6sqft | NYC local news, events, and apartments

On the heels of the news that Hudson Yards will add $18.9 billion to the city's GDP and the reconfirmation that the developers will build an iconic $200 million sculpture at the center of the plan's plaza, Related quietly launched a new Hudson Yards Living website, providing general information for prospective residents and a few new images of the $20 billion master plan.
More details and renderings this way

Pinball Prohibition: The Arcade Game Was Illegal in New York for Over 30 Years

Police Commissioner William O’Brien smashing a pinball machine in 1949

May 4, 2016

Pinball Prohibition: The Arcade Game Was Illegal in New York for Over 30 Years

It's hard to believe, but between the 1940s and '70s pinball was actually banned in NYC, as well as other major cities like Chicago and Los Angeles, for its questionable ethics. While most of us consider the arcade game a wholesome activity, its first iteration was without the flippers and considered a form of gambling. From city raids to seedy backdoor operations, pinball prohibition lasted for more than 30 years, and efforts to get the beloved game legalized were equally dramatic.
Get the full scoop

History

May 4, 2016

432 Park Avenue Reveals Glowing White Cube for Retail Space

While most of the news surrounding Rafael Viñoly's iconic 432 Park Avenue has been about big ticket closings at the Billionaire's Row blockbuster with a $3.1 billion projected sellout, developer Macklowe has revealed more about what the news-making skyscraper's 130,000 square feet of retail and office space, divided over several floors, will look like. Adding an even more attention-getting element to the tower, a portion of the building's retail space will be located in a two-story white glass cube at the corner of East 57th Street and Park Avenue.
Find out more

Stuff You Should Know: How Eminent Domain Works

The Atlantic Yards (now known as Pacific Park) in Brooklyn where eminent domain was used to take property. Image via Atlantic Yards Report

May 4, 2016

Stuff You Should Know: How Eminent Domain Works

By Penelope Bareau

It has been called the most coercive public policy after the draft. It has also been said that without it, construction in major cities would come to a shuddering stop. What is this powerful, controversial tool? Can both statements be true? Eminent domain is the policy by which a governmental agency can acquire or "take" property from an owner unwilling to sell in order to build something else there, and it has been around for centuries. Some say it derives from the medieval concept of the divine right of kings, empowered by God the Almighty to be sovereign over all. And by inference, that includes the land, which individual owners occupy and trade at the king's sufferance. When he wants it back, it is his right to take it. So under eminent domain, all land theoretically belongs to the state, which can assume control at any time.
more on eminent domain here

May 4, 2016

An Option to Buy or Rent a Historic Renwick Triangle Townhouse in the East Village

Just because the East Village isn't known for its townhouse stock doesn't mean there aren't wonderful, historic (and expensive) houses to move into there. Take this one, at 114 East 10th Street, which is part of the Renwick Triangle in the St. Marks Historic District. The triangle gets its name from architect James Renwick Jr., who designed it with rows of Anglo-Italianate single-family homes. This house was on the market two years back asking $7.5 million and it sold for $7.606 million. Now you can either buy or rent it, for $9.85 million or $50K a month.
See the historic interior details

May 4, 2016

Affordable Luxury Hits the Upper East Side Market at 389 East 89th Street

At First Avenue and 89th Street on the Upper East Side, 31 floors of spacious, light-filled homes have been reintroduced to the market. In a building previously known as the Post Toscana, 199 rental apartments have been upgraded and enlarged into 156 one- to three-bedroom residences fashioned by acclaimed interior designer Paris Forino. Now dubbed 389 E 89, the tower is the latest in a flurry of top-shelf rental buildings re-branded as affordable condos with high-end finishes.
All the info ahead

May 4, 2016

Use BrickBox Modular Shelving to Store Books, Create Room Partitions or Move Homes

Kazam Design's BrickBox is a simple yet innovative storage system that consists of wooden boxes designed to easily fit together without screws or assembly. The units can be stacked or arranged to not only provide ample and flexible shelving, but to create sideboards or room separators. Each "brick box" also doubles as a wooden box perfect for transporting your belongings when you move from one space to another.
More on this design here

May 4, 2016

Jane Jacobs Google Doodle; WTC Transportation Hub Getting a Massive LED Billboard

