6sqft | NYC local news, events, and apartments

It may feel like summer out, but the city’s ice skating rinks are already open. [DNAinfo] And in other holiday news, make plans to get out of the city on December 12th, this year’s Santacon drunk fest. [Gothmist] Not everyone likes the new “Humans of New York” book. [New Yorker] By 2020, the state will spend […]

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November 4, 2015

POLL: Is the City’s Food Hall Obsession About to Burst?

It seems like every day now we’re getting word of a new mega-food hall, likely the trickle down effect from wildly successful Smorgasburg and the realization that “snake person” and “foodie” seem to go hand in hand. Just yesterday, Crain’s announced that the former AIG headquarters tower at 70 Pine Street will be turned into a […]

November 4, 2015

Spend Eight Months in This Picture-Perfect Prospect Heights Townhouse for $12K/Month

There's not much about this townhouse triplex at 159 Prospect Place, available for short-term rental, that doesn't embody the brownstone Brooklyn ideal. On a beautiful block near the corner of Carlton Avenue and Prospect Place in heart of the neighborhood, this bright, sun-filled and renovated home also has the pretty historic details that give these big old houses such charm, and the private outdoor space we dream of–including one of those extra-long backyards unique to Prospect and Crown Heights.
Tour this lovely townhouse

Distinctive Homes

November 3, 2015

My 900sqft: Tour the Romantic Prospect Heights Home of Two Brooklyn Entrepreneurs

Our ongoing series “My sqft” checks out the homes of 6sqft’s friends, family and fellow New Yorkers across all the boroughs. Our latest interior adventure brings us to Prospect Heights. Want to see your home featured here? Get in touch! Brit Liggett and Mike Cadoux may lead busy lives heading up their own companies—Brit is the founder and president of Show the Good, a startup that focuses on digital storytelling for nonprofits and social ventures, while Mike is the co-owner (alongside his brother) of Peak Organic Brewing Company—but this adorable Brooklyn twosome know a thing about winding down and stepping away from work when the day ends. Nestled in the heart of Prospect Heights, their home is as disconnected from the digital world as one can be in this day and age, filled with shelves and shelves of books, LPs, instruments, and vintage maps. They even have a room—"The Room for the Pursuit of Arts and Leisure"—where electricity is completely banned. Self-described as "old world," Brit and Mike have perfectly curated their apartment with a collection of incredible antiques, each with a story. In fact, only four pieces of furniture in the whole place are new! But they are no hoarders. As Brit tells us, "I'm a collector of things, without doubt, but I try to only have things that are useful or have a function." Brit and Mike recently invited us into their home, and while we immediately fell for their generous, beautifully decorated spaces, it was really all the charming and quirky details reflecting their six-year romance that had us swooning and tapping #relationshipgoals into our phones when we left.
Go inside Brit and Mike's beautiful Brooklyn home here

November 3, 2015

Cosmopolitan Editor Helen Gurley Brown’s Pink Penthouse Lists for $20M

By Annie Doge

Over the summer, the Times asked the question, "Who owns Helen Gurley Brown's legacy?" The 32-year editor of Cosmopolitan passed away in 2012, leaving behind her apartment in the legendary Beresford, one of only three that has space in the building's iconic turrets. The co-op board, of course, wanted the valuable Central Park West residence listed, but those involved with her will didn't oblige. The board must've won the fight, though, because Curbed reports that the penthouse apartment has hit the market for $20 million (significantly less than the $50 million+ some were speculating). And just as you'd expect from the author of "Sex and the Single Girl," the four-level spread is full of leopard, flowers, and pink, pink, and more pink.
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November 3, 2015

The World’s Most Expensive Dollhouse Will Be On Show at Columbus Circle This Month

