6sqft | NYC local news, events, and apartments

Earlier in the month, 6sqft shared news of a detailed proposal from non-profit advocacy group Friends of the Brooklyn Queens Connector that called for a Brooklyn-Queens streetcar line to connect "underserved, but booming" areas of the boroughs. The city must've been listening, because Mayor de Blasio is expected to announce today in his State of the City speech that he'll be backing such a proposal. Like the original scheme, the city's plan will run 16 miles along the East River, from Astoria to Sunset Park, but at a projected cost of $2.5 billion, it will be significantly more expensive than the previous estimate of $1.7 billion, but significantly less than a new underground subway. Not only would the streetcars serve bustling commercial hubs like the Brooklyn Navy Yard and Long Island City, but they'd provide access for about 45,000 public-housing residents.
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Transit

They Paved Washington Square Park and Put Up a Parking Lot

Image via NYU Local

February 4, 2016

They Paved Washington Square Park and Put Up a Parking Lot

It's true: Washington Square Park was, in part, Washington Square parking lot. In the 1960s, at the peak of the nation's car culture fixation, the Greenwich Village park was put into use as a parking lot, until cars were finally banished altogether in the 1970s, when the large circular plaza around the fountain was added. Some say the parking lot was an effort to keep hippies from gathering in the beloved public space.
Find out more

February 4, 2016

Art Nerd New York’s Top Event Picks for the Week – 2/4-2/10

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! Get your rest, because there's a full week of art activities awaiting. First, hop over to the High Line to experience the new LED kinetic sculpture, then experience a giant cat judging you (as it should be) every night in Times Square for #MidnightMoment. Artist and lab anatomy instructor Frank Porcu shares his unique vision at the Lodge, and Jong Oh talks minimalism at Marc Straus–and then serves Korean food! Curator Jessica Holborn explores the healing power of the embrace, and Annika Connor talks about her new book and tips for artists navigating the rough and tough art world. Wait in line for standby tickets to see Grace Jones' 1982 "A One Man Show" at the Kitchen, then cozy up at the adorable Roger Smith Hotel for their winter art opening.
All the best events to check out here

Events & Things To Do

February 4, 2016

Extell’s 831-Foot-Tall One Manhattan Square Begins Its Climb Above Chinatown

Still in disbelief that a 68-story building (though it's being marketed as 80 stories) could rise at the edge of Chinatown? Well behold One Manhattan Square's construction site, buzzing with activity and flagged by a stalwart kangaroo crane foreshadowing the 850-foot-tall tower to come. Unlike the Chinese investment market, Extell's skyscraper is heading in one direction -- up. And after more than a year of site preparation and foundation work, the first pieces of re-bar have emerged from their mucky surrounds and are peaking above the lot's blue construction fences.
Get a look

February 4, 2016

Beautiful Coat Racks Made From the Burned Trunks of the Mangosteen Tree

By Rebecca Paul

As city dwellers, it's important to incorporate elements of nature into our daily lives so we don't become as stone-cold as the environment around us. That's just one of the many reasons we love this Yosemite Coat Rack made from the mangosteen tree, which bears the exotic purple fruit found in Indonesia. And who wouldn't want an enchanted forest greeting them at their front door?
The full story of the mangosteen tree

February 4, 2016

The History of Kossar’s Bialys; S.S. United States May Once Again Become a Cruise Ship

The New York Transit Museum is accepting proposals for PLATFORM, its cross-disciplinary program series. [NYTM] Explore the history of Kossar’s, NYC’s most famous bialy bakery. [Gothamist] A pneumatic waste-removal system is coming to the High Line. [CityLab] Confessions of a real estate agent in gentrifying Brooklyn. [Billfold] Crystal Cruises is optioning returning the historic S.S. United States back to […]

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February 4, 2016

Sarah Jessica Parker Peeps Shephard Condo Conversion in West Village

She's no Little Bo Peep, but according to the Post, SJP and hubby Matthew Broderick may be flocking to the Shephard, a new condo conversion at 275 West 10th Street. The 19th century warehouse and former rental building is in the process of being converted to luxury condominiums by Naftali Group. On a pretty tree-lined West Village street, the 38-unit Shephard boasts interior design by Gachot and oversized arched windows; a definite possibility for Parker would be one of three penthouses currently listed at the building, starting at $18.5 million. The pair sold their Greenwich Village townhouse for $18.25 million last year (they'd bought it for $19 million in 2011–and apparently never moved in.)
See what's cool about the Shephard

