Rendering courtesy of Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office

The plan to redevelop the area around Penn Station with several new skyscrapers is officially on hold. During a conference call this week, Steven Roth, the chief executive officer at Vornado Realty Trust, the developer behind the project, said new construction is “almost impossible” because of current market conditions, as Crain’s first reported.

Details here

President-elect Donald Trump has previously outlined his $1 trillion infrastructure plan not just as a means to repair and build bridges and roads, but as a real estate platform for private entities to build and subsequently own public works such as schools, hospitals, or energy pipeline expansions through $137 billion in tax credits. So it comes as no surprise that he’s tapped two of his longtime buddies and big-time New York real estate developers to head up the new council that will monitor this spending. The Wall Street Journal reports that Trump asked Richard LeFrak and Vornado’s Steven Roth to manage this council of 15 to 20 builders and engineers, referring to the men as “pros” because “…all their lives, they build. They build under-budget, ahead of schedule.”

Find out more

Robert A.M. Stern‘s latest Billionaires’ Row blockbuster continues its rapid ascent into the sky. As CityRealty.com reports, 220 Central Park South (220 CPS) is now two-thirds of the way up, construction having knocked out about 600 feet of the tower’s eventual 950-foot height. Application of the limestone cladding started in April and has thus far been installed across over one-third of the building. When finished in 2017, the two-winged skyscraper with its rare and direct Central Park South frontage will host 118 luxurious homes across 66 stories—and it will be one of the city’s most expensive residences. Jump ahead to see more photos of all the work that’s been completed.

More photos of the tower under construction here