Search Results for: -fifth avenue

July 17, 2014

7 Cool Things You Probably Didn’t Know About the Bronx

The NY Yankees, Julia the Gorilla, and the Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden all call the Bronx home, but as the borough named for Jonas Bronck (and affectionately called the Boogie Down) commemorates a centennial anniversary in 2014, there is much more to celebrate than Yankee Stadium, the Bronx Zoo, and the New York Botanical Garden. We've hunted down seven cool things about the Bronx that we bet you didn't know. Read them all ahead, then venture northward to see them up close and personal.
Seven cool things about the Bronx
July 17, 2014

Your Daily Link Fix: Downtown Manhattan’s Mini Beach Is Here; 2nd Ave Subway Line: Can’t Live With It, Can’t Live Without It

Downtown Manhattan’s Mini Beach: The wifi rigged beach in Downtown Manhattan is here and Bedford and Bowery is already posting from it. Send Texts Without Service: Engadget gives us the scoop on a new device that will keep you from being stranded without cell service. Stylish Lemonade Stands: This one’s for the kiddies. It’s a […]

July 17, 2014

Still Portzamparc-ish: New Images of Extell’s Riverside Center Uncovered

On the website of Extell Development's latest residential tower, One Riverside Park, we uncovered some newer, more realistic renderings of their massive Riverside Center project. The 8-acre superblock between West 59th and 61st Streets lies at the southern end of a string of 11 Riverside South buildings that have been underway since the mid-1990s. Developer Donald Trump had struggled since 1974 to redevelop the 77-acre rail yard, and he developed the first eight buildings as Trump Place before selling a substantial portion of the site to Extell Development in 2005.
See more images of this mega-development here
July 15, 2014

This $5.25M Young Huh-Designed Town Home Will Make You Forget You’re in the City

What if you could enjoy all the conveniences of living in the most fabulous city on Earth while still getting to come home to a peaceful hideaway? That’s what this Young Huh-designed, five-story Astor Terrace townhouse offers. Unit #TH-NE11 is a completely renovated 3BR/3.5BA townhouse with floor-to-ceiling windows and a private, tree-lined patio. Each bedroom not only has its own en suite bath, they each have their own private floor.
Sound like something you're interested in? There's more here
July 15, 2014

551W21: Norman Foster’s Champagne-Colored Tower Rising Along Manhattan’s New Gold Coast (New Photos)

Many architects like to recycle their plans, reusing signature design elements from project to project. However, British architect Lord Norman Foster, with his firm Foster+Partners, enjoys keeping it fresh with designs that are unmistakably modern, yet profoundly contextual to their location. The firm's latest New York development is a 44-unit residential tower named 551W21 that rises in the once industrial—now art-gallery—hub of West Chelsea. The 551W21 team over at Foster+Partners recently sent us some new photos of the building under construction, which has surpassed its 19th-floor mark and will be topped off at the end of this month. And if you're still not convinced that buyers are willing to pay a premium for starchitectured spaces, we're told that the building is already over 50% sold.
See more photos and views after the break
July 11, 2014

NYC Events 7/11: Art Battle in Staten Island; Tour the Woolworth Building

This week, we've got a well-rounded roster of events for you, spanning from sticker art to rare architecture to dance and film. Pay a visit to one of our fair city's oft forgotten boroughs and sail the high seas on over to Staten Island for Saturday's take over, which will transform Artist Alley into a festival of live art making, drinks, and music. Next week, break out the picnic blanket and catch a free summer flick in Midtown's best park, or wake yourself up with not only a coffee and fresh juice, but a raging (pre-work) dance party. Treat your architectural side to a private tour of very private sites—the newly renovated United Nations chambers or the closed-to-the-public lobby of the Woolworth building—and then finish the week off by satiating your inner modern art nerd with the contemporary abstractions of Carly Ivan Garcia.
All the best events here
July 9, 2014

Real Estate Wire: A Bushwick Factory to Get New Life as Condos; A Peek Inside Norman Foster’s 425 Park Ave. Design