Celebrities

February 4, 2016

Rangers Goalie Henrik Lundqvist Sells Midtown West Penthouse for $5M

By Annie Doge

King Henrik (as Rangers fans call him) is leaving his Midtown West palace, as the Post reports that the world-famous Swedish hockey goalie has sold the penthouse at 310 West 52nd Street for $4,995,000. Lundqvist originally listed the 2,035-square-foot duplex for $6.5 million back in 2014, reportedly because he and his wife Therese are looking for a larger place downtown for themselves and their two daughters. The uber-contemporary and strangely purple decor is a bit surprising, considering Lundqvist often makes it onto "best dressed" and "most beautiful people" lists.
More right here

Distinctive Homes

For $2.2M, this two-family Bed-Stuy townhouse has three levels of outdoor space

Tribeca's iconic skybridge property is back on the market for $30M

This $3.7M Greenwich Village co-op puts the 'classic' in classic seven

This $2.85M Crown Heights townhouse is an unspoiled historic beauty on an extra-long lot

Filmmaker John Sayles' former Hoboken townhouse lists for $2.5M

Doors of steel and glass make this $3M Soho loft feel like a box of light

Once a parking garage, this $85M Village penthouse is now in line to break neighborhood sales records

Asking $2.8M, this two-family Bed-Stuy townhouse looks like a good place to spend a sunny afternoon

Trump's childhood home in Queens back on the market for $2.3M after gut renovation

Amy Schumer sells Brooklyn Heights townhouse at $1.25M loss

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February 4, 2016

From a Former Babka Bakery Comes This Duplex Condo With the Original Timber Beams Intact

Like many loft buildings in Williamsburg, this one's got a very interesting history behind it. 234 North 9th Street, which dates back to 1915, was once owned by Sophia Zablowski, a baker. She used the site as an industrial warehouse bakery to make her popular Polish babka cake. The building was converted to 11 apartments in 2007–it's now known as the Sophia Lofts–and this one is on the market for $1.43 million. (To give you an idea of how pricy the neighborhood has become, this last sold in 2008 for $681,209.) The apartment still has many of the old warehouse details intact.
Take a look

Distinctive Homes

February 4, 2016

New Williamsburg Rentals Will Boast Galvanized Metal Exterior

Here's our first look at a 15,000-square-foot, four-story rental building anticipated for a small 5,000-square-foot lot in North Williamsburg. The development will expand upon an existing one-story garage at 202-204 North 10th Street, and ultimately carve out four duplex rentals. All units will have terraces, and the ground floor will house two retail spaces, one of which will be a restaurant. A rendering posted on Studio Esnal's website depicts the project clad in a simple galvanized metal skin with three rows of deeply inset square windows. Details of the flowering rainforest spilling from the roof are not provided.
More info ahead

February 3, 2016

Interactive Website Lets You Listen to New York City in the Roaring ’20s

We love looking at footage from 1920s New York City and watching the bustling street life from a bygone era, but we aren't nearly as familiar with its sounds. The Roaring Twenties, "an interactive exploration of the historical soundscape of New York City," created by historian Emily Thompson, compiles a wealth of historic data to re-create and share the city's sonic history, giving context to the sounds of the city in the 1920s and '30s. In an introduction, there’s a quote from a 1920 New York Times article that speaks of how the city was “defined by its din."
Learn what the site has to offer

February 3, 2016

First Look at the Bowery’s ‘Faux-Hostel’ Ace Hotel

Construction and engineering mega-firm HAKS brings the first full look at the Lower East Side's Ace Hotel, slated to open next year at 225 Bowery. The ten-story building was formerly the 101-year home of the Salvation Army Chinatown Shelter, which provided rooms, meals, and services to the city's homeless population until it shuttered in 2014. The 62,000-square-foot building was purchased for $30 million through a joint venture between the Omnia Group and North Wind Development Group. Building alteration permits were filed by Nataliya Donskoy of ND Architecture and approved that same year, and the historic structure is undergoing a complete gut-renovation and will be topped by a four-story rooftop addition.
More info ahead

