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  • VintageLife
    VintageLife

    This building is an absolute beauty!   181 MacDougal Street Nears Completion In Greenwich Village, Manhattan    

  • a throwback  to 1919 --   delancey street and the williamsburgh bridge in full swing during the streetcar era --    

  • the brooklyn tower -- from tuesday before we went to the cavs/nets game at barclays        

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20 minutes ago, Dougal said:

Is this reliable?  The NY Post reported that more than 300,000 change-of-address notices have been filed with post offices in NYC since the pandemic began, almost 200,000 more than usual.  Of the top 20 zipcodes, two were Brooklyn and the rest Manhattan.

 

https://nypost.com/2020/11/14/new-stats-reveal-massive-nyc-exodus-amid-coronavirus-crime/


Don’t believe the hype. These stories of NYC being dead or dying are silly. Yes there have been plenty of people who have moved since corona but always keep in mind how giant the city is to begin with, Brooklyn alone is the size of Chicago. Also almost everyone I know that has moved out of NYC because of corona misses it so much and are planning on moving back next year. I would bet the same will go for cities like San Francisco that has also seen a “mass exodus” according to the media especially the right wing media. These so called “Superstar” cities aren’t going anywhere they are going to remain America’s wealth and power centers for a long time to come.

Edited by 646empire

Plus, a change of address can, and for many of those 300k, is likely temporary. I know dozens of people, friends, acquaintances, coworkers, etc, who have moved elsewhere temporarily and that would require forwarding of their mail elsewhere until they're back. They'll fall into that 300k number but aren't permanently gone. NY Post is trash and should always be assumed to be sensationalized or flat out inaccurate.

 

The city feels just as alive as ever. The only difference really is less people on the trains and a clear absence of tourists. Both of which will slowly return to a more normal level in the future when things (hopefully) get back to normal soon(ish).

I'm sure it's no coincidence that it's exactly 600 feet taller than the neighboring Chrysler Building.

"You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers

  • Author

the normally grumpy couz does a nice positive looking roundup of major ny developments to look forward to:

 

 

NYC poised for 2021 COVID comeback with major real estate developments

 

By Steve Cuozzo

November 21, 2020 | 1:26pm

 

 

Amid rising COVID cases and looming lockdowns, my fellow New Yorkers should take heart — because we will have a greater city to look forward to once this pandemic’s over.

 

Although the flight from the Big Apple, increasing crime, and possible MTA cuts are dominating media coverage, less noticed is a wealth of new projects that will make the town newly appealing — a multitude of splendid apartment buildings, amenity-rich office towers, museums, restaurants, and waterfront parks in all of the five boroughs within two years or less.

 

 

more:

https://nypost.com/2020/11/21/nyc-poised-for-2021-covid-comeback-with-major-real-estate-developments/

 

 

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he 425 Park Avenue tower will soon be open, along with scores of other restaurants, parks and office buildings like The Spiral (inset) in the Hudson Yards as the Big Apple endures.

Courtesy of L&L Holding; Tishman Speyer

I am surprised these projects are so bullish. As someone sitting at my desk in FiDi, I can't help but see the harm COVID has done to this city and can't help but think it will be years before this city shines fully again.

31 minutes ago, TraderJake said:

I am surprised these projects are so bullish. As someone sitting at my desk in FiDi, I can't help but see the harm COVID has done to this city and can't help but think it will be years before this city shines fully again.


COVID has done a lot of negative to many big cities. I don’t think it’s gonna be years tho. With the current Vaccine rollout time-line, I’m thinking this time next year we will see a lot of normalcy*. The thing is your in FiDi which is normally filled with office workers and tourists. Tourism is dead all around the country and world for the most part and office workers aren’t returning until next year for the most part. I have a friend who works at Goldman Sachs and his entire department is still working from home, FiDi is gonna be flat for a while. On the flip side tho I live uptown/Harlem and we are almost completely back to normal with packed streets and lots of energy and its been that way since around July, Plus I haven’t seen people move out much at all. Same with Queens, The Bronx and most of Brooklyn. So it really depends on where you work/live.