Our wrap-up of today’s real estate news highlights: Williamsburg-based development firm ASH NYC is planning to turn a longtime Bushwick glass factory into 80 apartments with ground floor commercial space. [Wyckoff Heights] Freddie and Fannie are warding off any “vultures” eyeing Stuy Town. The two mortgage giants say that they won’t provide funds to buyers who […]

July 8, 2014

Real Estate Wire: New Images of 432 Park Ave Under Construction; Battle of the Penthouses

To power up the vast $18 billion Related Companies project at Hudson Yards, the developers are looking to off-grid electrical systems. However, being green may also mean having to pay out more green. ConEd’s standby tariffs are canceling out any benefits for both big and small buildings alike. [Crain’s] The managers of the Empire State Building have asked a judge to dismiss a […]

July 8, 2014

New Renderings of Two Trees’ BAM South Tower Highlight Views, Green Roofs and Space for Outdoor Markets

New images of the BAM South Tower at 286 Ashland Place have emerged and come courtesy of the project's landscape architect, Grain Collective. The renderings hint not only at the incredible views that will be afforded by the new tower, but the major rehaul of the public spaces along Fulton Street, Ashland Place and Lafayette Avenue. The new streetscaping plan will add much needed green space to the barren concrete quarter, with plenty of room for outdoor activities and events for patrons of BAM and BRIC, as well as local residents, to enjoy.
More of what's to come here
July 2, 2014

Real Estate Wire: The Priciest Celebrity Homes in NYC; Developer Larry Silverstein’s Mega-Sized New Cause

Today's real estate news highlights: JDS is gearing up to build two luxury residential towers on the East Side on a $390M formerly owned by ConEd. [The Real Deal] What goes around comes back around right back into your real estate portfolio. Stephen Schwarzman’s Blackstone Group is buying the Park Avenue Tower, which it briefly owned in 2007. The property was flipped and sold it to Harry Macklowe for $625M. Blackstone just bought it back for $750M. [The Real Deal] The most expensive celebrity homes in NYC. Who has the most covetable pad in Manhattan? [Business Insider] Bushwick goes upscale with its gentrification. A 7-story building with valet parking may be coming to the nabe. [DNA Info] 'Jersey Boy' Bob Gaudio wants $6M for his San Remo apartment. Ohhhh what a deal? [Curbed] 50 West Street lists its units with condos starting at $1.615M [Curbed] For NY's tallest towers, the current rules require that they have mostly commercial space. Developer Larry Silverstein is championing for a change and wants that mix to favor far more lucrative residential space. [Crain's] The magazine everyone loves to hate continues to expand their media empire. Vice is investing $20M to renovate a 60,000-square-foot building on South Second Street and Kent Avenue, which will house its production facilities and a broadcasting station. [Crain's] Manhattan apartment inventory is at a low and the prices are up in the 2nd quarter. Read our brief after the break for all the details. Hugh Jackman in his luxurious 11,000 sq ft home (left); Larry Silverstein (right)
The 2nd quarter results here
July 1, 2014

Movie Producer’s Brendan Coburn-Designed Williamsburg Home Sells for $3 Million

Producer Jason Sosnoff--who has worked on such films as Analyze This, The Good Shephard, and You Don’t Know Jack—has just sold his Williamsburg town home for $2.95 million, according to city records. Not only is this single family home at 154 Wythe Avenue a rare find in a neighborhood characterized by warehouse remodels, it also features three floors, a finished basement, a landscaped garden and a rooftop deck. Sosnoff had the 4BR/2.5BA townhouse redesigned by CWB Architect’s Brendan Coburn, who said, “let there be light” and–oh wait, was that another story?
Take a look inside the remodel here
June 30, 2014

From Gilded Movie House to University Gym: Uncovering the Past of the Brooklyn Paramount Theatre