February 3, 2016

Duplex in Historic Brooklyn Heights Co-op, Built for Manhattan Views, Asks $2.25M

2 Grace Court is one of the few cooperatives in Brooklyn Heights, a neighborhood mostly filled with townhouses. Built in 1922-23 by the architect Mortimer Freehof, it was specifically constructed on an elevated site near the waterfront so the building would get commanding views of the New York Harbor and Manhattan skyline. And this is the best kind of apartment you could find in such a building: The three-bedroom corner duplex has 12 large windows, southern and western exposures, and views of the East River, Statue of Liberty and Lower Manhattan from every room.
See more of the interior

Distinctive Homes

February 3, 2016

What New Yorkers Regret Most; City Launching Parking Meter Payment App

Meet the people who call New York’s affordable housing developments home. [Slate] New Yorkers share their regrets on a blackboard in Petrosino Square, and they all have one thing in common. [Good] The NFL’s history across the five boroughs. [Curbed] By the end of the year, drivers will be able to pay for all 85,000 metered parking […]

Uncategorized

February 3, 2016

POLL: Will an L Train Shutdown Affect Real Estate Prices?

For the past couple weeks, not a day has gone by without some mumbling about the possible L train shutdown. On Friday, 6sqft shared an interactive graph from NeighborhoodX that shows which other neighborhoods offer commute times similar to the L train stops and how their rents compare. This led many to wonder how, if at all, […]

Bronx Rail Yards Could Become a $500M Mega-Development

Concourse Yard, via Zach Summer/YouTube

February 3, 2016

Bronx Rail Yards Could Become a $500M Mega-Development

Back in September, Bronx borough president Ruben Diaz Jr. put forth a plan to transform an abandoned stretch of rail tracks in Mott Haven into a Lowline-style park. There hasn't been much in the way of updates since then, but now Diaz is turning his sights to another set of tracks, this one much larger and in the northwest Bronx. The Real Deal cites findings from the borough prez that claim the MTA's Concourse Yards, a 19-acre open-air subway depot, could be decked over to yield two million square feet of development rights, resulting in a mega-project like Hudson Yards. At an estimated cost of $350-$500 million (Hudson Yards cost $800 million by comparison), the project would require no rezoning and would be "a real opportunity to not only provide much-needed homeownership, mixed-income housing and retail space, but to allow Lehman College to expand by better connecting it to the Bedford Park neighborhood and making it a true community campus," according to Diaz's report.
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RKTB Architects Design Two New Affordable Housing Buildings in the Bronx

824 Saint Anne’s Avenue (L) and 345 Saint Anne’s Avenue (R); courtesy of RKTB Architects

February 3, 2016

RKTB Architects Design Two New Affordable Housing Buildings in the Bronx

Yesterday, the architecture world was abuzz with newly released renderings of Bjarke Ingels' NYPD station house in the Bronx. Nearby, a couple of other buildings are set to rise, and though they may not have the same starchitect cachet, they'll certainly attract some attention for the fact that together they'll offer 269 units of affordable housing. Designed by RKTB, the architects behind our favorite castle conversion at 455 Central Park West, the buildings are planned for Saint Anne's Avenue in the South Bronx, and their designs illustrate how far the city has come in raising the aesthetic quality of government-funded housing.
Find out all about the projects here

For $23 Million You Can Be Donald Trump’s Downstairs Neighbor

A sprawl-o-rama of a penthouse a few floors below the Donald’s Trump Tower apartment is on the market for $23 million, but you’re paying for dizzying views and a palatial floor plan, not proximity to the building’s progenitor–though he did once own the apartment back when it was home to his mom and pop. It’s also rumored (according to Page Six) that Trump rented the pad out to his pal Michael Jackson and his new bride Lisa Marie Presley for $110,000/month back in the day, so you’ve got all sorts of party tidbits to go with your ridiculously enormous apartment. And if your dream is to re-live the '80s like a boss (and by that we mean nonagenarian dowager), the 3,725-square-foot, four-bedroom pad is ready for your key in the door. Otherwise you might want to do a little renovation.
See the whole spread