If you think Manhattan condos are pricey, feast your eyes on the world's most expensive dollhouse! Valued at $8.5 million, The Astolat Dollhouse Castle is a 29-room micro-mansion that's been is filled to the brim with 10,000 painstakingly crafted miniatures that include "elaborate furniture, oil paintings, mirrors, fireplaces, gold miniature jewelry, rare-mini books more than 100 years old, fine rugs, fabrics, and pieces made of and silver and gold." Sound too absurd to be true? Well, you can check out this pricey and petite pad up close and personal starting this month. The Shops of Columbus Circle at Time Warner Center (TWC) will be showing the dollhouse for the first time ever since it was built in the 1980s.
Find out more here

November 3, 2015

Lauren Bacall’s Dakota Apartment Buyer Revealed; Gowanus Affordable Housing Starts at $833/Month

The buyer of Lauren Bacall’s $26M apartment at The Dakota has finally been revealed. [NYP] Affordable housing at a new 700-unit complex going up in Gowanus will start at $833/month. [BU] 14 condos sold at 220 Central Park South have prices that exceed $50 million. [Crain’s] 13,000 square feet of the former AIG headquarters at […]

Real Estate Trends

November 3, 2015

New Furniture Collection Features Clever Storage as an Ode to Ye Old Carpenter’s Workbench

Recently debuting at the London Design Festival, Planks is a new furniture collection from studio Benchmark and designer Max Lamb. The collection was created in part as a tribute to the humble carpenter's workbench and 17th and 18th century English country furniture such as boarded chests, box stools and dough troughs. In keeping with this theme each piece features clever storage spaces to help prevent clutter from accumulating on its working surface.
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Distinctive Homes

Hamptons oceanfront estate owned by late diamond dealer lists for $45M

$2M mid-century modern home in Westchester has 21st-century energy efficiency and zero carbon footprint

This $9.75M Harlem brownstone reflects neighborhood history with five floors of 19th-century elegance

This $2.7M Chelsea duplex condo feels like a modern house with a private back garden

Seagram heir's Soho penthouse rents for $120K a month, a neighborhood record

NFL luminary Chris Simms' Greenwich farmhouse asks $8M

Carnegie Hill co-op owned by MoMA's original director lists for $2.3M

Steve Madden's former Trump Palace pad lists for $11.5M

From the pool to the pergola, this $1.1M Hudson Valley home blends Colonial with contemporary

Asking $4.25M, this five-story Crown Heights mansion is filled with gorgeous historic details

VIEW ALL

November 3, 2015

Three-Family Townhouse Seeks Huge Profit in Bushwick

Brooklyn is one of the shining examples of New York's crazy strong real estate market, where prices seem to have no limit. Case in point: this three-family townhouse in Bushwick, a neighborhood typically known for cheap rents and warehouse loft apartments, that is asking $1.25 million. Sure, this pad—located at 1108 Madison Street, off the Gates Avenue J train—is nice, but that's a lot of money. It's even more surprising to know that the seller purchased it only two years ago, in May of 2013, for $633,000. From $633K to $1.25M in two years...that's Brooklyn real estate for you!
See the space

Distinctive Homes

November 3, 2015

Why You Should Be Nice to Subway Operators; How Much Does Joey Owe Chandler?

By Alyssa Alimurung

Reasons why the subway operators are actually pretty awesome. [Thrillist] A cafe only serving decaf is popping up in Soho. [CityLab] One die-hard “Friends” fan calculated how much Joey owes Chandler. Hint: it’s a lot. [Daily Dot] Find out what it’s like to be an interior designer to major A-listers and celebs. [VICE] Inside the […]

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November 3, 2015

This Little East Village Co-op Is Big on Style and Custom Details

By Ondel Hylton and Julian Friedman

This charming Bowery bolthole at 32 East 2nd Street may not be huge, but it has everything you need for a great downtown life (unless you need a queen-sized bed in your actual bedroom). The one-bedroom co-op has benefitted from a tasteful, chic and well-considered custom renovation, resulting in finishes that are both creative and convenient, and the building is in a perfect location to enjoy both the friendly East Village vibe and the hip, downtown Manhattan location near just about everything you'd want to see, do, or buy.
Take a peek inside

