Robert A.M. Stern

In my Manhattan Tranfers item today on gold watch guru Benny Shabtai’s townhouse at 870 Park Avenue, I tried to figure out why someone who couldn’t sell his house in 2006 for $19.9 million would try selling it now for $33 million.

The Brown Harris managing director John Burger, who isn’t involved with the listing, gave me this explanation for why Upper East Side buyers might actually like the $13.1 million difference: “A $5,000 dress in a window on Madison Avenue is much more interesting to a woman than a $1,000 dress,” he said. “It’s true.”  read more »

The best place to come from, if you want a fair crack at buying really immense Manhattan condos, is either the United Arab Emirates or the Internet.

City records filed this week show that Sultan Ahmed Al-Qassimi, who apparently belongs to the ruling family of Sharjah--Dubai's neighboring emirate--spent $4.95 million late last month on a low-floor apartment at the Robert A.M. Stern-designed Fifteen Central Park West. (Tune into this week's Manhattan Transfers column to read about a haute broker who bought a place one flight up.)

But across the park, that was overshadowed by a mystery buyer named CPW EXODUS REALTY, LLC, whose October deed for a $16.6 million apartment purchase was filed in city records four minutes later than Mr. Al-Qassimi's.  read more »

Robert A.M. Stern, the well-initialled dean of the Yale School of Architecture, doesn’t apologize for his chauffeur’s room at 15 CPW, his suede loafers, his fondness for the past or his designing for George W. Bush.  read more »

Architect Robert A.M. Stern is coming to the financial district.

Larry Silverstein announced this morning that Mr. Stern will design 99 Church Street, his new luxury condo and residential project downtown.

Mr. Stern, the architect who designed the widely acclaimed Fifteen Central Park West, is a major coup for Mr. Silverstein who recently announced that 99 Church -- formerly an 11-story office tower -- would be razed to put up a new luxury tower. Construction is expected to be finished by 2011.

Release after the jump.  read more »