Queens

For the last 14 years, JFK's most beloved structure has mostly languished vacant, reopened intermittently for public tours or to serve as the backdrop of some Jet Age fashion shoot. While there has been plenty of talk surrounding the TWA Flight Center's transformation into a hotel, details have remained sparse until now. As Curbed has it, the city has finally revealed that MCR Development will be taking the reigns alongside JetBlue and the NYNJ Port Authority, bringing the iconic terminal back to life as a 505-room LEED-certified hotel with restaurants, 40,000 square feet of meeting space and a 10,000-square-foot observation deck. The project will aptly be called "The TWA Flight Center Hotel."
FInd out more here

July 17, 2015

Why Are the Mean Streets of Queens Numbered the Way They Are?

By Shiloh Frederick

It's easy to tell if you're dealing with a Queens address–there's the hyphenated street number and the variety of numbered thoroughfare names (Street, Place, Road, Avenue, Lane, Terrace). The really hard part, however, is actually getting to that address in Queens, especially if you're a resident from another borough to whom it feels like trying to maneuver your way in another country where you don't know the language. But instead of continuing to find ourselves lost, we decided to get to the bottom of this complicated system. Prior to the consolidation of New York City in 1898, what is now known as the borough of Queens was only a hodgepodge of unconnected towns, each of which had its own road system and addresses. Once the towns were combined into one borough, having multiple road systems was becoming a hindrance to fast-growing Queens. So by 1911, the borough hired engineer Charles U. Powell to replace the old systems with a carefully planned grid system.
The rest of the story is right this way

July 16, 2015

Colonial Home With Chalet-Inspired Interior Asks $2.75 Million in Queens

By Emily Nonko

Way out in Douglaston, Queens, you'll find some of the most impressive freestanding houses of New York City. The quiet waterfront neighborhood is known for its historic and sprawling Colonial homes set on large, green lots. Earlier this year, this beauty–which we thought looked like something straight out of "The Great Gatsby"—hit the market for $2.7 million. Now, the house at 221 Arleigh Road is on the market for $2.75 million. The impressive interior and lawn is coupled with a chalet-like interior. It all makes for a pretty one-of-a-kind NYC property.
Check it out

Distinctive Homes

July 15, 2015

The MTA May Revive the W Train Line

By Shiloh Frederick

Rumor has it that the W train may be returning from the dead. According to AM NY, the MTA is in talks with both public officials and rider advocates to bring the train back to service once the Q train is diverged to the Upper East Side to the new Second Avenue line in December 2016. Restoring the old line would prevent disrupting subway service in Astoria, an area with thousands of daily strap-hangers and only a few subways to choose from. The MTA hasn't made any official announcements on the matter thus far, but with the opening of the Second Avenue Subway line rapidly approaching, they are said to be seriously mulling it over.
More on the rumor here

Transit

June 30, 2015

My 800sqft: A Cute Design Couple Fill Their Ridgewood Railroad Apartment with Whimsy

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 Ridgewood, Queens. Want your home to be featured here? Get in touch! Few neighborhoods have gotten as much buzz in the past year as Ridgewood. Considered the next frontier for cool kids getting priced out of hip areas like Williamsburg and Bushwick, Ridgewood sits at the top of NYC's list of ones to watch. But even with all the hoopla, how many of you actually know someone who lives off this stretch of the L? In our latest installment of My sqft, we meet Sean and Liz, a couple of Greenpoint expats who've made their way into a beautiful, historic brick construction along a peaceful block in the heart of this up-and-comer. Living large in a very bright and airy 800-square-foot railroad apartment, these two really don't face the same space challenges that plague the rest of us New Yorkers, and as such they've found the freedom to infuse their space with lots of personality (toy bunnies, illustrations of "nerd weapons" and quirky art from across the globe) and all the furniture they've collected over the last decade (lots of covetable mid-century modern pieces and antiques). Jump ahead to meet this perky pair and see how they've created that perfect old-meets-new-meets-endearing balance that we all strive for but pretty much have no clue how to make happen in our own homes.
Go inside their adorable home here

First Look: Andrés Jaque’s Wild, Water-Purifying ‘COSMO’ Now Open at MoMA PS1!

Photo © Miguel de Guzman

June 24, 2015

First Look: Andrés Jaque’s Wild, Water-Purifying ‘COSMO’ Now Open at MoMA PS1!