Distinctive Homes

November 3, 2015

Buy Cameron Diaz’s Glam West Village Apartment for $4.25M

By Annie Doge

Considering Cameron Diaz is one of the highest paid actresses out there, we're not surprised that she decided to infuse her West Village apartment, now on the market for $4.25 million, with a healthy dose of Hollywood glamour. The Wall Street Journal, who broke the news that Diaz's West 12th Street residence will be hitting the market any day now, calls the pad "colorful." That seems to only hold true in the emerald green kitchen, but the rest of the home is full of gilding and luxe finishes. The actress bought the two-bedroom apartment in 2008 for $2.95 million, followed by a gut renovation courtesy of famed California-based designer Kelly Wearstler. Two years ago, she also bought a $9.5 million home in the Walker Tower. This, coupled with her recent marriage to musician Benji Madden, are likely the reason for the sale.
See the full apartment

November 3, 2015

Construction Update: Herzog & de Meuron’s 215 Chrystie Street Shimmies and Shakes Upward

The structure of Ian Schrager/Witkoff Group's 26-story hotel/condominium combo 215 Chrystie Street is now more than half way up, giving us a clearer view of the "tough-luxe" exterior composed of raw concrete and large clear glass panes. Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning firm Herzog & de Meuron, with Handel Architects as architects of record, the tower's lower levels feature a highly-textured facade of inwardly-tilting columns framing expansive clear panes of glass. The tilt creates slightly more interior space, and from ground level, increases the amount of reflection in the glass, thus providing more privacy for guests. According to the firm's webpage on the project, "The structure of the building is pushed to the exterior and follows the grid of the large floor-to-ceiling window bays. This introduces a depth to the façade on the exterior and liberates the interior from freestanding columns."
See more construction shots and renderings

November 2, 2015

Rafael Viñoly’s 432 Park Reportedly Showing Cracks in Its 1,400-Foot Facade

Is the Western Hemisphere's tallest residential tower already experiencing some construction defects? According to a recent blog post by real estate author Michael Gross (h/t Curbed), 432 Park Avenue is showing signs of wear. Gross writes that "Two unconnected sources confirm that the architectural concrete that covers the poured concrete tower has already developed cracks, and that scaffolds hanging from the pillar in recent weeks were there because Nicholson Galloway, a top masonry restoration company, was hired to coat the structure with some 'nasty stuff,' as one of those sources puts it, called Silane that will seal those fissures."
find out more

November 2, 2015

For $699K, a Private Backyard and Tons of Charm in the Heart of Hell’s Kitchen

Have you ever gazed out of your office window with envy at a sweet private back garden or cool roof deck right in the middle of Manhattan? This one-bedroom co-op at 315 West 55th Street is one of those. On a beloved residential block in Hell's Kitchen on the city's West Side, this updated apartment has enough room for comfort and the added bonus of a landscaped, full-sized back garden oasis. It's perfect in spring and summer, but magical year-round as it's visible through a pair of sliding glass doors whenever you enter the living room.
Get a closer look

Distinctive Homes

November 2, 2015

Apartment-Friendly Kama Sutra Art Replaces Bodies With Buildings

Most of us have heard of the Kama Sutra, and as interesting as it is, it might not be our first choice for our home's wall decor. But this non-traditional version, entitled Archisutra, from architectural illustrator Federico Babina, may be clever enough to change your mind. Traditionally pictorial interpretations of the Kama Sutra include human bodies demonstrating sexual positions from the ancient sanskrit text; however, in Babina's version, the bodies are replaced with buildings while the positions remain the same.
See the illustrations

November 2, 2015

Visit Truman Capote’s Brooklyn Heights; Bronx to Get $10M to Improve River Access

A collection of photos depicts what Brooklyn Heights looked like when Truman Capote was a resident in 1958. [Atlas Obscura] The city received a $10M grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation to construct two bike and pedestrian bridges and to develop a short pathway along the Bronx river. [DNA Info] Hudson Companies’ plan for […]