Distinctive Homes

February 2, 2016

The Urban Lens: Documenting Gentrification’s Toll on the Mom-and-Pops of Greenwich Village

By James and Karla Murray

6sqft's new series The Urban Lens invites photographers to share work exploring a theme or a place within New York City. To kick things off, award-winning authors and photographers James and Karla Murray bring us 15 years of images documenting the changing storefronts of Bleecker Street in Greenwich Village. Are you a photographer who'd like to see your work featured on 6sqft? Get in touch with us at [email protected] Bleecker Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenue South was once a huge Italian enclave with many traditional "mom and pop" stores catering to the large Italian families who resided in the neighborhood. By the late 1930s, it also had a significant bohemian population with many artists, writers, poets and musicians living in the area who set up galleries, coffee houses and music shops. Due to widespread gentrification and escalating real-estate values, the neighborhood has changed drastically and its unique appearance and character is suffering. We are here to take you on visual tour to experience how many of the truly authentic shops remain on this venerable Greenwich Village street, and to show you what has replaced the ones that have vanished. Many of the shops you'll encounter ahead have been featured with full-color photographs and insightful interviews with the store owners in three of our widely acclaimed books on the subject, but we've also rounded up several more ahead.
Walk the Greenwich Village of yesteryear and present

February 2, 2016

Bjarke Ingels Is Designing a $50M NYPD Station House in the South Bronx

Taking a break from his glitzy builds like the Via tetrahedron and 2 World Trade Center, starchitect Bjarke Ingels is taking on a project that is much more modest, yet just as laudable–a station house for the NYPD's 40th Precinct in the South Bronx (h/t Curbed). The $50 million commission, facilitated under the Department of Design and Construction, is located in the Melrose section of the borough and will resemble a "stack of bricks," according BIG's website, "referencing the rusticated bases of early NYC police stations." Spanning three stories, rising 59 feet, and encompassing 43,000 square feet, the precinct will be the first ever to include a green roof, not surprising considering Ingels' commitment to incorporating nature into his buildings.
More details ahead

February 2, 2016

S.S. United States Likely Coming to Manhattan, Where Will It Dock?

The S.S. United States, a rusting symbol of the country's maritime might, has evaded the scrapyard and is likely coming to a Manhattan location. The S.S. United States Conservancy will hold a press event on Thursday at the Manhattan Cruise Terminal, revealing the 63-year-old ocean liner's future home. The conservancy sent out an S.O.S. to New Yorkers interested in rescuing the vessel and revamping its 600,000 square feet of space into a self-sustaining business. Prior visions have ranged from tech offices, hotel rooms, housing, entertainment spaces, museums, and a maritime school. The location of the press event, near the United States Lines’ former terminal at Pier 86, is a clear give-away that the ship will be relocated to the city. Previously the developers of the SuperPier project had expressed interest in docking the ship alongside Pier 57, and several years back an idea was floated to dock the ship further south alongside Pier 40. More recently, rumors have honed in on three locations: a Brooklyn pier within the Gowanus Bay Terminal in Red Hook; Pier 36 just north of the Manhattan Bridge; and an undisclosed Manhattan location that is likely on the west side.
The full story ahead

February 2, 2016

This Floating Persian Rug Is Actually a Sturdy Chair

By Rebecca Paul

If you're bored with all the standard seating options out there, this Carpet Chair will certainly perk you up. From Cyprus-based designer Stelios Mousarris, the wave-like furniture doubles as an optical illusion, taking on the form of a floating magic carpet, but functioning as a sturdy chair.
How does it do that?

