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An archive of 24,000 documents from Frederick Law Olmsted’s life and work is now available online

Early designs for Central Park. Image courtesy of the National Park Service, Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site.

August 1, 2018

An archive of 24,000 documents from Frederick Law Olmsted’s life and work is now available online

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When thinking of influential creators of New York City’s most memorable places, it’s hard not to imagine Frederick Law Olmsted near the top of the list. Considered to be the founder of landscape architecture–he was also a writer and conservationist–Olmsted was committed to the restorative effects of natural spaces in the city. Perhaps best known for the wild beauty of Central and Prospect Parks, his vast influence includes scores of projects such as the Biltmore estate, the U.S. Capitol grounds and the Chicago World’s Fair. In preparation for the bicentennial of Olmsted’s 1822 birth, the Library of Congress has made 24,000 documents providing details of Olmsted’s life available online, Smithsonian reports. The collection includes journals, personal correspondence, project proposals and other documents that offer an intimate picture of Olmsted’s private life and work. The collection is linked to an interactive map at Olmsted Online showing all Olmsted projects in the United States (and there are many). You can search the map according to project name, location, job number and project type.
Explore the documents and map
Men of steel: How Brooklyn’s Native American ironworkers built New York

Roger Horne, a Mohawk Ironworker in the Raising Gang, ca. 1970 via the Smithsonian

July 25, 2018

Men of steel: How Brooklyn’s Native American ironworkers built New York

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The Empire State Building. The George Washington Bridge. The United Nations. The Woolworth Building. 30 Rock. The Seagram Building. Lincoln Center. The Waldorf Astoria. Virtually all of New York’s most iconic structures were raised in part by Mohawk Native American ironworkers. Since 1916, when Mohawk men made their way to New York to work on the Hell Gate Bridge, ironworkers from two Native communities, Akwesasne (which straddles Ontario, Quebec, and New York State) and Kahnawake (near Montreal), have been “walking iron” across the city.
Get the rest of this stories-high story
First look at ODA’s boxy condo coming to busy 14th Street corner

Rendering by ODA Architecture

July 25, 2018

First look at ODA’s boxy condo coming to busy 14th Street corner

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First renderings of ODA Architecture's 13-story tower planned for Greenwich Village reveal a Tetris-inspired, boxy design, YIMBY reported on Wednesday. Much like the firm's other projects, the facade of the building, located at 101 West 14th Street, will look like a series of sculpted, stacked boxes. Developer Gemini Rosemont has filed permits to convert the site which currently holds a former bank into condos with ground floor retail. There will be 45 condos total, with 21 of them duplexes.
See the design
In 1923, scientists thought flying cars would solve NYC’s traffic snarls by 1973

A 1923 cover of Science and Invention magazine imagined the flying automobile of 1973. Image via Smithsonian.

July 23, 2018

In 1923, scientists thought flying cars would solve NYC’s traffic snarls by 1973

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Back in May 6sqft reported on the futuristic, fantastic flying Uber; even in 2018, though it may have wings, so to speak, the idea is still one that belongs to the future. Back in 1923, it was predicted that by 1973, flying "helicars" would be buzzing travelers around New York City and the snarled traffic on the city's roads would be a thing of the past.
It sounds so simple
East Hamptons’ mortality-fighting Bioscleave House could be yours for $2.5M
July 23, 2018

East Hamptons’ mortality-fighting Bioscleave House could be yours for $2.5M

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In East Hampton, the mortality-fighting Bioscleave House (aka the Life-Span Extending Villa) has returned to the market for the second time in its existence and is asking $2,495,000. Combination experimental art installation and dwelling, the 52-colored Cubist four-bedroom was commission by Italian art collector Angela Gallman from the late design duo Arakawa and Madeline Gins for $1.25 million in 2007, according to Curbed. As 6sqft previously explained, "the duo’s design philosophy is to combat mortality by creating architecture that makes people use their bodies in unexpected ways, challenging them to maintain equilibrium, in turn stimulating their immune systems."
It offers alleged eternal youth
City says 668-foot UWS supertall complies with zoning rules despite community protests

Rendering of 200 Amsterdam Avenue via SJP Properties/ Elkus Manfredi

July 18, 2018

City says 668-foot UWS supertall complies with zoning rules despite community protests