Real Estate Trends

Upper East Side Townhouse by Modernist Pioneer William Lescaze Sells for $16M

After five long years on the market, the William Lescaze-designed townhouse at 32 East 74th Street on the Upper East Side has found a buyer, according to Curbed. As 6sqft previously reported, Lescaze was a Swiss-born, American architect who is credited with pioneering modernism in America. His personal Midtown East townhouse (the William Lescaze House) is considered the first modernist residence in New York City, built just one year prior to this 1934 uptown commission. The Upper East Side house sold for $12 million in 2008. Starting two years later, it's been on and off the market, ranging from $14 million to $19.5 million, but finally went into contract last week for $15.9 million.
More details ahead

November 2, 2015

More Sky Window Extensions Create Mini Glass Alcoves in Your Apartment

As the world population continues to grow, cities are more densely populated and we're on the constant lookout for new ways to optimize the small spaces many of us occupy. In response to this growing need, Argentinean architect Aldana Ferrer Garcia created "More Sky," an extending window unit that provides apartment-dwellers with immediate access to the sky from their often cramped and sometimes dreary living space.
more on the design here

November 2, 2015

The Actual Daylight That Daylight Saving Time Saves; Furniture Made of Shopping Carts

A controversial virtual reality experience simulates the 9/11 attacks from the perspective of someone on the top floors of the World Trade Center. [DNAinfo] How much daylight does daylight saving time save? Find out with this interactive chart. [Quartz] Celebrate Junior’s 65th anniversary tomorrow with 65-cent pieces of cheesecake. [NYDN] This Greenwich Village townhouse was inspired by […]

Uncategorized

November 2, 2015

One Bedroom Co-op at the Beekman Hill House Is the Ideal Starter Apartment

Ah, the New York starter apartment. First-time buyers who don't have millions to spend are always on the lookout for the perfect one–something relatively affordable, charming, and not too small. This can especially be a challenge when buyers have prioritized a central Manhattan location. But among the sea of multi-million dollar condos, there's still a decent selection of more affordable one-bedroom co-ops throughout Manhattan, usually in larger prewar buildings. This particular apartment is located at the Beekman Hill House co-op, a 64-unit building built in 1930 at 425 East 51st Street. It's a decently-sized one bedroom with colorful charm, and it was just listed for $725,000.
Check it out

Distinctive Homes

25 Percent of Subway Station Entrances Are Closed, Worsening Congestion

Image via FEMA

November 2, 2015

25 Percent of Subway Station Entrances Are Closed, Worsening Congestion

There's so much to kvetch about when it comes to the MTA and poor subway service: unprecedented debt, increased ridership that hasn't been matched with increased service and outdated technology to name a few. But here's another to add to the laundry list: closed station entrances. amNY reports today that one out of four subway entrances are closed at a total of 119 stations, which "create bottlenecks that make it difficult to get in and out of increasingly jam-packed stations, while stores miss out on the foot traffic." In total, a whopping 298 staircases are inaccessible, and some closures have been in effect for so many decades that the MTA doesn't even know why they're not in use.
Find out more

Transit

October 31, 2015

Mapping the Most Popular Halloween Candy by State

6sqft has already brought you a map of what Americans love to eat most by state, but when October rolls around, New Yorkers forget about the avocados (yes, that's our state's favorite food) and move on to sweeter treats. So before you get yourself into a sugar coma today, check out this fun map of the most popular Halloween candy by state (h/t Mashable). Turns out, the most number of states chose candy corn, but Reeses Peanut Butter Cups had the highest number of total votes. New Yorkers, however, have a very strange favorite...
See what it is

Events & Things To Do

October 30, 2015

Buyer of Andy Warhol’s Montauk Estate Lists Nearby Home for $29.5M

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

Though it may seem unlikely, there are some similarities between art and real estate, one of the biggest being that with big fish come big numbers. That's definitely the case for billionaire art collector and gallery owner Adam Lindemann–buyer of Andy Warhol’s former Montauk estate, Eothen, which was listed for $85 million. The contemporary art world high-roller recently listed his nearby property at 406 Old Montauk Highway for $29.5 million. The home was built in 2004; After he acquired it, Lindemann–who is married to gallerist Amalia Dayan, granddaughter of the late Israeli politician Moshe Dayan–hired British architect David Adjaye to take on a complete redesign. The 5,000- square-foot, six-bedroom home is now a unique residence in the far-east end of Long Island affectionately referred to as “the end of the world,” though the former fishing enclave has in recent years become a more-chill-than-the-Hamptons hip celebrity party spot.
Check it out