February 2, 2016

Construction Update: BKSK Architects’ ‘Hi-Side’ Tower Goes Vertical on the Far West Side

BKSK Architects have designed a robust steel- and brick-faced building at 509 West 38th Street, slated to open in 2017. After a failed condo proposal, a foreclosure, and a developer switch, the project is finally ascending and is already seven stories out of the ground since we last checked a week ago. Dubbed "The Hi-Side," the 158,000-square-foot, mixed-use tower is being developed by investment firm Imperial Companies, who picked up the site from Iliad Development in an undisclosed deal. Fast forward nearly eight years, and a 30-floor, 345-foot building is rising at the site. Situated at the eastern block front of the future Hudson Park Boulevard, bands of ribbon windows along its western face will provide residents with sweeping views of the Hudson River. The base of the tower, which will feature a restaurant, is clad in a muscular rhythm of exposed steel, brick spandrels, and large multi-pane windows.
Find out more

February 2, 2016

Lofty Park Slope Co-op Boasts Double-Height Ceilings and a Spiral Staircase

Forget the brownstones with historic detailing that dominate Park Slope. This apartment, located at the co-op building 302 5th Avenue, is modernly renovated and downright lofty, with double-height ceilings and a raised space above the kitchen. The sleek spiral staircase also adds a contemporary touch. And with two bedrooms, 1,700 square feet over three floors, and a garden, there is plenty of room to spread out. The triplex has just hit the market for $1.5 million.
Take a tour

Distinctive Homes

February 2, 2016

East and West Side Bedbugs Are Not the Same; Staten Island Chuck Says Spring Is Coming

Weill Cornell scientists have mapped genetic differences in NYC’s bedbug population. They’ll use their findings to create more effective insecticides. [Crain’s] Peter Ruta is turning 98 this month. But the oldest living painter in Westbeth is still not getting his due. [Tablet] Thought last night’s 6 train commute was hell? Check out these pictures of 100,000 […]

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February 2, 2016

Escobedo Solíz Studio’s Wild ‘Woven’ Design Will Fill MoMA PS1’s Summer Courtyard

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

MoMA has announced that the Mexico City-based architecture firm Escobedo Solíz Studio was selected as the winner of the 2016 Young Architects Program (YAP). Chosen from five finalists, the winning project,"Weaving the Courtyard," will create a "temporary urban landscape" for the 2016 Warm Up summer music series in MoMA PS1's outdoor courtyard in Long Island City, beginning in early June. The site-specific architectural intervention will use the courtyard’s concrete walls to generate both sky and landscape, with embankments in which platforms of soil and water suggest the appearance of a unique topography. The architects describe their project as "neither an object nor a sculpture standing in the courtyard, but a series of simple, powerful actions that generate new and different atmospheres."
Find out more

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

10 best plants for apartment dwellers

New York City's best holiday markets of 2023

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February 2, 2016

$985K Renovated UWS Co-op Checks a Lot of Boxes; Just Hope You Don’t Have to Carry Them

When you’ve got a recently- and well-renovated three-bedroom co-op on the Upper West Side, a block from Central Park with low monthly fees, and it’s under $1 million, it’s pretty safe to say "this won’t last!" This fresh-faced, turn-key, pre-war home at 113 West 96th Street was just listed at $985,000, and while there are pros and cons, it looks like a super-comfortable place to live in a classic Manhattan neighborhood that gets an A-plus for convenience.
Take a look around

Distinctive Homes

February 1, 2016

Maya Angelou’s Historic Harlem Brownstone Lists for $5M

During the last decade of her life, author, poet, and civil rights activist Maya Angelou split her time between Winston-Salem, NC (she taught American studies at Wake Forest University) and New York. While in the Northeast, she resided in an historic Harlem brownstone, located at 58 West 120th Street in the Mount Morris Park Historic District, according to the Times, which is now on the market for $5.1 million. The four-story home was built in the early 1900s, but when Dr. Angelou purchased it sight unseen in 2002, "it was a dilapidated shell...the victim of vandals, with missing stairs and rotting floor beams." She hired architect Marc Anderson of East Harlem-based firm M. Anderson Design to oversee a gut renovation that preserved the brownstone's historic details while adding contemporary amenities.
See the whole house

February 1, 2016

How Do Rents at NYC’s First Micro Apartment Complex Compare to Regular Studios?