Marking her 100th birthday, legendary preservationist Jane Jacobs gets the Google Doodle treatment. [Gothamist] And here’s all the NYC apartments she lived in. [Untapped] Obama is considering making Christopher Park, located right across from the Stonewall Inn, a national monument to the gay rights movement. [NYT] There’s now a dedicated bathroom for dogs at JFK Airport. […]

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Distinctive Homes

For $2.3M, this Amzi Hill-designed Bed-Stuy brownstone gives you plenty of options

7,000-square-foot 'wellness loft' in the West Village asks $25.8M, working phone booth included

Sting's former Central Park West pad is back on the market for $45M

An architect's vision transformed this $2.15M Park Slope loft with leveled-up modernist design

This $12M home in a Chelsea Deco icon has a terrace and room for an extra bedroom

An artist's mural in this $1.4M Hit Factory condo will remind you of its colorful past

Bob Dylan's historic Harlem townhouse sells for $2.8M

$45M for a two-for-one penthouse palace at the top of the Plaza

A 70-foot brick smokestack anchors a private garden at this $2.1M Williamsburg loft

This landmarked $3M Flatbush townhouse is architecturally significant and expansively livable, garage included

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May 4, 2016

$14M Gilded Age Mansion in Murray Hill Was the Home of J.P. Morgan’s Attorney

Most of New York City's grand and historic homes have been altered for modern-day use as apartments, libraries, hotels, diplomatic buildings and the like. And when it comes to those that have remained as opulent single- or multi-family homes, most have changed hands so many times that we don't know much about their history. That is not the case for this massive 9,300-square-foot townhouse across the street from the Morgan Library. The home was originally the residence of J.P. Morgan's attorney John Trevor, Sr. and is currently in use as a 10-unit apartment building–albeit a rather special one with some unique spaces like a private office and a gorgeous rear parlor with symphony-ready acoustics and 13-foot ceilings. Whoever purchases the home, on the market for $14 million, could create a vast five-story mansion (there's already an elevator), or any number of alternate configurations–but they'll still have great sound in that back parlor.
The neighborhood blows up, then the lawyers move in

May 3, 2016

The Whole Foods Effect: Does the Green Grocery Increase Home Values?

Fairway Market, considered by many the quintessential New York City supermarket, filed for bankruptcy yesterday, citing competition from "natural, organic and prepared food rivals" and "online ordering and home delivery services," according to the Wall Street Journal. Perhaps their biggest threats are Whole Foods and Trader Joe's, which both seem to be in a very different boat. Yahoo! Finance looked at data of four million homes in the U.S. that are located in a zip code with either one of these stores, "finding that average property values in a ZIP code with Trader Joe's appreciated by about 40 percent since they were purchased, while homes with a Whole Foods in the ZIP code appreciated by nearly 34 percent." The reasoning is quite simple -- people will pay a premium for the convenience of being near their favorite stores. And proximity to a store like Whole Foods, often thought of as more high-end than other grocery stores, adds an air of prestige to a neighborhood. But the science behind it is a bit of a chicken or the egg situation -- does a retailer directly affect home values, or are these companies able to identify locations where they'll generate the most interest?
Find out this way

May 3, 2016

Extell Files to Demolish Two More Fifth Avenue Buildings For Its Mega-Midtown Assemblage

Back in January, 6sqft reported that the busybodies at Extell Development filed permits to demolish a string of six tumble-turned walk-up buildings between 3 and 13 West 46th Street in Midtown. Now, as expected, the Gary Barnett-led firm has filed permits to demolish the Warren & Wetmore-designed corner building at 562 Fifth Avenue and a somewhat incongruous Tudor-style building at 564 Fifth Avenue. While none of the condemned buildings are extraordinary in design, 562 Fifth Avenue is perhaps a more tasteful affair than much of the schlock going up these days. Designed by the same architects as Grand Central Terminal, the slivery 13-story commercial building was once known as the I. Miller Building and features intricately ornamented spandrel areas, a pedimented roofline, and an unoriginal albeit charming Fifth Avenue storefront.
More on Extell's plans and the history of the soon-to-be-razed buildings

May 3, 2016

Three Floors, Three Amazing Terraces at This $6.4M Tribeca Penthouse Loft

If you couldn't afford the penthouse unit at 153 Chambers Street in Tribeca the first time it hit the market, now it's back with a nearly $1 million price chop. Last year, the impressive pad hit the market asking $7.25 million and now it's down to $6.4 million. Most notable about this triplex space are the three different terraces, decked out with a hot tub, hidden outdoor shower, landscaping and impressive views of the Freedom Tower. With summer approaching, these are some of the most envy-inducing terraces we've ever seen...
Check them out