By Shiloh Frederick

"COSMO" has officially brought the party to MoMA PS1. The winning project of MoMA PS1's 16th Young Architects Program (YAP) is now open for public viewing in the museum affiliate's courtyard. "COSMO: Give me a pipe and I will move/celebrate the Earth," which was designed by Andrés Jaque/Office for Political Innovation, is a moveable artifact made from customized irrigation components that puts out an effort to make visible–and enjoyable–the hidden urbanism of the water pipes we live by. We stopped by the courtyard earlier today as "COSMO" got its finishing touches, and we must say, this installation looks as incredible as its renderings.
Your first look here

Photo via Garrett Ziegler/Flickr

June 15, 2015

5Pointz Artists Sue Developer for Whitewashing Iconic Graffiti Facade

Photo via Garrett Ziegler/Flickr It's been 19 months since the 5Pointz graffiti mecca was secretly whitewashed overnight by the developers who have since razed the site to make way for the two residential towers that will replace it. Then, to pour salt in the wound, this past November G&M Realty announced that they planned to use the iconic 5Pointz name for their new project, infuriating the artists whose work adorned the building and leading them to launch a petition to stop the title. Now, the plot has thickened. Nine graffiti artists filed a lawsuit on Friday "seeking unspecified damages from the owner who whitewashed away their artwork," reports the Daily News. The plaintiffs claim they're owed financial compensation as they were not given the opportunity to retrieve their work, much of which could have ended up in museums or the artists' personal collections. The lost collection amounts to more than 350 graffiti pieces.
More details here

June 2, 2015

Jewelry Designer Asks $1.3M for Rego Park Condo Decked out in Gold and Crystal

Experts recently said that NYC apartments are a better investment than gold. But how does the formula work out when the apartment is dripping in gold? A Queens-based jewelry designer spent $150,000 to outfit her Rego Park condo with glittering and gilded touches like door handles made of Swarovski crystals, walls and ceilings painted with crystal dust, 24k white gold leaf mosaics on the kitchen backsplash and columns and gold-plated bathroom fixtures. And she appropriately named her home the Jewelry Box. DNAinfo reports that the apartment, located at the Millennium 99 luxury condo at 63-36 99th Street, has hit the market for $1,288,886, which might be the highest asking price to date in the neighborhood.
Check out the opulent pad here

April 17, 2015

Long Island City’s Hot New Park-Front Project Liv@ Murray Park North Set to Begin Sales

While Manhattan buyers typically pay a great premium for a park-front address, a single subway stop away in Long Island City, a new condominium aptly named Liv@ Murray Park North will begin sales with homes starting around $400,000. Developed by George Xu and Century Development Group, the six-story, 39-unit building will house a mix of studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments designed by Queens' own Raymond Chan Architects. Liv@ Murray Park North is located at 11-35 45th Avenue along the northern frontage of the 2.5 acre Murray Park/Murray Playground. Similar in size to downtown's Gramercy Park, the community jewel is LIC's largest green space not situated along the East River. The park is also across from the neighborhood's sole historic district and is positioned centrally between the area's two booming high-rise nodes–the master-planned Hunter's Point waterfront community and the Court Square-Queens Plaza business district.
More on the project ahead

April 8, 2015

‘Amazing Race’-esque Challenge Coming to Harlem; The Logic Behind Manhattan’s Major Cross Streets

An “Amazing Race” inspired scavenger hunt coming to Harlem includes hot yoga, blind taste tests, and painting. [DNAinfo] The history of the Leslie Apartments in Forest Hills Gardens. [Brownstoner Queens] NYC once again is ranked the most walkable city in the country. [CityLab] The block on which Norman Rockwell was born, West 103rd Street between […]

Uncategorized

March 30, 2015

Fairytale-Like Tudor in Bellerose Manor Offers Suburbia in the City for $639K

We so often write about homes in Brooklyn and Manhattan that we sometimes neglect the gorgeous real estate that can be found in The Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island. Recently, Forest Hills has gotten its fair share of our attention, but when we came across this Tudor-meets-Cape beauty in Bellerose Manor, we were reminded us of how much the outer boroughs have to offer.
More photos of suburbia in the city

Distinctive Homes

March 27, 2015

New Yorker Spotlight: Gil Shapiro of Urban Archaeology Re-Imagines Beautiful Old Things

By Michelle Cohen

Native New Yorker Gil Shapiro founded Urban Archaeology in the early 1970s, when the salvaging movement was just catching on. With a collector’s–and creator's–eye and an entrepreneurial spirit, he began re-imagining architectural remnants as treasured additions to the home environment. This month the company has been preparing for an auction taking place on March 27th and 28th, handled by Guernsey’s auction house, when nearly 1,000 of their long-treasured pieces of history will be sold to prepare for a move to a new location. First opened in Soho in 1978, the store's early customers–including Andy Warhol and other denizens of what was undisputedly the epicenter of the art world–adored the unique and time-treasured aspects of Shapiro's restored architectural salvage pieces, yet they would always find ways they wished they could customize their favorite items. Finding that he excelled at bringing a fresh perspective to pieces of historical and architectural importance, he started reproducing individual pieces as well as creating new lines of bath fixtures and lighting, many of which originated in places like the Plaza Hotel, New York’s Yale Club and the St. Regis Hotel.
Read our interview with Gil here