Edited by 646empire

20 minutes ago, 646empire said:


COVID has done a lot of negative to many big cities. I don’t think it’s gonna be years tho. With the current Vaccine rollout time-line, I’m thinking this time next year we will see a lot of normalcy*. The thing is your in FiDi which is normally filled with office workers and tourists. Tourism is dead all around the country and world for the most part and office workers aren’t returning until next year for the most part. I have a friend who works at Goldman Sachs and his entire department is still working from home, FiDi is gonna be flat for a while. On the flip side tho I live uptown/Harlem and we are almost completely back to normal with packed streets and lots of energy and its been that way since around July, Plus I haven’t seen people move out much at all. Same with Queens, The Bronx and most of Brooklyn. So it really depends on where you work/live.

I live in Jackson Heights in Queens and things feel more lively than ever these days. 34th Ave is closed to traffic which has brought a ton of life to the neighborhood and 37th Ave and Northern Blvd actually feel more lively with the outdoor dining than they did before without it.

 

I honestly think what's going to happen is that Class B and C office space is going to see conversion to other uses, primarily residential, and new Class A office space will continue to be built. There's still demand for high quality office space in the next few years and there's still a long-standing disconnect between population and number of households created in the last couple decades. There's still a ton of room for residential redevelopment to take over the less than desirable older office space which is the class that seems to be hurting the most. And it also just so happens to be the class that's typically in buildings that are a little easier to convert than a modern Class A office tower.

  • Author

also, a lot of things cuozzo mentioned are sort of aside from the big business towers, like apt buildings and restaurants, or have been long in play like the farley post office moynihan station project and barry diller's odd 'little island' pier in my neighborhood (he should have mentioned gansevoort peninsula park too just south of it on the old city dsny pier).

 

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edit: here is a size lineup by ssp'ers gertelim & xing lin of a few towers,

including the newest grand central hyatt site massing.

 

 

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Edited by mrnyc

  • Author
On 11/17/2020 at 2:59 PM, Dougal said:

Is this reliable?  The NY Post reported that more than 300,000 change-of-address notices have been filed with post offices in NYC since the pandemic began, almost 200,000 more than usual.  Of the top 20 zipcodes, two were Brooklyn and the rest Manhattan.

 

https://nypost.com/2020/11/14/new-stats-reveal-massive-nyc-exodus-amid-coronavirus-crime/

 

 

well just anecdotally we have been cat sitting for family friends in tribeca who went to hawaii for a couple months and another friend is now staying with her family in binghamton over the winter, so if you play out covid related temporary moves like that it seems to me 300k is even kind of low for a city of eight and a half million.

21 hours ago, mrnyc said:

 

 

well just anecdotally we have been cat sitting for family friends in tribeca who went to hawaii for a couple months and another friend is now staying with her family in binghamton over the winter, so if you play out covid related temporary moves like that it seems to me 300k is even kind of low for a city of eight and a half million.

 

Agreed--I have at least two friends who gave up their apartments only because they had other homes (one in Boston, one in Upstate NY) to work from so they are saving the money until the pandemic ends, in which case they have every intention of returning and finding another city crash pad.  

I know a lot of people have (valid) concerns about this project, but I'm kind of here for the absurdity of it. From the 400' tall stick the building rests on to the wonky shifted floors to the glass-floored walkway jutting off the building. I actually think it does a good job of tying various other buildings in its vicinity together by filling in a gap between the Midtown East cluster that's forming and Billionaire's row while also taking a handful of design cues from 432 Park. I think it works in a somewhat silly way. I hope it actually comes to fruition. I feel like of all the major office tower proposals it's probably at the bottom of the list of likelihood for a number of reasons, but the fact that they've at the very least moved forward with design since it was initially unveiled is a good sign.

Museum Plaza?  

Nah, Museum Plaza was  series of masses stacked up. This is more or less one mass, propped up on a 400' tall peg, with a chunk towards the top that shifts to create outdoor space.

Edited by jmicha

  • Author

macklowe now owns everything on the site and the buildings are vacated, so ... we'll see. 

 

if old harry dies its over tho. in that event i would guess a couple modest towers will go there.

 

it does seem unlikely, but i hope it happens. 

 

sure it looks awkward, but it uses the space very cleverly.

 

no one bothers to look up, but if they do the street view would be crazy.

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

CNBC: Biggest November in 12 years, 4,000 new Apartment leases in Manhattan.


https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2020/12/10/renters-return-to-manhattan-in-november-driving-30percent-gain-in-leases-.html


- "What clients are telling me is that they tried the suburbs and they missed the city," said Janna Raskopf, a leading rental broker at Douglas Elliman."

- “Brokers say another large group renting in Manhattan are millenials or younger renters who had moved back with their parents for months but are now returning.”