Distinctive Homes

May 3, 2016

VIDEO: A Visit to the ‘Creepy’ Depths of the ‘90s Subway Finds Some Things Haven’t Changed

Here’s a video that drops a subway token on the dark ages of 1990, when the city's underground transit system may have been a little “creepy,” but buses still took forever. While our ideas of what’s merely unruly (afterschool hordes) and what’s downright dangerous (the NYPD, eek!) may have been changed by the intervening years, it’s interesting to note the things that have stayed the same (capacity crowds on the Lexington Avenue line). Our host, a Fonzie-meets-Geraldo-esque Newsday columnist by the name of Ellis Henican, skims the surface of the many, many things that are going on below it in the city’s subway tunnels of the day, including ghost stations, locked restrooms and more.
Find out what's changed, what hasn't and what's still creepy

May 3, 2016

Skyline Wars: New Jersey’s Waterfront Transforms With a Tall Tower Boom

By Carter B. Horsley

Carter Uncut brings New York City’s latest development news under the critical eye of resident architecture critic Carter B. Horsley. Here, Carter brings us his seventh installment of “Skyline Wars,” a series that examines the explosive and unprecedented supertall phenomenon that is transforming the city’s silhouette. In this post Carter looks at the new New Jersey skyline. The hulking, 781-foot-high Goldman Sachs tower at 30 Hudson Street in Jersey City is like the Rock of Gilbraltar to Lower Manhattan’s famed skyline: massive and impressive. To some, perhaps, it conjures a Monty Python catapult or a very steep cliff on which to mount the Guns of Navarone for an assault on Lower Manhattan. It dominates the Jersey City skyline, which is a bit Spartan, especially in comparison with Brooklyn’s. Most of the skyscrapers in Brooklyn, however, are not directly on the waterfront and the Goldman tower is very much “in your face” on the water. Furthermore, all of a relative sudden, Jersey City is about to explode with three taller towers, which I can only describe as delirious, dancing, shimmy-shimmy-shake buildings with drop-dead vistas of Manhattan and the Hudson.
read more from carter here

May 3, 2016

Looking Back at the Ruined Serbian Orthodox Church; An Oral History of ‘Rent’

On Sunday night, a fire tore though the Flatiron’s Serbian Orthodox Church. Here’s a look back its fascinating history. [NYT] Barbara Corcoran lists her UES co-op for $4.9 million. Last year, she picked up a $10 million penthouse in the ‘hood. [NYP] What moms want for Mother’s Day by state. [Mashable] Twenty years after “Rent” […]

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May 3, 2016

Alison Jennison’s Greenpoint Townhouse Reflects the Neighborhood’s Eclectic Vibe

From its residents to living spaces, Greenpoint has become a diverse neighborhood across the board, and this cozy townhouse from designer Alison Jennison reflects these same vibes. The interior combines a modern color palette with an eclectic and well-curated mix of furniture and art, creating a balanced and comfortable place to call home.
See the full space here

May 3, 2016

172 Madison Tops Out and Reveals Renderings for Incredible Penthouse with Two Pools

Within the Empire State Building's five o'clock shadow, an eruption of glossy residential high-rises are nipping at the dame's feet. Embracing a thoroughfare most familiar for its commercial connotations, the latest tower to ascend is a 33-story condo simply known by its address, 172 Madison Avenue. The 130,000-square-foot skyscraper is being developed by Tessler Developments and is among a half-dozen residential buildings planned for a central, yet undefined neighborhood that is almost Murray Hill, but not quite NoMad. Its topped off concrete frame rises nearly 450 feet above its East 33rd street corner, which was previously occupied by a ubiquitous clump of commercial, low-slung masonry structures. Now with its debut pegged for early next year, the symmetrically-massed tower designed by Karl Fischer Architects is being dressed in its sparkly coat of reflective glass that is accentuated by robust onyx-colored frames. And along with this debut, comes new renderings of the triplex penthouse dubbed the SkyHouse, which is a massive marble palace with two outdoor pools.
All the details and renderings ahead