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The city's Board of Standards and Appeals found Tuesday that a 668-foot-tall tower proposed for a zoning lot at 200 Amsterdam Avenue does, in fact, comply with zoning rules, The Real Deal reports. The decision gives developers SJP and Mitsui Fudosan the green light to proceed with development of a condominium tower on the site at 69th Street despite a growing body of community groups opposed to the project. The Committee for Environmentally Sound Development had challenged the Department of Buildings' approval of the project on the grounds that developers assembled an illegal zoning lot in the form of a 39-sided polygon 10 times larger than the actual building's planned footprint with the intent of building a larger tower.
Find out more
The New York bagel: The ‘hole’ story from history and chemistry to where you’ll find the good ones

Image via Wikimedia Commons

July 16, 2018

The New York bagel: The ‘hole’ story from history and chemistry to where you’ll find the good ones

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A few international symbols of New York City–like the tough cabbie, the expensive apartment and the pizza-snatching rat–need no explanation and are too scary to think about except when absolutely necessary. Others, like the humble-yet-iconic bagel, possess New York City cred, but when asked, most people can’t quite come up with a reason. Bagels weren’t invented in New York, but the party line is that if they're made here, they’re better than anywhere. Some say it’s the water; others chalk it up to the recipe, the method, ethnic preference or all of the above. What’s the story behind the New York bagel? Who are the true bagel heroes? What makes a great bagel great? And those frozen bagels? Blame Connecticut.
Bagel squirrel vs. Pizza rat
Plans for New York City’s first soccer stadium focus on the Bronx, again

Yankee Stadium. Image: pingnews.com via Flickr

July 12, 2018

Plans for New York City’s first soccer stadium focus on the Bronx, again

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New York City Football Club, the Major League Soccer franchise owned by the Yankees and an investment group led by Abu Dhabi billionaire royal Sheik Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahayan, who also owns Manchester City Football Club, may have found a site for its own home stadium after a five-year search. The focus is on a site in the Bronx near Yankee Stadium, which is where the team's owners had wanted to build the stadium in 2013, as 6sqft previously reported. This time around, the stadium would be part of a multibillion-dollar 20-acre development along East 153rd Street and River Avenue between Yankee Stadium and the Bronx Terminal Market and would also include a park, a hotel and soccer and sports-focused conference center, shops, office space, a school and as many as 3,000 affordable apartments, according to the New York Times.
More details, this way
Governors Island is now open late all weekend

Island Oyster, via Trust for Governors Island

July 6, 2018

Governors Island is now open late all weekend

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In April, the Trust for Governors Island announced extended Friday hours for the 2018 season, allowing visitors to explore the island until 10pm. And now, thanks to a sponsorship from Grey Goose, they'll also remain open late on Saturdays, all the way to 11pm. "Late Saturdays" begin tomorrow and run through September 1st, with all ferries free after 6pm. As Governors Island says, "Visitors can now enjoy stunning sunsets overlooking New York Harbor, take leisurely bike rides around the Hills and visit Island Oyster for a Grey Goose Fair Winds Fizz specialty cocktail."
All the details
Russell Simmons tries to sell his $10M FiDi penthouse for the third time in 13 years
July 5, 2018

Russell Simmons tries to sell his $10M FiDi penthouse for the third time in 13 years

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Will the third time be a charm for Def Jam's Russell Simmons and his FiDi penthouse? The Post reports that the music mogul is trying to sell his five-bedroom duplex at 114 Liberty Street after an unsuccessful listing in 2005 and another two-year listing in 2012 (both times asking $11 million). The sprawling pad--there's 7,175 square feet of interior space and 3,500 square feet of outdoor space split among three terraces--is now asking a bit less at $9,925,000.
Get a look around
Jackie Gleason’s circular “mothership” mansion in Westchester is on the market for $12M

Jackie Gleason photo via Wikimedia Commons

July 3, 2018

Jackie Gleason’s circular “mothership” mansion in Westchester is on the market for $12M