Spotlight: Witch Starr RavenHawk, Founder of the New York City Wiccan Family

Image © Laia Abril/Institute

October 30, 2015

Spotlight: Witch Starr RavenHawk, Founder of the New York City Wiccan Family

By Susan Cohen

New York is a very diverse city, so it should be no surprise that within the city’s midst are witches—and we're not talking the kind starring on Broadway’s "Wicked." Witches is one term for women and men who practice the religion Wicca. (Of note, not everyone who practices Wicca refers to themselves as a witch—but more on this ahead). Starr RavenHawk is a witch and the founder of The New York City Wiccan Family Temple. On October 31st, Starr and fellow witches/Wiccans will celebrate Samhain, a holiday that marks their new year. While this happens to be on the same day as Halloween, Samhain is not about sweets, scaring people or merriment. Rather, the new year is a time to honor those who have passed away. As Starr explains, this is a very personal holiday and how one celebrates it will vary. This week 6sqft spoke with Starr to debunk some myths about witches and Wicca and to learn more about The New York City Wiccan Family Temple and Samhain.
Everything you need to know this way

THE 6SQFT SHOP

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8 best places in NYC to thrift for home goods

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15 quintessential NYC gifts for the New Yorker in your life

Raising chickens in NYC: Laws, tips, and everything else you need to know

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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October 30, 2015

Insane Skylights at this $18 Million Tribeca Penthouse Loft

140 Franklin Street in Tribeca is a prewar building designed by Albert Wagner (also the architect of the Puck Building in Soho) in 1887. It's considered one of the city's best Romanesque Revival buildings, with its grand arched windows and detailed facade. Although it was built for the Walton Company, a manufacturer of wrapping papers, it has since been converted into 12 luxe condo apartments. This one, a penthouse unit, occupies the entire top two floors of the building and spans over 4,000 square feet. The skylights in here are just as grand as the building facade, creating a truly awe-worthy living area. And don't even get us started on the 1,640-square-foot roof top patio...
Check it out

Distinctive Homes

October 30, 2015

Talk Dock Is the Retro Alternative for Hands-Free Chitchat

These days there are a variety of fancy gadgets that allow for hands-free chitchat, but that doesn't mean we want to take our headsets home from the office. Before the small square smartphone became part of our daily routine, the old-school receiver was designed to nestle perfectly between your cheek and shoulder, hands-free. This retro-style rotary phone was the inspiration for Talk Dock, a charging station and receiver reminiscent of yesteryear.
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October 30, 2015

PBDW’s Nomad Hotel Prepares for 20-Story Addition to Historic McKim Mead & White Building

By Ondel Hylton

Alex Ohebshalom’s Empire Management may finally be moving forward with plans to convert a McKim Mead & White-designed bank building at 250 Fifth Avenue and construct a 21-story hotel-tower behind. The project is the latest to join Nomad's recent hotel boom that has produced the Ace Hotel, Nomad Hotel, Flatiron Hotel, and the upcoming Virgin Hotel. While building permits filed in July have yet to be approved, the existing six-story building recently cleared out its retail tenants, and its upper office floors now appear empty. Since the site lies within the Madison Square North Historic District, the owners, under the LLC Quartz Associates, had to secure approvals from both Community Board 5 and the Landmarks Preservation Commission. With a proven track-record of steering projects in historically sensitive areas towards approval, architects Platt Byard Dovell White were commissioned. PBDW uncovered that a mid-rise loft building was once proposed for the site and this evidence allowed for LPC to more seriously consider a taller addition to the 1907, palazzo-like building designed for Second National Bank.
Find out more

October 30, 2015

Peter Stuyvesant’s Ghost in the East Village; How the 1 Percent Celebrate Halloween