Late Portrait Artist Aaron Shikler’s UWS Co-op in the Iconic Studio Building Asks $7.8M

Late portraitist Aaron Shikler is best known for his classically gorgeous paintings of the American elite, most notably an official White House portrait of Jacqueline (then) Kennedy as First Lady and (posthumously) President John F. Kennedy as well as paintings of notables like Lady Bird Johnson, the Duchess of Windsor and the portrait of Ronald Reagan that appeared on Time magazine’s Man of the Year cover in January 1981. The Brooklyn-born artist and his wife, who died in 1998, lived at the standout Studio Building cooperative at 44 West 77th Street overlooking Central Park for over 50 years with their family. Shikler passed away last year at 93, and since ownership appears to have been transferred to the couple's two children in 2013, we'll assume they're the ones who have just put this classically grand three-bedroom Upper West Side co-op on the market for $7.795 million. Among the most thrilling of its many assets is the light-filled, enormous art studio where Shikler worked. The artist's fascinating paintings are visible throughout the apartment (though we doubt they're part of the deal).
Take a look around this creative co-op

May 3, 2016

Average Condo Sale in Manhattan Reaches $2.9M, Setting New Record

For the second quarter in a row, average condo sales prices in Manhattan are breaking records. The first three months of 2016 saw $4.59 billion in aggregate sales, breaking the previous record of $4.57 billion that was set last quarter, according to data from CityRealty. The average sales price topped out at $2.9 million, also significantly higher than last quarter's $2.5 million. These figures aren't surprising considering 24 percent of all condo sales during the beginning of this year were at or above $10 million, with new luxury developments like 432 Park Avenue, The Greenwich Lane, and 150 Charles Street accounting for the uptick.
More stats this way

Real Estate Trends

May 2, 2016

Hedge Funder Daniel Nir’s $52M Co-op Sale Is This Year’s Biggest

When Daniel Nir, founder and CEO of hedge fund Gracie Capital, and his wife, philanthropist Jill Braufman, listed their sprawling Upper East Side co-op for $48 million a year ago, it certainly caught raised a few eyebrows. But the 16-room home at 4 East 66th Street has actually sold over ask for $52 million, making it this year's biggest co-op sale and the seventh biggest co-op sale to date. It's also the first time this pre-war building has cracked the top-ten list. The couple bought the home in 2007 from hotelier Robert H. Burns for $29 million, leaving them with a nice chunk of change.
See what all the fuss is about

Real Estate Trends

May 2, 2016

Interactive Map Shows How Your Neighborhood Has Recovered From the Housing Market Crash

Most Americans are finally starting to feel a bit of relief that the economy is getting back on its feet, but when it comes to the housing market, it's not as cut and dry as we might think. Analyzing data from Black Knight Financial Services from 2004 to 2015 (the bubble, burst, and recovery), the Washington Post asserts that the country's housing arc has only worsened inequality. "It also helps explain why the economic recovery feels incomplete, especially in neighborhoods where the value of housing — often the biggest family asset — has recovered little, if at all," they explain. For example, an average single-family home gained less than 14 percent in value over the past 11 years, but homes in the nation's priciest neighborhoods have gained 21 percent. And interestingly, in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, an area that saw a huge gentrification push during this time period, single-family home values have tripled and risen by 194 percent -- the largest increase of any metro area in the country. The Post has taken the data and compiled it into an interactive map that lets users simply input a zipcode to see how the area has fared.
More national and local trends ahead

Real Estate Trends

May 2, 2016

Study: Hudson Yards Will Add $18.9 Billion to the City’s GDP

According to a recent study, economic activity at the $20 billion Hudson Yards West Side development–the nation's largest construction site–will contribute $18.9 billion to the city–more than the gross domestic product of Iceland ($15.3 billion), Crains reports. The study, commissioned by the project's developer, Related Cos., predicts that the companies projected to occupy the massive project that will stretch between West 30th Street and West 34th Street along the Hudson River will generate economic activty in the form of, among other things, salaries for new jobs and money paid to the MTA by the developer both during the 14-year construction period and once the development is complete in 2025.
Read more