We're thinking of becoming local college basketball fans — not necessarily because we love the sport, but because we're dying to get inside this Long Island University gymnasium that was once the Brooklyn Paramount Theatre. Commissioned in 1928 by Paramount Pictures, with a sister theatre in Times Square, this regal venue was the largest movie theatre in Brooklyn, second largest in the city, and the first theatre designed for talking pictures. Noted theatre architects Rapp and Rapp designed the rococo-style palace with 4,084 burgundy velvet seats, a ceiling painted with clouds, a 60-foot stage curtain decorated with satin-embroidered pheasants, huge chandeliers, and tiered fountains filled with goldfish. Movie houses struggled during the depression years, and by 1936 the Brooklyn Paramount Theatre had lost $1.5 million since opening. In 1950 Long Island University purchased the building, and twelve years later they renovated the auditorium as their gymnasium keeping the original, ornate details of the space intact. The LIU Blackbirds played their first game in 1963, and in 1975 a second renovation occurred thanks to funding from local businesses.
We uncover the storied past of this grand movie palace
June 30, 2014

Real Estate Wire: NYC Real Estate Is the New Swiss Bank Account; SHoP to Design Brooklyn’s Tallest Tower

Today’s real estate highlights in one digestible bite: Kim and Kanye leaving Cali? The pair were spotted penthouse shopping downtown. One of their stops included this stunner at 215 Sullivan Street. [NYP] Jeff Koons got the OK to build a mega-mansion at 11 and 13 E. 67th Street. Koons’ new pad will measure 19,325 square feet and Peter […]

June 27, 2014

90 Years Later, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fuel Station Finally Built in Buffalo, NY

Filling up the ole' gas tank is not a glamorous job, and usually not a task that leaves one marveling at the surrounding architecture.  But in 1927, Prairie-style extraordinaire Frank Lloyd Wright put together plans for a fuel filling station in Buffalo, New York that would leave even the most seasoned driver awe struck. Now, almost 90 years later, the Buffalo Transportation Pierce-Arrow Museum has realized Wright's vision and constructed the station as a one-of-a-kind installation housed in a 40,000-square-foot glass and steel atrium, made possible by a $6.3 million state grant. The arts-and-crafts gas station, the third Wright recreation in Buffalo, makes a nod to Native American design and thoughtfully mixes practicality with visual appeal.
Take a virtual tour of the architectural masterpiece
June 27, 2014

INTERVIEW: Resolution: 4 Architecture’s Joseph Tanney Talks Prefab Homes and Designing NYC Apartments

Since it was founded in 1994, Resolution: 4 Architecture (RE4A) has been a game-changing force in the world of building and design. Founders Joseph Tanney and Robert Luntz were some of the first architects to embrace the idea of modular prefabricated homes, a concept that continues to grow in popularity for its cost0-efficiency, eco-friendly nature and versatility in design. The RE4A team has worked on numerous projects, ranging from envy-inducing vacation retreats to space-efficient lofts to the headquarters for Equinox gym. While they have helped design and build spaces across the nation, the firm calls New York City — specifically, Chelsea — home and plenty of Big Apple sensibilities show up in their work, which is bold, yet functional. We recently spoke with Tanney about RE4A's mission and upcoming work, plus his tips for creating a storage-friendly apartment.
Check out our full interview here
June 27, 2014

NYC Events 6/30: Jeff Koons at Rockefeller and the Whitney; Say ‘Oui’ with Air France This Weekend

We welcome this second week of summer with open arms as the warm weather we've been oh so patiently waiting for brings with it plenty of amazing art and design events happening outdoors (and in). This week, Jeff Koons descends upon New York, first hitting up Rockefeller Center with his giant living floral sculpture, Split Rocker, then rounding out this verdant new work with a full on retrospective at the Whitney's Upper East Side Breuer Building. But if you just want to relax and recline (literally), Air France will be kicking off the weekend by bringing a little bit of Paris to New York. Three days of French flavor are planned for anyone who wants to partake, and guests will get to indulge in delicious food and drink and even take French lessons while lounging in one of Air France's first class chairs. C'est bon!
All the best events here
June 27, 2014

NYC’s Billboards to be the Biggest in the USA: Even More Wattage Being Added to Times and Herald Squares