By Ondel Hylton and Julian Friedman

Mapping the most famous residents of New York City’s cemeteries, from John Gotti to Harry Houdini. [Curbed] Talking to the author of “St. Marks is Dead” about the history of and transformation of “America’s hippest street.” [Brick Underground] The ghost of Peter Stuyvesant may still haunt the East Village. [Bowery Boys] Here’s all the deals […]

Uncategorized

October 30, 2015

New Renderings and New Tenant Revealed for 90-Story Hudson Yards Tower

Curbed reports that Related Companies and Oxford Properties Group officially announced the signing of private equity firm KKR & Co. for 343,000 square feet of their upcoming mega-tower at 30 Hudson Yards. Marking the event, the developers have released a slew of renderings for the project, which is rising from the southwest corner of 33rd Street and Tenth Avenue. The 90-story building will soar nearly 1,300 feet high, and the deal dictates that the firm will occupy the supertall's top ten floors. KKR will have a dedicated elevator bank, a private sky lobby, and access to the tower’s hotly anticipated observation deck (which will be the highest in the city). The firm will relocate from the Solow Building at 9 West 57th and is slated to occupy the space by 2020.
Lots more renderings and details

October 30, 2015

Listings Launch for Zaha Hadid’s High Line Condos

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

October 29, 2015

Times Square’s Marriott EDITION Hotel Breaks Ground, Will Boast 76,000SF of Food Space

By Ondel Hylton

Earlier this week, the five-star Marriott EDITION hotel, slated to tower over Duffy Square, broke ground. The 39-story, 517-foot tall building is being developed by a partnership between the Witkoff Group, Howard Lorber’s New Valley LLC, Winthrop Realty Trust, and Maefield Development. Going by the invented address of 20 Times Square (701 Seventh Avenue), the 370,000-square-foot tower will be the first hotel to rise directly along the Square's "bow-tie" area since Gary Barnett opened the W Times Square in 2000. Taking full advantage of its coveted, highly-trafficked location, the project will contain 76,000 square feet of retail and food and beverage space, as well as an outdoor roof terrace. Its six-story podium anchors the northeast corner of 47th Street and Seventh Avenue and will be wrapped by a 120-foot-tall, 18,000-square-foot LED display, which according to the Witkoff Group, "will be one of the largest and most technologically advanced in the world today."
More details and renderings ahead

Art Nerd New York’s Top Event Picks for the Week – Halloween Edition!

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!

October 29, 2015

Art Nerd New York’s Top Event Picks for the Week – Halloween Edition!

By Lori Zimmer

Halloween week is my favorite time of the year, and this week I've rounded up a mix of art and Halloween events that lets uncreatives feel a part of (and even look like) something arty this weekend. Get into the spirit with Margaret Bowland's compelling paintings that brush on wealth and violence at Driscoll Babcock. Susanne Bartsch heads from her museum show at FIT to MoMA PS1's Halloween party for a complete night of museum-quality art (on both counts) and fun. Performance impresario Anna Copa Cabanna hits us twice, with hellish go-go in Williamsburg, then Old New York fun at Sid Gold's Request Room. Performance art group CHERYL invite guests to become part of their immersive world once again with Psychopomp, partnered with Gayletter. After you've washed the glitter out of your hair, rejoin society and check out the beautiful Donald Byrd and Charles Wuorinen dance performance at the Guggenheim, before getting a leg up on the inaugural Honolulu Biennial at a special panel sponsored by Artnet.
All the best events to check out here

October 29, 2015

$721,000 West Village Apartment Has a Cozy Floorplan With the Kitchen in the Living Room

Sure it's not in the seven-figure category, but $721,000 is no drop in the bucket, and that's exactly what this very cozy one-bedroom with the barely-there kitchen smack in the middle of the living room is asking. What it lacks in space and appliances, it makes up for in brick walls and dark-stained maple floors, three closets, and chic decor. The location helps, too; it's on the picturesque "Sex and the City" block at 77 Perry Street and "overlooks and clears the beautiful townhouses across the street with open views reminiscent of a Hopper painting," according to the listing. So, would you trade in your pots and pans for this "rare opportunity to own on the most coveted block in the West Village?"
Decide here