Real Estate Trends

May 2, 2016

New Renderings of West Chelsea’s SkyBox Development and Art Gallery

A unique mixed-use development in West Chelsea may be the paradigm of what new development in Manhattan could aspire to. Combining new construction and rehabilitation, and marrying ostentatious high-end condos with affordable rentals and an art museum/gallery, the project dubbed Chelsea SkyBox will satiate a wide spectrum of urbanites. The 250-foot tower will rise directly south of Annabelle Selldorf's metal-face condo 200 Eleventh Avenue (aka the "Sky garage") and will host ten full-floor apartments plus a spectacular five-story penthouse that developer Jonathan Leitersdorf told the Journal he will ultimately occupy. The project also will rehabilitate the corner SRO building next door known as the Chelsea Highline Hotel. The ground floors of both buildings will be shared, and there will be 15,000-square- feet of commercial space that will have 30-foot-high ceilings and accommodate an art museum and a private gallery to contain works by Picasso, Keith Haring, Kandinsky, and Anish Kapoor.
Lots more renderings ahead

May 2, 2016

Christopher Duffy Unveils His ‘Abyss Dining Table’ Inspired by the Ocean’s Depths

By Ana Lisa Alperovich

Furniture designer Christopher Duffy recently unveiled a new dinning table inspired by the ocean. The conversation piece, which replicates an underwater geological cross section, will add several layers of magic to any dinner party held on it.
Learn more about this magical dinning table

May 2, 2016

Two Buildings and a Central Courtyard Make Up This $2.6M Williamsburg Property

It's a two-for-one deal at a Williamsburg townhouse property at 164 Ainslie Street. The lot holds both front and back buildings separated by a large, south-facing garden courtyard. They've been broken up into apartments with a total of 20 rooms, 11 bedrooms and six full bathrooms. And there are still some great historic details preserved inside, like fireplaces and carved wood mantlepieces.
Take a tour

Distinctive Homes

May 2, 2016

Bob Dylan Co-Wrote Protest Song About Robert Moses; Rats Are on the Rise

Snag the Greenest Seat in Town: Gufram's 1972 Pratone Chair is Shaped Like a Patch of Grass

Jane Jacobs’ son confirms that she worked with Bob Dylan on the lyrics for a protest song about Robert Moses. [Gothamist] Brooklyn Bridge Park’s 8-acre, $28 million marina opened yesterday. [NYT] Mapping the storefronts of major U.S. cities. [Washington Post] There’s been 8,335 rodent complaints to 311 so far this year, up 18 percent from the […]

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THE 6SQFT SHOP

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50 places to shop locally in NYC for that perfect gift

Everything you need to know about affordable housing: applying, getting in, and staying put

10 best plants for apartment dwellers

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May 2, 2016

This $7,600/Month West Chelsea Duplex Has a Secret Garden and a Hidden Bedroom Bar

As the weather warms and green things begin to grow, thoughts turn to our own gardening fantasies. Whether you've got a green thumb or a license to grill (with apologies to Mike D), with the private garden of a picturesque 1900s West Chelsea townhouse at 411 West 22nd Street all to yourself, what more do you need? This interesting custom-designed garden duplex has its quirks, and it's a rental so there's no long-term commitment necessary.
Take a tour

Distinctive Homes

May 2, 2016

First Look at StudiosC’s McGuinness Duo Near the Foot of Revamped Pulaski Bridge

By Julian Friedman

Since the Pulaski Bridge's two-way protected bikeway officially opened on Friday, real estate values in Greenpoint are likely to see an increase. And at the foot of the bridge's Brooklyn side, a pair of well-positioned buildings are underway, ready to take advantage of the new and improved connection to Long Island City and its G-train free access to Manhattan. The duo uniquely spans three narrow lots along the western side of McGuinness Boulevard between Green and Eagle Streets, near where the bridge begins its rise above street level.
More renderings and details

A New York Minute With Tribeca Gallery Owner and Preservationist Hal Bromm

6sqft’s new mini-series A New York Minute features influential New Yorkers answering spitfire (and sometimes very random) questions about their life in the big city. Want to nominate yourself or someone you know? Get in touch!