Billboard signs along Times Square, and now Herald Square, are growing ever bigger and brighter as LED displays become the top choice for developers of new supersigns. Projects such as the upcoming Mariott Edition, Vornado's Marriott Marquis renovation, and the revamping of the Herald Center all include LED displays that will be among the largest in the world. Though more expensive to install than the standard illuminated billboard, the light-emitting diode canvasses have the primary advantage of being eco-friendly by using less electricity and lasting 25 times longer than their incandescent alternatives. Their cost depends on size, complexity, and resolution; and may run upward of $1000 a square foot. But new technology in the past decade has cut the average price in half allowing for a brighter and more prolific future in the city.
See videos and images these eye-popping supersigns
June 27, 2014

Soho Square Poised to Get Multimillion Dollar Makeover

Coming on the heels of a rezoning last spring that will yield much more residential and retail development in the area just north of Canal Street, the Hudson Square Connection Business Improvement District embarked on an ambitious $27 million campaign to create more open space and beautify the neighborhood’s streets. First up was a $200,000 investment at Freeman Plaza West a few months after the City Council approved the rezoning. The vacant property near the entrance to the Holland Tunnel was magically transformed into an unexpected but charming garden respite with the addition of umbrellas, tables, chairs and trees.
What are the plans for Soho Square?
June 26, 2014

Live Like an Outlaw (At Least for a Night) at the Urban Cowboy B&B in Brooklyn

As New Yorkers we love to think of ourselves as original and cutting edge, but there's no denying that many of us have a soft spot for things that harken back to gentler times. In a sea of towers and shiny new boutiques, Williamsburg's newest hotel addition bucks the steel and glass trend for a beautiful Adirondack design that will appeal to even the most unwavering modernist. If you're looking for an oasis in this concrete jungle of ours, look no further than the Urban Cowboy Bed & Breakfast, a ranch-style escape sure to turn any city dweller into a cowboy complete with a twang.
Check out the incredible interiors of this quirky B&B
June 25, 2014

Real Estate Wire: Lantern-Style High-Rise One Step Closer to Reality; Jonathan Safran Foer Wants $13M for His Brooklyn Home

Today’s residential real estate news highlights in one digestible bite: Black House just closed on the $62M Hudson Yards site needed for Archilier Architecture’s lantern-like mixed-use tower. [TRD] A rare luxury residential building in Boerum Hill is on the sales block and could garner well over $50M. [NYP] Who says writers don’t make money? Author Jonathan […]

June 25, 2014

Landmarks Greenlights BKSK Architects’ Glass Topper for the Pastis Building – Locals Not Happy

What's a little more glass and metal in a town overrun by supertalls, right? After getting shot down by the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) for their design of a two-story, mixed-use glass crown to top the Pastis Building in the Meatpacking District, BKSK Architects went back to the drawing board only to emerge with a new idea that's won the LPC's blessing. Set to top the low-rise brick building at 9–19 9th Avenue, the redesign is a somewhat more subdued iteration that uses the same materials and form, but with much less glass.
See the before and after here
June 24, 2014

Academic Historian Philip Bobbit Sells his Scholarly Beekman Penthouse for $1.3 Million

With four degrees from three ivy league universities, Philip Bobbit might be expected to live in a house lined with bookshelves and filled with piles of marked-up papers.  The author, academic, historian, and public servant, however, kept a pristine space with virtually no clutter to be seen.  But there is a scholarly feel to the 2BR/2BA apartment with its traditional design, formal artwork, and dignified furniture. Despite its studious charm, Bobbit has sold PH1606 at 575 Park Avenue, known as the Beekman, for $1.325 million.  If the dramatic décor of the penthouse wasn't enough to entice the buyer, it also features north, east, and south exposures, as well as two custom, operable glass NanaWalls that open onto a gorgeous 45-foot-long outdoor terrace, creating an indoor/outdoor oasis.
Continue your penthouse education ahead
June 23, 2014

Temporary Treasures: Frank Lloyd Wright’s Demolished New York Buildings

Frank Lloyd Wright is one of architecture's most important figures, and you can see his work in five countries and 37 of 50 states. But when it comes to New York City, there is only one major Wright construction to be found: The Guggenheim. There is also a pre-fab house in Staten Island and one in Blauvelt just north of the city, but what other work did he do in the five boroughs? It turns out that Wright designed two other major projects in NYC, but both have been demolished. Here's a look at these lost works by the great architect.
See the historic Frank Lloyd Wright works here