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"Honeymooners" star and comedy legend Jackie Gleason kept an architecturally remarkable round house in Westchester County, using it as an escape while filming the iconic sitcom; now it's for sale as part of an estate listed for $12 million, the New York Post reports. Gleason was a UFO lover who referred to the home, which is circular inside and out as "The Mothership."
Have a look a-round
Where I Work: Go inside NYC’s first sake brewery at Brooklyn Kura

Brandon Doughan (left) and Brian Polen (right). Photo © Molly Tavoletti for Brooklyn Kura

July 2, 2018

Where I Work: Go inside NYC’s first sake brewery at Brooklyn Kura

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6sqft’s series “Where I Work” takes us into the studios, offices, and businesses of New Yorkers across the city. In this installment, we’re touring Industry City's Brooklyn Kura, New York's first sake brewery. Want to see your business featured here? Get in touch! "It was my first ‘oh, my God’ sake which was made in the U.S.A." said Japanese-born sake sommelier Chizuko Niikawa-Helton when he tasted the product of Brooklyn Kura, NYC's first sake brewery and one of only 15 in the nation. And this is exactly what co-founders Brian Polen and Brandon Doughan strive for. They're committed to respecting the thousands-year-old Japanese sake brewing traditions, but they also hope to inspire a new interest in this ancient beverage by using unique American ingredients and engaging New Yorkers in the process at their Sunset Park brewery and tap room. After meeting at a mutual friend's wedding in Japan and developing a passion for sake, Brian and Brandon teamed up and got to work on their 2,500-square-foot space in Industry City, which combines the functionality of traditional Japanese breweries with a contemporary Brooklyn design aesthetic. 6sqft recently paid them a visit and had a drink in the tap room (yes, we agree with Niikawa-Helton that the sakes are "so soft, so gentle"), got a look at the sake making process, and chatted with Brian and Brandon about their journey, life at Industry City, and how they're turning New Yorkers into sake lovers.
Read our interview with Brian and Brandon and see inside Brooklyn Kura
Kushner Cos. blame Jersey City’s ‘anti-Trump’ sentiment in lawsuit over stalled $900M project
June 29, 2018

Kushner Cos. blame Jersey City’s ‘anti-Trump’ sentiment in lawsuit over stalled $900M project

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Old rendering of One Journal Square via KABR Group A partnership headed by Charles Kushner filed a lawsuit in federal court in Jersey City Wednesday, blaming the mayor's "political animus" toward all things Trump–and, therefore, Kushner–for sending the company's residential complex into default earlier this year. According to the New York Times, the suit claims that Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop issued a default against the $900 million development in order to "appease and curry favor with the overwhelmingly anti-Trump constituents of Jersey City.”
More political animus, this way
Landmarks approves Frick expansion plan despite protests from preservationists
June 27, 2018

Landmarks approves Frick expansion plan despite protests from preservationists

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All renderings courtesy of Beyer Blinder Belle and Selldorf Architects On Tuesday the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission approved the most recent plan submitted by the museum for the expansion and renovation of the 1914 Gilded Age mansion it calls home in a 6 to 1 vote with one abstention, the New York Times reports. Three prior attempts by the museum in a quest to gain more space for exhibitions and programs were turned back amid vocal protests by neighborhood advocates and preservationists. The revised plan submitted by the project's architects Beyer Blinder Belle and Annabelle Selldorf includes the decision to restore the museum's original gated garden, which had been a point of controversy with those opposed to the project.
Find out more
Roast, record, repeat: How Toby’s Estate brews the perfect cup of coffee at its Brooklyn cafe and roastery
June 25, 2018

Roast, record, repeat: How Toby’s Estate brews the perfect cup of coffee at its Brooklyn cafe and roastery