May 1, 2016

A New York Minute With Tribeca Gallery Owner and Preservationist Hal Bromm

Hal Bromm landed in Tribeca in the early '70s. He started out working for an architecture firm, but eventually returned to his fine art roots, opening the neighborhood's first contemporary art gallery. It was here in 1981 that Keith Haring had his first solo exhibition, an event that's often credited with his rise to fame. In the '80s, Hal also became involved in historic preservation, successfully advocating for the designation of four Tribeca historic districts and helping to form the Tribeca Trust. The Hal Bromm Gallery is still operating on West Broadway and Chambers Street and now that the hype surrounding its 40th anniversary exhibition has subsided, 6sqft had the chance to chat with Hal about his love for the city past and present.
Hal's NY Minute this way

Where I Work

April 30, 2016

The Upper West Side Readies For Two Synagogue-Replacing Condo Skyscrapers

The Upper West Side has proven to be one of the most difficult areas to build, with a growing amount of land area contained in historic districts and much of the remainder constrained by tight zoning regulations. Over the years, its protective residents have been involved in the city's most memorable development battles: fighting tooth and nail to reduce the scale of the Riverside South master plan; lessen shadows caused by the redevelopment of the New York Coliseum site (Time Warner Center); and more recently spearheading the downzoning of a 51-block swath of Broadway due to grievances caused by Extell's Ariel East and West towers. For the most part, the defensive strategy has allowed the neighborhood to retain much of its pre-war charms and human-scaled side streets. However, along its southern edge, where the buildings around Lincoln Center scale upwards to Midtown, zoning allowances are more generous. Two as-of-right towers are sure to ruffle some preservationists' feathers and are poised to be the neighborhood's biggest yet.
Get the scoop on the towers here

April 29, 2016

Charming $1.15M Greenpoint Garden Duplex Arrives Just in Time for Spring

If you find yourself drawn to the idea of living in Greenpoint, you're definitely not alone. An afternoon in the neighborhood that was until recently a sleepy north Brooklyn Polish enclave on the waterfront with artists' lofts and good schools would convince almost anyone that it's a perfect place to call home. There's a building boom happening along the river, new ferry service has arrived and the G train is becoming the popular underdog. All of that makes this two-bedroom condominium at 182 Huron Street a hot prospect, though the 1,250-foot duplex with a landscaped garden makes a good case all on its own.
More Greenpoint living this way

Distinctive Homes

April 29, 2016

Website Launches for New City-Wide Ferry, Win a Free Annual Pass

The new city-wide ferry system is on schedule to launch in summer 2017, and ahead of that launch, the ferry service, which will be run by the San Francisco-based Hornblower, has launched their new website. Visitors can find out about the ferry, and, more importantly, enter to win a free annual pass. Winners will be announced when the service launches next summer. The site features updates, public meeting info, maps and schedules, and postings for more than 150 jobs that will be created by the new service.
Find out more

Transit

Spotlight: Mommy Poppins’ Anna Fader Shares Tips for Raising Kids in NYC

Image courtesy of New York Family

April 29, 2016

Spotlight: Mommy Poppins’ Anna Fader Shares Tips for Raising Kids in NYC

With school out for break this week, parents all over New York City have been looking for activities to occupy their youngsters. Many turn to Mommy Poppins, a local guide for the best preschools, classes, camps, events, trips, and generally fun stuff to do with kids in the city on every budget. The go-to site for parents was founded in 2007 by native New Yorker Anna Fader who wanted to share her vision for a "more artsy, educational, non-commercialized and community-oriented way to raise kids in New York City." It's since expanded to include Long Island, New Jersey, Westchester, Connecticut, Boston, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles, as well as an app that helps parents find things like playgrounds and restaurants on the go. 6sqft recently caught up with Anna to learn about her personal experiences raising a family downtown and get some insider tips on the best things to do with kids in New York.
Read the interview here

April 29, 2016

Kitchen Balcony Creates ‘Critical Romance’ in This Contemporary West Village Loft

Loft living in the West Village is nothing short of a New York City fantasy, and this gorgeous property renovated by Daniel Frisch Architecture is certainly a dream come true for its lucky inhabitants. The multi-level apartment features a dramatic double-height master bedroom and living room, but the real showstopper is the snake-like upper level, which has a suspended balcony that hovers over the kitchen, creating the perfect perch for enjoying ariel views of the space below.
READ MORE

April 29, 2016

Don’t Look Up: Would Traffic Signals in the Pavement Protect NYC Phone Gazers?

