week for $2.5 million, as first reported by the New York Post. Located in celebrity-magnet Chelsea Mercantile, the renovated condo loft at 252 Seventh Avenue measures just over 1,300 square feet. The NSYNC member bought the apartment for $1.49 million in 2010; current owner Ellen Kroner picked it up in 2013 for $2.13 million.
Take the tour

1,250-name waitlist opens for affordable co-ops at Chelsea’s Penn South, starting at $84,000

23rd Street subway station and Penn South, via Wiki Commons

June 13, 2019

1,250-name waitlist opens for affordable co-ops at Chelsea’s Penn South, starting at $84,000

By Dana Schulz

Though it's rare, the city does offer affordable apartments to purchase, and a new waiting list is now open for residences at Penn South, a limited-equity housing co-op (h/t Rachel Holliday Smith). The Chelsea development stretches between Eighth and Ninth Avenues from 23rd to 29th Streets and is comprised of 10 buildings and nearly 3,000 units. Though the complex was constructed almost 60 years ago, its location today is prime thanks to a booming Chelsea and proximity to Hudson Yards. Those who meet the income requirements can enter the 1,250-name waitlist for studios starting at $84,372, one-bedrooms from $101,247, and two-bedrooms from $151,870.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

June 13, 2019

The Urban Lens: Capturing the final days of the Lower East Side’s shuttered Streit’s Matzo Factory

6sqft’s series The Urban Lens invites photographers to share work exploring a theme or a place within New York City. In this installment, Joseph O. Holmes shares his photo series of Streit's Matzo Factory, the now-shuttered LES institution. Are you a photographer who’d like to see your work featured on The Urban Lens? Get in touch with us at [email protected]. In 2015, after nearly 90 years in operation, Streit's Matzo Factory on the Lower East Side closed its doors. But before the property's new owners demolished the site to make way for luxury condos, the Streit family let photographer Joseph O. Holmes tour the space. Through photos of the four-building factory, its old-school machinery, and its workers, Joseph captured the final days of this neighborhood icon. "If I hadn't shot it, most of it would be forgotten," Joseph told 6sqft. Although Streit's closed more than four years ago and condo building 150 Rivington has since risen in its place, Joseph's poignant photos were given new life this month. The developer purchased some of the photos to hang permanently in the lobby of 150 Rivington as an ode to the building's industrial roots. Ahead, hear from Joseph about what it was like to photograph the maze-like factory and why he finds old machines so beautiful.
See inside and meet Joseph

Places

Essex Crossing’s public park is now open on the Lower East Side

Images by QuallsBenson

June 13, 2019

Essex Crossing’s public park is now open on the Lower East Side

A 15,000-square-foot park—the latest component of Essex Crossing to open to the public—is now complete on the Lower East Side, right in time for summer. Designed by landscape architecture firm West 8 (best known for designing the Hills at Governors Island), the park is a welcome addition to the neighborhood, where the ambitious Essex Crossing project is still in full swing, with seven of its nine sites now open or under construction.
More details

Six restaurants to open this fall in Nordstrom’s flagship store at Central Park Tower

Rendering courtesy of Nordstrom

June 12, 2019

Six restaurants to open this fall in Nordstrom’s flagship store at Central Park Tower

Six unique restaurants and bars will set up shop at Nordstrom's flagship store in New York City when it opens in October. Located in the base of the supertall at 225 West 57th Street, known as the Central Park Tower, the 285,000-square-foot Nordstrom takes up seven floors of the building. As Eater NY first reported, the restaurants will be run by two chefs from Seattle: Ethan Stowell and Tom Douglas.
Get more details

Seven years in the works, Jeanne Gang’s $383M Museum of Natural History expansion breaks ground

A rendering of the front façade of the Gilder Center (L) by Studio Gang, 2019; Center interior (R) by MIR and Studio Gang, 2019.

June 12, 2019

Seven years in the works, Jeanne Gang’s $383M Museum of Natural History expansion breaks ground