 

 

Edited by 646empire

  • Author

this is eco-interesting -- the largest 'passive house' in the states is on deck to start Q2 or Q3 2021 in lic, queens.

 

 

From Brooklyn-based design studio Archimæra, the building’s Passive House standard construction will incorporate extremely efficient mechanical and electrical systems, a low-emissivity glazing system that reduces energy costs related to interior temperature management, solar panels, and LED light fixtures, as well as an efficient building envelope and modern ventilation systems that work in tandem to improve indoor air quality.

 

The structure will comprise 425,000 square feet with a final height of 11 stories above grade. Interior volumes include 343,500 square feet of office space, a 17,000-square-foot roof deck that will accommodate a bar or restaurant, 30,700 square feet of event space, and 34,700 square feet of ground-floor retail.

 

 

more:

https://newyorkyimby.com/2020/12/renderings-revealed-for-the-oasis-passive-house-office-building-at-38-42-12th-street-in-long-island-city.html

 

 

renders - 

 

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Ground floor dining areas at The Oasis – Archimæra

 

 

  • Author

city council approved the $2B redevelopment of the flushing, queens waterfront between roosevelt ave and northern blvd.

 

there is nothing there of any note at all -- and this will compliment the recent mall/apt redevelopment just to the south.

 

its 1,725 new apartments and nearly 900 hotel rooms, along with office and retail space -- only 90 affordable apts though.

 

construction should start very soon.

 

more:

https://newyorkyimby.com/2020/12/2-billion-flushing-waterfront-district-development-gets-green-light.html

 

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I just don’t understand!!! Why on earth is there so much development still happening?????? I thought NYC was dead??!?!?! LOL.

  • 3 weeks later...
  • Author

via nyyimby and jds -- the crew is wasting no time on 9 dekalb!

 

 

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  • Author

via field conditions, more brooklyn, by my fav ny architect morris adjimi.

 

this is something nice --- 550 clinton hill -- at atlantic and clinton st.

 

 

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there will be highrises along the atlantic ave corridor all the way out to east ny eventually.

 

 

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  • Author

 

welp now that moynihan train hall is up and running ...

 

here is the dec 2020 city planning document final scope of work for the eis for penn south/empire station redevelopment around it:

 

https://esd.ny.gov/sites/default/files/Empire-Station-Complex-Final-Scope-of-Work.pdf

 

 

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not actual heights, but again just for planning purposes -- potential for at least five supertalls around there -- i think site 7 is the penn hotel site:

 

Site 1: 748 ft

Site 2:  1,040 ft

Site 2:  1,300 ft

Site 3: 936 ft

Site 4: 664 ft

Site 5:  1,018 ft

Site 6:  1,130 ft

Site 7:  1,270 ft

Site 8: 975 ft

 

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  • Author

also, new dept of transportation boss to be pete buttigieg was just in town touring ny/nj with schumer and others re gateway, so that should help spur this redevelopment depending on what comes through from the feds for gateway (add new tunnels or just patch up the old ones).

 

Schumer upbeat about Gateway tunnel after Buttigieg meeting

 

https://www.pix11.com/news/local-news/schumer-upbeat-about-gateway-tunnel-after-buttigieg-meeting

 

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On 1/1/2021 at 3:01 PM, mrnyc said:

via field conditions, more brooklyn, by my fav ny architect morris adjimi.

 

this is something nice --- 550 clinton hill -- at atlantic and clinton st.

 

 

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there will be highrises along the atlantic ave corridor all the way out to east ny eventually.

 

 

 

I miss Hot Bird so much :(

  • Author

well this is interesting and for the future huge midtown news.

 

the midtown community board voted to advance this 2016 redevelopment plan for moving msg:

 

 

 

Twin Supertalls Revealed As Part Of Garden City, Possible Relocation Of Madison Square Garden, In Midtown Manhattan

 

more:

https://www.newyorkyimby.com/2021/01/twin-supertalls-revealed-as-part-of-garden-city-possible-relocation-of-madison-square-garden-in-midtown-manhattan.html

 

 

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Diagram by Vishaan Chakrabarti’s Practice for Architecture and Urbanism (PAU)

 

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edit: here is a view of the site -- per empire station planning/google

 

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Edited by mrnyc

Interesting. It's actually fairly close to fitting into the city's plans for the area as well as shown further up the page. I'd be onboard. I always like PAU's vision here. Not wild about losing 33rd to a service road, but it is what it is. This could be transformative in a way  that there are very few opportunities in Manhattan.