Just before the new year, listings went live for NYC's first micro apartment complex Carmel Place (aka My Micro NY aka 335 East 27th Street) in anticipation of its opening in March. The nine-story modular development in Kips Bay has 55 studios that are 260 to 360 square feet. Of these, 22 are affordable (more than 60,000 people applied for them), and they'll go from $950 to $1,500 a month depending on size and income. The remaining market-rate units will range from $2,500 to $2,900 per month, which has left many skeptics questioning why anyone would fork over nearly three grand for a space that is far smaller than conventional studios. To put this argument into an actual visualization, the data gurus over at NeighborhoodX created a simple, yet informative graph that compares the rental price per square foot at Carmel Place with that of regular studios across the city (h/t Curbed).
More here

Real Estate Trends

February 1, 2016

$3,400/Month Greenpoint Waterfront Mini-Loft Is Cozy and Cool With Killer Views

The once-sleepy waterfront neighborhood of Greenpoint is in the midst of a transformation into one of the most coveted and talked-about Brooklyn 'hoods. The Pencil Factory condominium at 122 West Street was one of the first conversions of the area's historic industrial buildings. Built in 1872 and expanded in 2012 from the original Eberhard Faber Pencil Factory complex, the name of the building was also used by artists, designers and other creatives who had studios in the building. The $3,400 per month rent may seem high for this sophisticated-yet-comfortable one-bedroom-plus pad, but with popularity comes higher rent.
Take a look around

Distinctive Homes

February 1, 2016

Windsor Terrace Home Plays With Patterned Accent Walls and Funky Decor

By Rebecca Paul

At first glance, it's the colorful design of this Windsor Terrace home that really catches the eye. But zoom in and you'll see that the aesthetic is more than just bold hues–it's patterned walls, textured art, text-based accents, and allover playful decor. The renovation was led by the design team at Rinaldi Interior Design, whose principal Kristina Rinaldi says she "tailors each project to the personality and interests of her clients." If that's the case, whoever is living in this cheerful Brooklyn home is definitely upbeat, fun, and doesn't take him or herself too seriously.
Lots more to see

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

February 1, 2016

Jeanne Gang’s FDNY Training Center; Derek Zoolander Wants a ‘Cure’ for Brooklyn

Starchitect Jeanne Gang is designing an FDNY training facility in Brownsville, Brooklyn. [ArchDaily] Staten Island Chuck vs. Punxsutawney Phil: Who’s the better forecaster? [DNAinfo] The city will cut helicopter traffic in half. [NYP] In a promo for the new movie, Derek Zoolander participates in Vogue’s 73 Questions. When asked his thoughts on Brooklyn, he says, […]

Uncategorized

February 1, 2016

$5M Penthouse Loft in Tribeca Flaunts Steel, Copper, and Lots of Brick

Now this is the type of apartment we would love to be trapped in during a snowstorm. There's a wood-burning fireplace underneath lofty 16-foot ceilings in this Tribeca penthouse, located at 58 Walker Street, not to mention a big pile of wood to keep the fire roaring. Plenty of leather furniture and exposed brick also help keep this sprawling space, 2,115 square feet over two different floors, feeling cozy. This apartment wouldn't be so bad in the summer, either, with 1,318 square feet of private roof space.
Take a look around

Distinctive Homes

February 1, 2016

Why Is There a Sixth-and-a-Half Avenue in Midtown?

If you've never heard of it, that may be because this quarter-mile, pedestrian-only street is nearly hidden among the office towers of Midtown. Sixth-and-a-Half Avenue was the first fractional street in the city’s grid system, created in 2012 by the Department of Transportation to encourage people to use the public plazas and covered areas that form a path between 51st Street to 57th Street.
So where is it?

Graphs Show How Skyscrapers Relate to Their Cities–and Whether We Need More of Them

Graph: The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat

February 1, 2016

Graphs Show How Skyscrapers Relate to Their Cities–and Whether We Need More of Them

Tall buildings help make cities great. Except when they don’t. Citylab looks at a new study and graphs that show where skyscrapers fit into what makes cities great–and suggests that the middle is where the magic happens. 2015 was a record year for the skyscraper; 106 tall buildings (higher than than 656 feet) went up across the globe, according to The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH), more than in any previous year; emergent countries that appeared at the forefront of the global economic stage with the dawn the 21st century (China, Indonesia, UAE, Russia) show a big uptick in building upward. The majority of newly-built skyscrapers have risen in Asian nations—especially China–but the United States is in sixth place, with just two skyscrapers completed in 2015.
More infographics this way