March 24, 2015

Beautifully Renovated $1.5M Colonial in Forest Hills Is Not Far to Go for Room to Grow

While many welcome the opportunity to raise a family in the heart of New York City, others eventually seek the slower pace and solitude of the suburbs right around the time their first little bundle comes along. But part of the magic of the city we love is that you don’t ever have to venture outside of the five boroughs to find room to grow yet still be a hop, skip, and a jump from "civilization." One of those places is Forest Hills in Queens, and this lovingly maintained and beautifully renovated Colonial at 108-18 69th Road has all the space you need even if you don’t plan on sharing it with anyone else any time soon. At 2,000 square feet, it’s not too overwhelming for one or two, but has the requisite “room-to-grow” if a few new family members–or roommates–make an appearance.
See more of this beautiful home

Distinctive Homes

March 20, 2015

$3.3M Mansion-Style Home in Forest Hills Combines New Construction with Classic Details

If you love the craftsmanship and classic details of older homes but prefer not to deal with the maintenance issues and necessary updates that sometimes accompany them, this mansion-style residence at 72-20 Harrow Street in Forest Hills offers the best of both. Displaying all of the beauty, charm and warmth of a traditional Tudor, this gorgeous home designed by renowned architect Jerry Buck and built in 2006 offers all the benefits of new construction.
Take a closer look

Distinctive Homes

March 12, 2015

$2M Forest Hills Home Is So Exquisite We’d Be Happy Living in the Laundry Room

We kid you not. Every inch of this impeccable $2M residence at 69-54 Groton Street in Forest Hills featuring magnificent new construction is absolutely stunning, including the laundry room which is considerably nicer than many of the studio apartments we’ve seen for rent in the city—and where we’d be more than happy to camp out for a few weeks….or a year.
More about this impeccable home

Distinctive Homes

Photo via Wikimedia Commons

March 10, 2015

Philip Johnson’s New York State Pavilion Getting the LED Light Treatment

Last Friday, we journeyed to Flushing Meadows-Corona Park for the Panorama Challenge at the Queens Museum. When the evening of trivia was over, we walked out into the park to find the Unisphere and the Museum, both World's Fair relics, glowing. But in the distance, Philip Johnson's iconic New York State Pavilion was barely visible. That's about to change, though, as electricians and preservationists have been testing new ways to illuminate the "modern ruin" for the first time in decades, according to the Daily News. The update comes thanks to a wave of public support to restore the icon, as well as a renewed interest in its architectural merit and the history of the 1964-65 World's Fair. As we wrote over the summer, the pavilion's restoration task force secured $5.8 million for repairs, $4.2 million of which came from Mayor de Blasio. Now, Queens Borough President Melinda Katz has pledged to get the site illuminated by the end of the year. "We will restore this national treasure into a visible icon befitting 'The World's Borough' for generations of families and visitors to enjoy," she said.
More details on the lighting project

Architecture And Design

March 3, 2015

Taxi Mogul Looks to Set Queens Record, Lists Long Island City Penthouse for $5.4M

A local taxi mogul is hoping to set the record for most expensive single-family home ever sold in Queens. The Long Island City penthouse at 46-30 Center Boulevard is listed for $5.4 million, and the current record is a $3.35 million sale that went through last year in LIC. According to the Daily News, the three-bedroom pad was last purchased for just $2.5 million in 2009. The impressive penthouse features an expansive wraparound terrace, exquisite dark wood floors, and cathedral ceilings.
Check out the rest of the apartment

Distinctive Homes

Citigroup Will Sell Site to Feed Long Island City’s Growing Skyline

Image via LICtalk.com

February 24, 2015

Citigroup Will Sell Site to Feed Long Island City’s Growing Skyline

Long Island City's most recognizable tenant is about to sell a prime piece of property in the heart of the neighborhood. According to the New York Times, the financial giant is putting up a one-acre development site, bound by 44th Road, 23rd Street and 44th Drive in Court Square, and it could fetch up to $150 million. Court Square's proximity to Manhattan and plentiful transit has made the enclave one of Queens' most sought-after areas for residential development. Mayor de Blasio is all for the sale and has plans of his own to rezone LIC to spur even more construction.
Find out more here

New Developments

February 23, 2015

First Look at the Amenities in Queens’ Tallest Residential Skyscraper 28 on 28th

In December we broke the news that 42-12 28th Street, known as 28 on 28th, in Long Island City would top out at 58 stories and 648 feet. Now, Goldstein, Hill & West's (GHWA) affiliated interior design firm, Whitehall Interiors NYC, has given us our first look at the amenities of Heatherwood Communities' upcoming rental tower. The perks include a swimming pool and attended parking garage–and they also give us a glimpse of how the units themselves may be designed. The construction site already has steel re-bar poking up above street-level, meaning the tower will soon race skyward, eventually taking its place as the tallest residential skyscraper in New York City outside of Manhattan.
Check out the renderings here