Distinctive Homes

October 29, 2015

Starchitect Vishaan Chakrabarti Scoops Up a $5.78M Condo at FXFowle’s 35XV

By Annie Doge

Vishaan Chakrabarti is closing out 2015 with a bang. After not only making a $4.995 million sale on his Flatiron loft earlier this month but also leaving his position at SHoP Architects to start his own firm, Partnership for Architecture and Urbanism (PAU), the starchitect has just closed on a $5.78 million unit a FXFowle's dramatic Flatiron tower, 35XV. According to the Post, Chakrabarti's new pad measures just slightly smaller than his last at 2,324 square feet, but hosts three spacious bedrooms, each with en suite baths, and comes outfitted with a Lutron home automation system that includes touch-pads, remote controlled shades, lighting systems and temperature control.
Check out the floorplan here

October 29, 2015

It’s Only $275,000 to Live in This Old Stone Meeting House in Upstate NY

New York City real estate got you down? There's nothing more refreshing than perusing properties upstate, which have plenty of history and charm for loads less money. Exhibit A is this "old stone meeting hall," an 1810-era home that was originally built as a Presbyterian church in the town of Barneveld, New York, at the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains. The current owners purchased it back in 1970 and converted it to a single family home, and the result is a wonderfully warm, quirky and historic house. And yes, this five-bedroom home, which sits on .45 acres of land, is only asking $274,900.
There's lots more to see

October 29, 2015

Construction Spending Will Set a Record This Year; What Your Junk Mail Says About You

Your junk mail will reveal if you’re rich or poor. [Washington Post] Brooklyn is the best bet for house flippers. [NYP] MTA passes $26B budget to cover repairs, improvements and expansion efforts through the next three years. [The Wall Street Journal] Construction spending in NYC is expected to hit a record $39 billion this year. […]

Real Estate Trends

October 29, 2015

REVEALED: 26-Story, LEED-Certified Hotel Coming to the Financial District

By Ondel Hylton

Here's our first look at Tribeca Associates upcoming 26-story hotel at 143 Fulton Street in the Financial District, where demolition at the site is already underway. The 90,000- square-foot tower designed by SLCE Architects will contain 228 rooms, ground-level retail, and typical hotel amenities such as a fitness center and a bar/lounge on the third floor. Hotel suites, found on floors 5 through 25, average ten per floor. The building will also seek LEED accreditation.
More details

October 29, 2015

Get the Blueprints: Learn About the Architecture of Shots With This New Book

With the holiday season right around the corner we've got three things on our minds, booze, gifts and of course design. This new book, "The Architecture of the Shot," from author Paul Knorr and architectural planner Melissa Wood, speaks to all three. In keeping with the authors' expertise, this clever piece of literature includes 75 blueprints detailing the creation of "the perfect shot from the bottom up," as if they were each a mini building.
READ MORE

Architecture And Design

October 29, 2015

Map Shows Where Our Pumpkins Really Come From

Unfortunately, the pumpkins at Whole Foods don't come with labels like "local" or "wild caught," but the good news is that your Halloween purchase likely comes from nearby. This interactive map from the Washington Post highlights the total acres of pumpkins harvested, by county, in 2012. It was created using data from USDA Agricultural Census and shows that "pumpkins are grown commercially in just about every county in the Northeastern states."
Find out more

Events & Things To Do

October 29, 2015

‘Ghostbusters’ Firehouse Now a Lego Set; Abandoned North Brother Island May Open to Public

The famous “Ghostbusters’ firehouse has been given the Lego treatment. The 4,634-piece set, which will come with the requisite ghost containment unit and figures of the movie characters, will go for $350. [Tribeca Citizen] Halloween survival guide for adults: what wine to pair Halloween candy with. [Mental Floss] The “windy” history of the Flatiron Building. […]

Uncategorized

October 29, 2015

POLL: Would You Like to See the MTA Use This Modern Subway Map?