Architecture And Design

January 31, 2016

A New York Minute With Urban Revitalization Consultant Majora Carter

By Alyssa Alimurung

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! The last time we checked in with Majora Carter she was spearheading a proposal to turn Spofford Juvenile Center in Hunts Point into mixed-income housing—but that's just a kernel on her resume. Majora is an urban revitalization strategy consultant, real estate developer, and Peabody Award winning broadcaster. Her 2006 TEDtalk "Greening the Ghetto," was one of the first six videos to ever appear on TED's website, and in it she passionately describes her solutions for environmental equality in the South Bronx. Now, fast forward ten years later, and she's still pushing for green infrastructure projects in her beloved neighborhood. We recently caught up with Majora to find out some fun facts, including what she loves, hates and would change about New York City.
Majora's NY minute this way

Where I Work

January 30, 2016

A Well-Considered Layout Makes This $3.8M Tribeca Loft Feel Like Home

Though $3.8 million is no bargain for a two-bedroom apartment–even a 1,900 square-foot loft in pricey Tribeca–the layout of this sixth-floor penthouse at 38-40 North Moore Street gives it some unusual advantages. On the one hand there really isn’t a whole lot of "extra" space to play with; on the other, as it’s currently configured, the bedroom, bath and laundry portion of the home seems pleasantly sheltered and removed from the vast rectangular living/dining/entertaining area, conferring the feeling that it's a private wing for private life.
Take the tour

Distinctive Homes

January 29, 2016

Interactive Graph Compares L Train Commute Times and Rents With Other NYC Neighborhoods

We're hearing lots of anguish and anxiety over the possibility of an L subway shutdown for repairs for as long as a year or more, and we've taken a look at some possible solutions. Now, we've asked the real estate data geeks at NeighborhoodX to go a little deeper beneath the grumbling to find out just how much convenience can be had along that thin grey line, and how it stacks up against other neighborhoods in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens. So which other neighborhoods offer commute times similar to the L train stops—and—just as important when choosing a neighborhood–how do their rents compare? And if you're living along the L, in light of the shutdown, what neighborhood alternatives do you have in the city that provide a similar commute?
Find out here

January 29, 2016

Design Firms Launch Kickstarter for Hyper-Accurate,12-Foot-Long Model of Manhattan

Could this become the coolest New York souvenir ever? Two Manhattan-based design firms, TO+WN Design and AJSNY, have teamed up to sell a model of Manhattan that will blow all the others out of the water. Using detailed aerial scans of the city, the firms created a 12-foot-long model of Manhattan that represents every last landmark, skyscraper, brownstone, park and event hall. Impressively, they've managed to replicate current-day Manhattan down to a 1:5000-scale–and they're calling their mini Manhattan a "Microscape." If you want a piece of this, you're not the only one. The project's Kickstarter, which recently launched with an $8,000 goal, is already more than $17,000 funded with 26 days left.
Learn more about the microscape

January 29, 2016

Donald Trump’s United Nations Tower Is the City’s Most Valuable Condo

The Greenwich by Rafael Vinoly

He may have taken a hit last night with his anti-debate veterans rally, but Donald Trump has come out on top here in the city. The Real Deal analyzed the Department of Finance’s preliminary tax rolls and found that his Trump World Tower at 845 United Nations Plaza is the most valuable condo building in New York City based on tax collection purposes. "The 362 condo units in the Midtown East building, which Trump completed in 2001, have a total market value of $238.27 million in fiscal year 2016," they say. To boot, Trump Place at 220 Riverside Boulevard comes in eighth on the list.
See the other frontrunners

Real Estate Trends

Spotlight: Rita McMahon Brings Avian New Yorkers Back to Health at the Wild Bird Fund

Photo via Charles Chessler Photography

January 29, 2016

Spotlight: Rita McMahon Brings Avian New Yorkers Back to Health at the Wild Bird Fund