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6sqft’s series “Where I Work” takes us into the studios, offices, and off-beat workspaces of New Yorkers across the city. In this installment, we’re touring the Williamsburg cafe and roastery of Toby's Estate Coffee. Want to see your business featured here? Get in touch! When you walk into Toby’s Estate Coffee, the smell of freshly brewed coffee hits you immediately. And thanks to the towering roasting machine in the back of the Williamsburg coffee shop (which roasts about 50 lbs of coffee at a time), the sweet-bitter aroma really lingers. While the location on North 6th Street between Berry Street and Bedford Avenue was the first Toby’s in New York City, the coffee connoisseurs have since sprouted to other boroughs, with three cafes in Manhattan and most recently one in Long Island City. Toby’s, which originated in Australia, has served up specialty small-batch coffee in NYC since 2012, bringing in some eclectic flavors to their roster of roasts. Currently, the shop is offering a Citron Espresso Tonic, with tonic water, ice, handmade citron simple syrup and candied oranges. (We tried it. It was delicious.) On an unseasonably warm day this spring, Toby's gave 6sqft a tour of its Brooklyn shop, which boasts enough square footage to fit its roastery and cafe, as well as plenty of seating. Ahead, see inside the sunlight-filled flagship space and hear from Toby's staff on their "roast, record, taste, adjust, and repeat" process that brews the perfect cup of coffee.
See the cafe and learn more about the roasting process
Exploring NYC’s historic gay residences beyond Greenwich Village

Clear Comfort, the Alice Austen House, photo by Alice Austen, via NYPL

June 22, 2018

Exploring NYC’s historic gay residences beyond Greenwich Village

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When most people think about gay New York, they naturally think about all the historic sites located in Greenwich Village and its surrounding vicinity. In fact, the LGBTQ community has long lived and made history citywide from the Bronx to Staten Island. To mark the 2018 NYC Pride Celebration, which will take place from June 14 to 24 with the famed Pride March happening this Sunday, 6sqft has compiled a list of just a few historic gay residences located well beyond Greenwich Village.
Learn about 7 of the most influential sites
Remembering the worst disaster in NYC maritime history: The sinking of the General Slocum ferry
June 15, 2018

Remembering the worst disaster in NYC maritime history: The sinking of the General Slocum ferry

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PS General Slocum; photo via Wikimedia On June 15, 1904, a disaster of unprecedented proportions took place in New York City, resulting in the loss of over 1,000 lives, mostly women and children. This largely forgotten event was the greatest peacetime loss of life in New York City history prior to the September 11th attacks, forever changing our city and the ethnic composition of today’s East Village. It was on that day that the ferry General Slocum headed out from the East 3rd Street pier for an excursion on Long Island, filled with residents of what was then called Kleindeutschland, or Little Germany. This German-American enclave in today’s East Village was then the largest German-speaking community in the world outside of Berlin and Vienna.
Learn more
This East Village duplex condo hides a solarium, a garden and minimalist interiors for $2.2M
June 11, 2018

This East Village duplex condo hides a solarium, a garden and minimalist interiors for $2.2M

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The East Village is famous for its creative and quirky-cool spaces, and this surprisingly spacious duplex at 407 East 12th Street is on the cool end of quirky, as long as you don’t mind a bit of street-level living and a more-than-bargain price tag at $2.195 million. The stylishly renovated 1,400-square-foot two-bedroom condo with a charming private garden looks as much like a southern California pad as a New York City apartment, complete with glass-clad solarium. Times are good in the neighborhood: The adjacent one-bedroom unit was listed last year for $1.7 million and sold in three months for about $1.6M.
Take the tour
My 500sqft: An art collector from Philly swaps space for amenities at Hell’s Kitchen’s 555Ten

6sqft’s series “My sqft” checks out the homes of New Yorkers across all the boroughs. Our latest interior adventure brings us to retiree Andrew Ackerman’s new studio in Extell’s 555Ten. Want to see your home featured here? Get in touch!

June 11, 2018

My 500sqft: An art collector from Philly swaps space for amenities at Hell’s Kitchen’s 555Ten

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A year ago, retired lawyer Andrew Ackerman gave up his long-time home, a 1,300-square-foot duplex in a Philadelphia brownstone, to move to NYC. Wanting to be near his friends, the theater district and art museums, and transportation options, he settled on Hell's Kitchen, and ultimately found the perfect high-rise apartment in Extell Development's luxury rental building, 555TEN. Getting used to the hustle and bustle of the city was easy for Andrew, but downsizing to a 500-square-foot alcove studio was a bit more challenging, especially considering he's been an avid art collector since childhood. 6sqft recently visited Andrew at 555Ten to see how he made the adjustment, which art pieces made the cut, and why the jump was all worth it.
Take a tour of Andrew's place
From the ‘Queens Riviera’ to Robert Moses: The history of Rockaway Beach
June 8, 2018