  • Author

dubious they will move msg. even more so build two twin superdupertalls with all the other penn south/empire redevelopment planned in the area. one maybe. 

 

regardless, its a fine start, the community board thought so, and of course you gotta have a vision first, so we will see.

Youtube suggested this clip to me tonight.  It's now 20 years old, back before people could take pictures of themselves in front of a magenta wall in Los Angeles for a living.  New York City was still rough and weeded out lame people.  I just checked Google streetview and this same site is now a big Citibike station, a bike lane, and some planters.  I want the old New York back. 

 

 

To me Audioslave didn't really work as compared to everything else the members did.

32 minutes ago, GCrites80s said:

To me Audioslave didn't really work as compared to everything else the members did.

 

Yeah they weren't close to being the best band around.  But it was SO MUCH better than basically anything post-2008~.  I took bands like that for granted.  It simply wasn't possible to imagine back in 2001 that everything was going to disappear so quickly. 

 

I remember going to a club on the lower east side called Sine-E in 2006 to see Ohio's own Gil Mantera's Party Dream.  I can't believe it but a clip from the show is on Youtube:

 

They're whole act was making fun of synthesizers and 1985-1991 pop.  Then post-2010 synthesizers came back in an "earnest" way.  No, they still suck.  And you suck. 

 

  • Author

i didnt see any old ny in there, just a few slow, unmemorable songs from unmemorable audioslave on top the david letterman show marquee. 

 

we did later learn that dave was probably groping interns during that little music interlude though, so there was some gritty ny going on.

On 1/12/2021 at 12:52 PM, mrnyc said:

i didnt see any old ny in there, just a few slow, unmemorable songs from unmemorable audioslave

 

It was old NY because NY and LA were still the monoculture's gatekeepers.  All of national television with the exception of CNN was HQ'd in those two cities.  People of modest means could still move to Manhattan and attempt to make it in the arts and in entertainment.  The monoculture collapsed by 2010 and as of 2021 NYC and LA hold little sway over the youth since user-generated pop culture is taking over and you don't have to be in those places to build a following.  

 

The sound of recorded music has shifted from large home stereos and car stereos to headphones and cell phone trebble.  Today's popular music is quite literally crafted for a listener who listens on a very wimpy device.  Tik-Tok youth have literally never heard a Marshall stack. 

 

Tonight I ran across this story - a classic rags-to-riches story that isn't going to happen much anymore because NYC is both too expensive and isn't necessary for many of the things it dominated until very recently.  https://www.wealthsimple.com/en-us/magazine/ed-oneill?utm_source=pocket-newtab

 

 

 

 

  • Author

^ you are just talking about the internet of things. for just one thing, developers dont seem to be getting those kinds of alarmist messages, which btw have always been said about the city - so that take is nothing new. 

  • Author

a 33% larger union square park is on the way via taking up a few useless roads next to it:

 

https://static1.squarespace.com/static/58b4791ad2b857c893179e34/t/6004b1833e592d07ac483e1d/1610920330265/2021+(01-17)+Vision+Plan_Render+Package_web.pdf

 

 

and in very big news, they finally agreed on a plan to replace the port authority bus terminal — they decided to keep it right where it is:

 

https://www.nj.com/news/2021/01/port-authority-unveils-bold-design-for-new-bus-terminal-in-nyc.html

 

 

  • 2 weeks later...
  • Author

big news for staten island for a change.

 

750 new apts on richmond terrace right behind the ballpark/outlet mall/ferry.

 

the developer definitely knows how to ring staten bells:

 

 

“As a private development there is an opportunity here to introduce a much-needed balance to include middle income housing for Staten Islanders,” said Joe Tirone. “This project supports that, making the most of the transportation-rich location’s walkability
and reduced dependence on autos.”

 

Tirone added that The Bay Street Corridor and surrounding local developments are not responsive to Staten Island’s unique demographic profile and contends that the two projects will answer the call for multi-generational affordable living.

 

“I am hopeful that this development will be a new model for housing for police, firefighters, hospital workers, seniors, small business owners and others from middle income households who want to stay in Staten Island,” said Tirone.

 

 

more:

https://newyorkyimby.com/2021/02/compass-announces-sale-of-major-mixed-use-development-site-in-st-george-in-staten-island.html

 

 

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Reading the vitriol directed as this project made me very sad. I mean, it's literally in front of high rises, next to the Ferry. It seems like a no-brainer, but then this is Staten Island. Always expect the unexpected.