February 20, 2015

NYC’s Oldest and Tallest Tree Grows in Alley Pond Park, Queens

In case you haven't noticed, we typically talk about buildings here at 6sqft, but today we're taking a look at a different kind of structure important to the urban fabric of New York City–a tree. But not just any tree; this is the oldest and tallest tree in the entire city, and it can be found in Alley Pond Park in Queens, between Douglaston and Bayside. Known as the Queens Giant, the record holder is a 134-foot (when last measured in 2005) tulip poplar tree that is believed to be 450 years old, according to Untapped Cities. Despite its impressive status, however, even the most seasoned New Yorkers don't know about this gem, which is likely what has led to its longevity.
Find out more here

History

February 19, 2015

REVEALED: Lions Group Developing Complementary Skyscrapers in Long Island City

Just north of Long Island City's Court Square and its once lonely Citigroup Building, the Long Island-based Lions Group will erect a complementary pair of residential towers fronting opposite sides of Jackson Avenue. Sensibly dubbed Jackson East (26-32 Jackson Avenue) and Jackson West (27-01 Jackson Avenue), the project is just one of the more than two dozen high-rise developments underway in LIC's Court Square / Queens Plaza area. While details remain scarce, renderings recently posted on the Lions Group's website depict that the taller east tower will rise nearly 40 stories while the shorter west building will be about 30.
More details ahead

February 19, 2015

REVEALED: Long Island City’s One Queens Plaza by Raymond Chan Architect

Here's your first look at an upcoming 18-story, 110-unit residential building called One Queens Plaza in Long Island City. Situated at 42-10 27th Street, the tower is being developed by the ever-growing-in-ambition New York Lions Group, also the developer of the two nearby Court Square towers that we revealed earlier today. Late last month, The Real Deal broke news of the development's initial construction permit filing, which calls for a 90,000-square-foot tower that will include 8,645 square feet of commercial space, as well as a 55-car parking garage. It will be just a single stop from Midtown along the N and R lines–meaning residents can be whisked from their doorsteps to Bloomingdales in roughly five minutes.
More on the project ahead

February 15, 2015

Check Out Studio Benjamin Dillenburger’s Wild ‘Phenomena’ Submission for MoMA’s 2015 YAP

Last week, MoMA PS1 announced the winning design for this year’s Young Architects Program (YAP), which will be featured this summer in the Long Island City museum’s outdoor courtyard. The top spot went to Andrés Jaque of the Office for Political Innovation for COSMO, a moveable environmental artifact made out of customized irrigation components. And while this interactive water purification sculpture is highly deserving, the runners-up shouldn't be ignored. Among the short list of finalists was Phenomena by Benjamin Dillenburger and Michael Hansmeyer of Studio Benjamin Dillenburger, which "addressed the idea of phenomenology in design, creating an experiential space that stimulates all the senses and hosts multiple programs." It combines a performance space, a highly articulated projection screen, and an ornate fountain, challenging how people experience live events by making the viewer part of the production.
READ MORE

New Report Shows It’s More Expensive to Rent in Queens than in Brooklyn

Ridgewood via Cameron Baylock

February 12, 2015

New Report Shows It’s More Expensive to Rent in Queens than in Brooklyn

A new report released today by Douglas Elliman shows that Queens has surpassed Brooklyn in most expensive rents. The median montly rent in Western Queens rose to $2,905 in January, a 30.7 percent jump from the same time last year. That's $4 more than North and Northwest Brooklyn's median rent, which only rose 2.5 percent to $2,901. We shouldn't be so surprised, though. With constant news of skyrocketing prices in Brooklyn, a lot of attention has been turned to Queens, especially up-and-coming neighborhoods like Ridgewood, as well as already-established hip spots such as Long Island City and Astoria.
READ MORE

Real Estate Trends

February 11, 2015

Douglas Manor Colonial for $2.7M Is Like Something Right out of ‘The Great Gatsby’

With its sweeping staircases and exquisitely landscaped grounds nestled within a quiet waterfront community, this historic Douglas Manor colonial at 122 Grosvenor Street calls to mind one of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s most memorable characters, the inimitable Jay Gatsby. And although this six-bedroom masterpiece listed at $2.7 million might not quite measure up to the former James Gatz’s lofty standards, we are completely enamored with this astonishingly lovely home.
More pictures of this Gatsbyesque home this way

Distinctive Homes

February 9, 2015

Building on Sunnyside Yards Comes with a Slew of Political, Cost and Engineering Complications