We've already seen the creation of texting lanes for smartphone addicts (in Antwerp, Belgium and Chongqing, China) so pedestrians don't have to be stuck behind someone hunting for the perfect emoji. Recently the German city of Augsburg has taken the step of actually installing traffic lights in the pavement so text-walkers could be made aware of when it's unsafe to walk–by which we mean they're about to walk into the path of a 50-ton train. The idea came about after a 15-year-old girl was fatally hit by an oncoming tram while wearing headphones and looking down at her smartphone. As reported in The Telegraph, the lights look like ordinary road markers, but flat to the ground. Bavarian public-works/transportation provider Stadtwerke Augsburg has installed the experimental earthbound traffic signals in two rail stations. The LED lights blink green when it's safe to walk and red when a train is approaching. They're visible from a distance, so they might even give pedestrians some lead time to realize an intersection is up ahead.
Find out more

April 29, 2016

Plastic Bag Surcharge Likely to Pass; Landmark Pet Playhouses Made of Cardboard

The City Council will vote next week on implementing a five-cent surcharge for plastic and paper bags at supermarkets and shops. [Daily Intelligencer] Here’s when all of the city’s public beaches open. [DNAinfo] Urban Outfitters now has its own NYC souvenir shop. [Racked] Your pet can play in a cardboard version of the world’s most […]

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April 29, 2016

Lovely Williamsburg Loft in a Former Guitar Factory Seeks $1.55M

This apartment at The Gretsch condo building, at 60 Broadway in Williamsburg, is a loft lover's dream. For $1.55 million you get 1,150 square feet of space with 13-foot ceilings, big windows looking out from the sixth floor of the former warehouse, and a totally open living, dining and kitchen area spanning nearly 24 feet.
See more of the loft

Distinctive Homes

Lottery Commences for 79 Affordable Units in Crotona Park East

An early rendering of the project, via CityLand

April 29, 2016

Lottery Commences for 79 Affordable Units in Crotona Park East

A couple weeks ago, 6sqft got word of an affordable housing lottery at 1702 Bryant Avenue in the Bronx's Crotona Park East, "one of a few areas that seemed slow to catch up with the rest of the borough." Five years ago, the city rezoned this small neighborhood from light industrial use to residential, which created a rise in affordable housing opportunities. The latest offering is at 950 East 176th Street. It's Building A of the Crotona Terrace development and will have 79 affordable units. Though the address is just a few short blocks from the park, it's also directly adjacent to the Cross Bronx Expressway and elevated tracks of the 2/5 trains, a fact that might seem like less of a nuisance considering the apartments range from $975/month studios to $1,486/month two-bedrooms.
Find out if you qualify

Affordable Housing

April 28, 2016

Ozzy Osbourne Meets Hansel and Gretel in Video Director Johan Renck’s $3M Tribeca Loft

With classic industrial loft bones and downtown shabby chic interiors, this big, bold loft at 79 Worth Street in Tribeca is asking $3.1 million. At 1,909 square feet, there's plenty of room to choose between shabby and chic, and to be fair, the decor is not only on-trend but fairly awesome. According to records, the current owner is noted Swedish video director Johan Renck (he's worked with everyone from David Bowie and Madonna to Karl Lagerfeld and directed episodes of "Breaking Bad"), who purchased the loft in 2009 for $1.5 million. We don't know if he's responsible for the apartment's current look, but we can definitely see both a creative and a Scandinavian influence.
Check out the rest of the loft this way

Distinctive Homes

April 28, 2016

Queens’ Tallest Tower Gets Bumped to Supertall Status at 984 Feet

In February, Flushing-based developer Chris Jiashu Xu of United Construction & Development Group filed plans for a 79-story, 964-foot residential tower in Long Island City, giving it the title of would-be tallest tower in Queens. Dubbed Court Square City View Tower, it's located just north of One Court Square (the borough's current tallest building at 658 feet), but new information reveals that it will now steal the title by even more of a landslide. The developer put in a request with the Federal Aviation Administration for a 984-foot-tall tower, sending it into supertall territory. And with its mechanical bulkhead, the structure will rise 1,000 feet.
The rest of the details