The Tower Replacing the Grand Hyatt Is an Absolute Behemoth

 

5d3d60b84c3edc6480670791e3d4b506ed-175-P

 

 

Quote

Today’s big architectural revelation, via the Commercial Observer, is 175 Park Avenue, which is not quite on Park Avenue. It’s the big building intended to replace the Grand Hyatt, the black glass prism at the corner of 42nd Street and Lexington Avenue, next door to Grand Central Terminal. And we do mean big: The 26-story Grand Hyatt is 295 feet tall, but its successor will be 1,646 feet high, with 2.2 million square feet of space.

 

https://www.curbed.com/2021/02/first-look-at-175-park-avenue-the-grand-hyatts-replacement.html?fbclid=IwAR3EgVbXt_sZmuBmQPoGL2-OSyGS130RWWyRGAlPAgVz47Y9gUHQFHd5b_o

“To an Ohio resident - wherever he lives - some other part of his state seems unreal.”

  • Author

^ ah yeah i forgot that was supposed to come out today -- good catch.

 

height and looks are kind of like what was expected.

 

very exciting to see it moving along quickly.

 

hopefully something at the empire station/penn south eventually breaks the mysterious 2k' barrier.

 

 

nice base i like --- good job som!

 

 

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Edited by mrnyc

  • Author
11 minutes ago, TraderJake said:

Reading the vitriol directed as this project made me very sad. I mean, it's literally in front of high rises, next to the Ferry. It seems like a no-brainer, but then this is Staten Island. Always expect the unexpected.

 

 

^ ha yeah exactly.

 

but to be fair its probably coming from those old apt dwellers, some of whom who will lose their views. not all though, those are elevated above the site.

 

in the end they will sell fine, as you say its a no brainer given where the site is.

 

i wonder if it might be tough to push it through for ... reasons, especially given the site has been sitting empty so long? we'll see.

The Grand Hyatt, of course, was Trump's first big project.  He made more money on that project than any other because he got the place at bargain-basement mid-1970s prices and then enjoyed a 40-year tax abatement.  

  • Author

^ yeah although that is over-stated because because of course he was in partnership, which he doesnt like to tell you. then also big surprise trump later went down his typical drain -- per wiki:

 

In 1989, New York State officials ordered the hotel to pay New York City $2.9 million in rent that had been withheld by the hotel in 1986 due to "unusual" accounting changes approved by Donald Trump. An investigation by New York City auditors noted that the hotel was missing basic financial records and found that the hotel was using procedures that violated Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.

 

the hyatt eventually bought trump out to make him go away.

 

and there are plenty of other examples too besides trump. for one, our friend's uncle buzzy aquired the mooring site rights for the river cafe and water club for basically nothing in perpetuity back in those days too. he actually had to force the city to pay more later on because it was undercutting his taxes. crazy.  

 

how nice to be boomer aged to take advantage of the rotten apple ny era!

  • Author

uptown -- more columbia uni -- they are really on a tear up there with the new manhattanville campus:

 

 

Columbia University’s Two-Building Expansion Progresses In Manhattanville, Manhattan

 

 

BY: MICHAEL YOUNG 8:00 AM ON FEBRUARY 5, 2021

 

Exterior work is progressing on the two newest additions to Columbia University‘s Manhattanvillecampus. Named the Henry R. Kravis Building and the Ronald O. Perelman Center for Business Innovation, the two structures are designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro in collaboration with FXCollaborative and will yield 450,000 square feet of classrooms, faculty offices, and lounge areas. The buildings will be connected by a landscaped public plaza and green space designed by James Corner Field Operations. Turner Construction Company is in charge of building the two new buildings, and Skidmore Owings & Merrill designed the master plan for the overall Manhattanville campus.

 

https://newyorkyimby.com/2021/02/columbia-universitys-two-building-expansion-progresses-in-manhattanville-manhattan.html

 

 

Henry R. Kravis Building. Rendering by DBOX.

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  • 2 weeks later...
 Cross-posted in the Other States: Passenger Rail News thread
 

"In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck

  • Author

we have a blizzard of snow at the moment, nothing is sticking so far, but anyway here is half the new google building going up --- its in west soho/hudson square -- along the west side highway just below houston street -- via my spouse's office view today:

 

 

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  • Author

i took a walk around the chelsea galleries recently --

 

this is progress on the cortland -- the brick robert a.m. stern apt building on the far west side.

 

555 w23rd st 

 

 

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