Hudson River
The Newly Minted Most Expensive Apartment in New York City
When an $80 million penthouse at 15 Central Park West came off the market late last month, it left a depressingly big hole in New York's super-luxury apartment market. (As it happens, an 18th-floor duplex in the building is being quietly offered for $75 million, while Courtney Sale Ross' sprawl at 740 Park is asking "over $60 million," but neither are official listings, so they don't quite count.)
Not that anyone actually keeps track of such things (actually, of course they do), but a relatively unthrilling penthouse at The Mark was, thanks to its $60 million tag, briefly the most expensive apartment on the market in New York. read more »
Hugh Jackman Closes on Huge Triplex--But It's A Bargain
In what must surely be a bit of good news for super-luxury Manhattan real estate--but, then again, must also be a bit of bad news--Hugh Jackman has closed on the Hudson River triplex that The Observer wrote about last month. It's a reason for jittery brokers to sigh, considering that two sources said last month it was "possible" the actor would walk away from his deal.
He didn't walk away, but one of those sources said the final sales price was between $20 and $23 million--lower than the $25 million-plus he was reportedly going to be paying. Maybe Mr. Jackman is a good haggler? Or maybe it's that every super-expensive apartment in New York is going to be open to negotiation for the foreseeable future. read more »
A Cleaner and Even Swimmable Hudson River
chronically polluted Newtown Creek, Brooklyn. Microbe
counts on this day were 232 times acceptable level;
bottom waters were nearly devoid of oxygen.
In the early 1980's a water engineer once described the Hudson River to me as "the biggest and fastest flushing toilet in the world". Until the North River sewage treatment plant opened in 1986 for what was called "advanced preliminary treatment" we dumped all of the west side's raw sewage straight into the Hudson. No wonder Riverside Drive is about ¼ mile from the river--up on a bluff with railroad tracks and later a park and highway between the fancy apartments and the river. No wonder the most expensive residential avenues in Manhattan, 5th Avenue and Park Avenue, were traditionally those furthest from the East and Hudson Rivers. read more »
Pete Seeger: A Green Hero for Our Time
Over the weekend I had the pleasure of reading Peter Applebome's wonderful piece in the New York Times about the new River Pool at Beacon a swimming "pool" in the Hudson River that Pete Seeger and some friends dedicated last week.
Many people know the story of Pete Seeger, who brought American folk music to the hit parade with the Weavers in the 1950's and was then blacklisted and banned from TV for refusing to cooperate with the communist-hunting House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC). When brought before the committee in the mid 1950's, he asserted that testifying against his will was a violation of the first amendment's protection of free speech and refused the protection offered by the 5th amendment protection against self-incrimination. read more »
Tuesday: Walking on Water in Battery Park, Making Magic in Chinatown
The 'Worth [www.nyc-architecture.com]
- The overeager minds at the Battery Park City Authority have decided to fill in fifty acres of the Hudson River, making way for affordable housing. After all, why should only the upper classes get real estate on the water? (Crain's premium)
- Spitzer and Faso have graciously lended their support to plans for a Second Avenue subway, and a LIRR/Grand Central tunnel, and a city-funded No. 7 train expansion to the Javits Center. And a new Tappan Zee Bridge--but that's only because they like the name. (The New York Times)
- Louis Sullivan invented the skyscraper (plus ornamental terra cotta!) and all he got was this lousy symposium at Cooper Union. And a beer-bash at the Woolworth Building. (Interior Design)
- Why is Chinatown cool again? Because magical old women do really magical things every weekend in Seward Park. Then the condos follow. (Vice Magazine)
- Haute LivingNY has been born into our increasingly wonderful world. The first $7 issue delves into "New York's Real Estate Dynasties' Global Domination." Amazing. (Curbed) - Max Abelson read more »
McCain Response
Emails after the jump. read more »
Enjoy.
—Jason HorowitzMany Weeks of Excitement to Come!
"We are very optimistic that in the ensuing weeks that we are going to come to some sort of agreement."