Yesterday, 6sqft brought you this modern subway map redesign by Tommi Moilanen. His version keeps the current map’s basic structure, but infuses it with a bit of Massimo Vignelli‘s famous graphic style. Geographically and systemically accurate, Moilanen’s map also uses thick and thin lines to represent express and local service; tints skipped stops a lighter shade; more clearly […]

October 29, 2015

Animated Video Illustrates the Dire Need for New Hudson River Tunnels

People are getting fed up with the century-old, crumbling Hudson River tunnels. One Jersey resident even went so far as to hire an architecture firm to design a sky bridge connecting Jersey City to Battery Park City. But grand visions aside, the state of the infrastructure is serious. To illustrate this point, but make it a bit more simple to digest, the Regional Plan Association has released a three-minute animated video called "Tunnel Trouble" that, as Crain's puts it, "shows a hellish commute for New Jersey Transit and Amtrak riders if new tunnels are not built." The narrator states, "they are the biggest bottleneck in the metro region's transit network, causing delays that ripple up and down the northeast corridor."
Learn more and watch the video

Transit

720 West End Avenue

Upper West Side

Serene Upper West Side homes near Riverside Park

1 beds starting at $1,005,000
2 beds starting at $2,495,000
3 beds starting at $3,495,000
4 beds starting at $5,850,000

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October 28, 2015

Tommi Moilanen’s New Subway Map Design Makes It Easier to Navigate the City

The subway is one of New York City's greatest assets, but this only holds true if you can actually navigate through the various tunnels and platforms. And despite the countless transportation apps out there today, the good 'ole subway map is still the best way to find your way around. There's certainly been no shortage of map redesigns, but 6sqft is particularly impressed with the stylings of this new map by Tommi Moilanen, a Finnish industrial and interactive designer. His version uses the system's existing design language, but incorporates a fresh, modern aesthetic.
More details and the full map

October 28, 2015

Surreal Estate: NYC Listings That Are Scary, Hairy, and Totally Hideous

As if New York City home prices, monthly rents and apartment sizes weren’t scary enough. Between the horrors of Airbnb, overpriced dorm-style “co-living,” super-expensive micro-apartments, and Donald Trump, it’s hard to imagine we'd need Halloween to scare ourselves silly. But scare we do. Because of listings like these that know no season. Because sometimes real estate gets a little too real. From spookily dilapidated to eerily obscure to downright hideous, 6sqft has rounded up some of the most horrifying listings out there.
Be very afraid

October 28, 2015

VIDEO: Ride the Elevator Up to the Marriott Marquis’ Secret 55th Floor

The Marriott Marquis may not have the illustrious, storied past of NYC's landmarked hotels like The Plaza or the Algonquin, but that doesn't mean it doesn't keep its fair share of secrets. As you probably know, the Times Square locale is famous for its spectacular high-tech Schindler Miconic 10 elevators which zip passengers up and down the building while offering incredible views over the hotel's massive atrium lobby below. While the building is said to be just 48 floors tall, rumor has it there's actually a secret 55th floor that no regular person has been to before. Could it be true? One intrepid guest of the Marriott was daring enough to find out.
check it out here

October 28, 2015

VIDEO: Watch My Micro NY Get Built and Go Inside a Completed Unit

6sqft reported in July that My Micro NY, the city’s first micro apartment complex, was fully stacked, reaching its 120-foot height at 335 East 27th Street on the border of Gramercy and Kips Bay. Then, just last month, it was announced that the $17 million development began accepting applications for its 260- to 360-square-foot affordable studios. Up until now, though, we've only seen renderings of the interiors, but a new trailer from the designers nArchitects takes us on a walk through of a completed unit (h/t Curbed), which, although tiny, is quite bright. The video also shows the entire construction process, beginning with fabrication at the Navy Yard to the units being stacked by crane.
Watch the video here

October 28, 2015

Explore the NYC Death Map; Steve Buscemi to Advise City on Affordable Artists’ Housing