By Susan Cohen

When we think of bird life in New York, our minds usually wander to pesky pigeons, but there are actually 355 different species of wild birds who call the city home. A good number (pigeons, mourning doves, and mallard ducks, to name a few) are full-time residents, but there are also many who have the ultimate pied-a-terres, flying north to nest and raise babies in the spring or migrating south from the Arctic for the slightly warmer New York winters. For years, if these birds were injured or sick, there was little help available, but everything changed when Rita McMahon became involved in the rehabilitation of wild birds in 2002. What began for her as caring for pigeons and sparrows as a rehabber, progressively grew into a calling and eventually a career. Through the support and encouragement of the veterinarians at Animal General on the Upper West Side, she co-founded and became the director of the Wild Bird Fund in 2005, which was then located in her apartment. In 2012, the organization opened its own facility on the Upper West Side and last year treated approximately 3,500 birds. 6sqft recently spoke with Rita to learn more about New York’s wild birds, how the Wild Bird Fund helps them, and ways New Yorkers can be more attuned to their avian neighbors.
Read the interview here

January 29, 2016

Famous Magician Tries to Escape His Greenwich Village Apartment for $2.3M

By Annie Doge

Remember David Blaine –the magician who's pulled stunts like encasing himself in a block of ice for over 63 hours and sealing himself inside a plexiglass case for 44 days with no food? Well, apparently after all these wild endeavors he needed a nice, tranquil place to come home to. The Observer reports that Brooklyn-born Blaine has put his modern/cool Greenwich Village apartment on the market for $2.27 million. He bought the top-floor, corner two-bedroom unit at 41 Fifth Avenue back in 1998, just as he was gaining worldwide fame. And though he moved to Tribeca several years later, he's held onto the unit until now.
See the magician's hideaway

125 Greenwich Street

Financial District

The new altitude of downtown living

studios starting at $1,110,000
1 beds starting at $1,495,000
2 beds starting at $2,785,000
3 beds starting at $3,600,000

Learn More

January 29, 2016

New Renderings of FXFOWLE’s Curving Harlem Condo, Circa Central Park

Since 6sqft checked in last November, Harlem's most anticipated condominium building, Circa Central Park, has wrapped up its structural frame and is preparing to be covered in its glass, metal, and brick skin. Now, as we await sales to officially launch, the building's designers, FXFOWLE Architects, give us our first full look at the building inside and out.
Lots more info and renderings

January 29, 2016

This Classic Co-op Next to Carl Schurz Park Asks $2.795 Million

This stretch of East 86th Street, in the Yorkville area of the Upper East Side, is an attractive, quiet block that ends at Carl Schurz Park—home to Gracie Mansion and Mayor de Blasio. Along the way is this six-story, red brick co-op building with an elegant entrance at 519 East 86th Street. And the four-bedroom unit currently for sale there, asking $2.795 million, is just as lovely as the block outside. It's a classic prewar co-op with one of those drool-worthy, complex floor plans: a large foyer, four bedrooms, dedicated living and dining rooms, a mud room, an office, the works.
See it for yourself

Distinctive Homes

January 29, 2016

Inside a Queens Trapeze Class; Uber Trips Are Now 15 Percent Cheaper

Flying after 45: Meet the adults mastering trapeze classes at Circus Warehouse in Long Island City. [NYT] Comparing the real estate booms of Dumbo and the Upper East Side. [BK Mag] Don’t forget to vote in ArchDaily’s 2016 Building of the Year Awards! [ArchDaily] Jeremiah Moss thinks Bernie Sanders should be mayor of New York. [NYO] […]

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Image via Jason Farrar

January 29, 2016

Developers Rushed to Get Nearly 8,000 Permits Ahead of 421-a Tax Break Expiration

With the fate of the city's 421-a tax abatement remaining uncertain, developers scurried to obtain permits before the year's end, resulting in a number of permits granted in December that was more than four times the number issued the previous month, reports the Wall Street Journal. According to new U.S. Census figures, permits for 299 projects containing 7,781 residential housing units were granted during the month of December, indicating that as New York City’s most lucrative property-tax abatement approached its last hours, architects and developers rushed to get building permits and begin construction.
Find out more

Savanna Fund Files Permits to Demolish Billionaires’ Row Building

500-foot tall massing model depicted at the site. Image courtesy of CityRealty

January 29, 2016

Savanna Fund Files Permits to Demolish Billionaires’ Row Building