Coscia, as well as Vice Chairman Charles Gargano, disputed the notion that the New Jersey and New York delegations had put forth different interests. A source said that while the Hudson River tunnel had not played into negotiations at all, that Jersey board members were pushing for a harder bargain from developer Larry Silverstein, pushing him to hand any discount on rent over to build the World Trade Center memorial.
Silverstein took the opportunity to play up the disarray within the Port Authority. He put out a statement today saying: "It looked as if a final, fair deal was at hand. However, we now find that the process has apparently gotten bogged down inside the Port Authority, which is as frustrating to me as I'm sure it is to New Yorkers."
-Matthew SchuermanThe Jersey Connection
High Art
In April 2004, gallery owner Barbara Gladstone signed a contract at Richard Meier's latest residential project, 165 Charles Street, as reported a few months later by New York magazine. Well, the deal finally closed earlier this month for $4.75 million, according to deed transfer records. (Ms. Gladstone is in Europe and could not be reached for comment.
After the success of Mr. Meier's two Perry Street condominiums, the 16-story glass and white metal tower under construction near the Hudson River has been watched closely in both real-estate and art world circles. The latter can be attributed to the sleek design, and possibly because the building included its own curator, Lehman Maupin Gallery. Larry Gagosian even dropped by a reception in one of the sample apartments, as Artforum reported. read more »
Ms. Gladstone is not the first art world big shot to grab a pre-construction deal. Magazine publisher Louise T. Blouin MacBain reportedly signed a contract for the $20 million duplex penthouse. Incidentally, that's over $4,500 per square-foot. Formerly head of Phillips, de Pury and Company, Ms. MacBain owns industry standards, including Art & Auction, Modern Painters, and Gallery Guide.
-Michael CalderoneGreenwich Village 'Down-Zoned'
Greenwich Village dwellers and preservationists won a battle today when the City Planning Commission voted to limit the height and scale of new developments in the far West Village, a haven of luxury real-estate speculation since the infamous Perry Street celebridorm by Richard Meier, overexposed both literally and figuratively, went up along the Hudson River.
The City Planning Commission voted unanimously today to approve a down-zoning of the Far West Village that imposes strict regulations on developers for quite some time into the future.
Developers interested in the neighborhood are not pleased.
During a hearing last week, proponents of the rezoning pleaded with commission chair Amanda Burden to take action quickly, as developers were gearing up to start their projects before the rezoning could take effect; apparently, she listened.
Two glaring exceptions to the rezoning remain: the Superior Ink Factory (pictured), at 70 Bethune Street, where Related Companies plans to build a 120-foot residential tower, and the Whitehall Storage site, at Charles and West streets, where the Witkoff Group is planning a 175-foot tower.
Now, the City Council has to vote on the rezoning, which should happen before Thanksgiving, according to the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation. read more »
- Matthew GraceWild, Wild West
According to people at the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, the Superior Ink Factory, at 70 Bethune Street at the West Side Highway, might fall victim to the rezoning, allowing Related Companies to build a Gwathmey Siegel Associates-designed 20-story, 270-foot glass tower on the factory's site (the same team that built Astor Place's monstrous "Sculpture for Living"; when that undulating behemoth pops into our view upon emerging from Astor Place, it in fact induces a death wish).
But the rezoning also sets the stage for landmarking the entire district, something the Landmarks Preservation Commission is slated to calendar later this year. In the tit-for-tat world of Manhattan commercial real estate, it might require the sacrifice of the Superior Ink Factory--a building that evokes the bygone era of the West Side's industrial roots--to protect other buildings in the highly desirable, and profitable, nabe.
This is only the beginning of the process, though. The city allows seven months for the public-review process to wend its way around the various city agencies and public hearings. The rezoning proposal will land on Community Board 2's lap next week before moving on to the Borough President's office. If all goes well, it'll go back to the D.C.P. before finally being voted on by the City Council. No dates are set, but Rachaelle Raynoff, the D.C.P. spokesperson, says the agency is trying to expedite the process, hopefully resolving it before year's end. read more »
- Matthew Grace