From the ‘Queens Riviera’ to Robert Moses: The history of Rockaway Beach

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Eleven blocks of Rockaway Beach will be closed this summer due to erosion, but that’s just one setback in a long history of resilience on the peninsula. Four-and-a-half miles of the beach are open right now, with every block steeped in history. The Rockaways ushered Henry Hudson into the New World; Walt Whitman into paradise; Hog Island into oblivion; and the Transatlantic Flight into existence. As “the brightest jewel within the diadem of imperial Manhattan,” the pristine beaches of the “Queens Riviera” became the preferred summer locale for New York’s most illustrious citizens. Later, the “people’s beach” at Riis Park helped make the Rockaways accessible to more New Yorkers. From, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, to Patti Smith to Robert Mosses, everybody wanted to be at Rockaway Beach.
Get the full history here
Remembering Anthony Bourdain’s NYC; Verrazzano or Verrazano?

Anthony Bourdain getting an ice cream cone from his friends at the Big Gay Ice Cream Truck in 2011, via mkeneally/Flickr (L); Verrazano Bridge via Wiki Commons (R)

June 8, 2018

Remembering Anthony Bourdain’s NYC; Verrazzano or Verrazano?

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In remembrance of “one of NYC’s most rollicking food celebrities,” this list rounds up some of Anthony Bourdain’s favorite spots and thoughts on his home city. [Eater NY] In 1983, a group of Park Slope neighbors created an unusual communal yard. It still remains as “a special slice of nature.” [CityLab] A permanent Nutella cafe will […]

INTERVIEW: Lighting designer Joel Fitzpatrick on his desire to permanently illuminate Manhattan

Aurora at 277 Fifth Avenue, courtesy of Victor Group and Lendlease

June 8, 2018

INTERVIEW: Lighting designer Joel Fitzpatrick on his desire to permanently illuminate Manhattan

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Joel Fitzpatrick is a master of many trades. He has a diverse background in theater, fashion, interior design, and dance but the one common element through everything he does is light. Fitzpatrick started as a sculptor but yearned for more collaboration and found that through lighting. In his most recent work, a dynamic, multicolored light show called "Aurora" for Rafael Viñoly's 277 Fifth Avenue, his career has come full circle. After feeling the cosmos pulsate with the northern lights, there was no turning back. Now Fitzpatrick dreams of building an outdoor light show to permanently shine on the Manhattan skyline. 6sqft recently talked to Fitzpatrick, who shines a light on how his past informed his present and what to expect from him in the future. 
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How the cardboard box was accidentally invented in a NYC factory

55 Washington Street in 1907, courtesy of the Skyscaper Museum

June 7, 2018

How the cardboard box was accidentally invented in a NYC factory

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New Yorkers are known for their innovative thinking: Inventions like Scrabble, credit cards, and even Baked Alaska all came from local creators. A little less exciting, but still a crucial contraption, the cardboard box was also invented in New York City. Like many discoveries, the box came to be only after a careless mistake. Scottish-born entrepreneur Robert Gair owned a paper bag factory on Reade Street in Manhattan. One day in 1879, a pressman accidentally cut through thousands of small seed bags, instead of pressing them. Following the accident, Gair, who moved headquarters to Dumbo, developed a method for the mass production of cardboard boxes and later supplied major companies like Kellogg and Nabisco.
Find out more
Study: A former freight line on the Lower Montauk branch could help a Queens transportation desert
June 7, 2018

Study: A former freight line on the Lower Montauk branch could help a Queens transportation desert

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How do you connect the fastest-growing census tract in the U.S. to New York City’s public transportation hubs? Architecture firm Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF), whose New York City work includes the master plan for Hudson Yards, One Vanderbilt and Two Waterline Square, has released a "visioning study" that explores how the repurposing of the QNS, an 8.5 mile Lower Montauk Branch rail line, into a new transit line in Queens that could revitalize neighborhoods, provide affordable housing, create jobs and add transit service to the over nine square miles of New York City that contain three of the city’s largest and most successful Industrial Business Zones (Maspeth, Long Island City, and North Brooklyn) and two of Queens’ largest central business districts (Long Island City and Jamaica Center), adding to the long-term growth of those districts and creating thousands of potential new jobs.
Find out more
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