April 28, 2016

Art Nerd New York’s Top Event Picks for the Week – 4/28-5/4

By Lori Zimmer

In a city where hundreds of interesting happenings occur each week, it can be hard to pick and choose your way to a fulfilling life. Art Nerd‘s philosophy is a combination of observation, participation, education and of course a party to create the ultimate well-rounded week. Jump ahead for Art Nerd founder Lori Zimmer’s top picks for 6sqft readers! Spring has finally arrived and with it comes another dose of stimulating art events, starting with an eye-opening photo exhibit of artists along the U.S.-Mexican Border, as well as the much-anticipated spring edition of Greenpoint Open Studios. If you're looking for a more interactive experience, check out the Mad Hatters Ball at the McKittrick Hotel on Saturday or the Art into Action later on in the week. From the gallery side of things, Jenn Singer Gallery will be exhibiting an unconventional body of work from Brooklyn-based artist Emily Weiskopf, and the Booth Gallery will be debuting several works from the controversial Norwegian painter Odd Nerdrum. In addition to these thought-provoking solo shows, Brooklyn's Center for Performance Research will host a group show entitled Beaver, challenging the role of female sexuality in mainstream media.
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Events & Things To Do

April 28, 2016

JDS and SHoP Architects Unveil Plan for 900-Foot Lower East Side Tower

There's a new tallest tower taking over the Lower East Side, and unsurprisingly it comes to us via the supertall super-team of JDS Development and SHoP Architects, the same duo responsible for the 1,438-foot-tall 111 West 57th Street and 9 DeKalb Avenue, Brooklyn's first 1,000+ foot tower. Their latest record-setter is a 900-foot, 77-story rental building planned for 247 Cherry Street, reports The Lo-Down. It will rise directly next to Extell's One Manhattan Square, which made waves for its 850-foot height in the low-scale Two Bridges area. The newest tallest tower between Midtown and Downtown will have a 10,000-square-foot retail base with 600 rental apartments above, about 150 of which will be made permanently affordable. Though the design isn't finalized, SHoP says it will likely be terracotta brick and glass and feature outdoor terraces in the middle. There will also be a top-floor amenity space for all residents, and SCAPE Landscape Architecture has been tapped to create a publicly accessible plaza surrounding the structure.
More details this way

April 28, 2016

First Look at COOKFOX’s Affordable Housing Development in East Tremont

By Julian Friedman

Here's a first look at a new two-building development in the Bronx's East Tremont section designed by COOKFOX. Developed by nonprofit Breaking Ground, the project will include housing for low-income families and formerly homeless individuals, in addition to on-site social services and a community room. The structure will be encased in brick, which will have alternating rows protruding and receding by a half inch, giving it an appearance meant to reference "ocean sand or tree bark patterns." It will also boast many eco-efficient features and will qualify for Zone Green benefits, allowing extra floor area for affordable homes, according to the architects.
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Bergen Brooklyn

323 Bergen Street

Boerum Hill

World-class design rooted in Brooklyn charm

studios starting at $825,000
1 beds starting at $1,200,000
2 beds starting at $1,925,000
3 beds starting at $3,050,000
4 beds starting at $6,000,000

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April 28, 2016

Former Home of Alexander Hamilton Jr. on St. Mark’s Place Sells for $10M

Tickets to Broadway's Hamilton just keep going up and up, but the famous surname didn't seem to help Alexander Hamilton Jr.'s former East Village home in the price department. The founding father's son was the first owner of the Federal-style townhouse at 4 St. Mark's Place, which hit the market back in November for $12 million. But the Commercial Observer reports that the landmarked property (and recent home of famous punk store Trash and Vaudeville) sold for only $10 million to Castellan Real Estate Partners.
The history and future of Hamilton's former home

April 28, 2016

Live in a Lofty Triplex Apartment at a Former 1880s Firehouse for $4,500/Month

Before 735 Dean Street was anybody's home, it was the post of Engine Company 219, who moved in when the firehouse was built in 1880. The historic structure in Prospect Heights has since been converted to apartments, one of which is this 1,400-square-foot triplex being offered for rent. From the inside, though, you wouldn't guess this was in an old fire station; it looks like your typical Brooklyn loft.
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April 28, 2016

Meet the Man Behind Google’s Doodles; Movers for the One Percent

As Google’s chief doodler, 35-year-old Ryan Germick shows how creative types are integral to the tech sector. [BBC] An artist is suing Big Gay Ice Cream over their unicorn logo. [NYP] “White glove” moving services can cost luxury homeowners tens of thousands of dollars. [WSJ] The Textalyzer could help curb distracted driving in New York. […]

Uncategorized

April 28, 2016

A-Rod Spotted Checking Out 15 CPW Rentals Despite Being Banned for Bad Behavior