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Fun With Feuds- A Slideshow: New York Magazine just compiled…

admin — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 16:53:37 +0000

New York Magazine just compiled a slideshow featuring a history of famous real estate feuds from the early 1900’s to the present. This tension tour starts with the feud between Joseph Husson and John Monnot in the Bronx and ends in crazyville with the El Dorado 9B dispute. [NYMag]

Park Slope Historic District Getting Bigger: The Observer is reporting the LPC’s…

admin — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 20:06:45 +0000

The Observer is reporting the LPC’s decision to add 546 more buildings into the already 2,000 building strong Park Slope Historic District. There is also a proposed extension which would stretch over both sides of Seventh Avenue from Seventh to 16th Street (with some added bonus side streets). [Observer]

Glenn Close Gets Close to Asking: Back in March, we reported…

admin — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 19:19:32 +0000

Back in March, we reported some pricechopping action happening at Glenn Close’s apartment in the Beresford. Well, it seems the cut worked as the apartment sold for just under asking, at $10.2 Million (600k shy of the $10.8 ask). The 2,300 square foot apartment is on the 19th floor of the legendary building, and boasts views of Central Park and the Planetarium. The buyers are Mark Fisch and Rachel Davidson. Mr. Fisch is a managing director at Continental Properties, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and a trustee at the Metropolitan Museum. No word yet on where Glenn and her husband David Shaw are moving as of now. [Observer]

Open House Open Thread: We’re in the final stretch of…

admin — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 16:40:44 +0000

We’re in the final stretch of summer, that means it’s your almost your last chance to check out some nice outdoor space or backyards to get some sun. It’s the dog days of summer, but we know some of you are hitting up those open houses! So if you’re planning on going to some open houses let us know what you’re seeing out there: crowd sizes, market conditions, great or outstanding finds, and any ridiculous amenities you might spot. Share your experiences in the comments.

Comment of the Day: “If the developers says 1 month…

admin — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 21:34:42 +0000

“If the developers says 1 month for TCO add another 4-6. As stated above ‘DOB is on vacation’…they have to be the worst in the country. Good Luck, get yourself a nice aerobed and take care of your friend with some of that saved rent money.”—anon [Brooklyner Renter Forced to Couch Surf Before Moving In]

Bring in the Clown…Opera: Developer Joseph Sitt has donated a…

admin — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 20:45:27 +0000

Developer Joseph Sitt has donated a 50,000-square-foot Coney Island lot to Mercury Opera, a Canadian company, for five days of performances in early September. The company will be performing a version of Pagliacci, an opera about clowns, set during Coney’s Mermaid Parade. Will the sounds of Shoot the Freak still be audible over the arias? Suddenly Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Coney Island-set Phantom of the Opera sequel doesn’t seem so far-fetched. [Crain's]

Preservation Pie: Freshly landmarked West-Park Presbyterian Church needs…

admin — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 20:10:12 +0000

Freshly landmarked West-Park Presbyterian Church needs to raise about $11 million to restore the building. The church will begin its fundraising efforts this weekend, with…a bake sale. “There’s a sort of simplistic audacity about it that I find very appealing,” the reverend tells DNAinfo. City Councilwoman Gale Brewer will be contributing the $500,000 brownies. [DNAinfo; previously]

Name Games: Though functional, the name CaVaLa Park…

admin — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 19:17:16 +0000

Though functional, the name CaVaLa Park never quite caught on, and now it’s being changed to Capsouto Park. It’s to honor Albert Capsouto, a Tribeca restaurateur and community activist who died in January. A nice tribute, but maybe we can find a way for the original name to live on. Let’s call that crazy fountain CaVaLa Falls! Also, somebody tell us how to pronounce Capsouto. [DNAinfo; previously]

Giveaways: Curbed HQ is relocating, and before…

admin — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 16:58:10 +0000

Curbed HQ is relocating, and before we move, we want to give you our stuff! For anyone who can come by our office before 6 p.m. today, we have four extra copies of the doorstopper AIA Guide to give away, plus any other books or odds and ends we may find while cleaning up the place. E-mail tips@curbed.com if interested. Our only requirement? Become our Facebook fan first.

In Contract: The most exciting listing to hit…

admin — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 16:17:35 +0000

The most exciting listing to hit the Long Island real estate scene in as long as we’ve been paying attention, the Amityville Horror House, has found a buyer! No news yet on how much it sold for, but it was asking $1.15 million, and sources tell Newsday the buyers are a retiree couple who are involved in the community. Creepy! Relive the gore in the gallery. [Newsday via Gothamist]

Gowanus Glam: The Brooklyn Eagle checks in on…

admin — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 15:37:33 +0000

The Brooklyn Eagle checks in on the new Fairfield Inn & Suites on Third Avenue in Gowanus, which will surprise those not expecting much from the latest hotel to pop up near the canal. The 12-story “eco-friendly, tech-savvy hotel” has all sorts of features, including a rooftop bar that will hopefully be less controversial than the one at Hotel Le Bleu. Also surprising: The developer’s insistence that this is Downtown Brooklyn. Guess that means they won’t be charging by the hour. [Brooklyn Eagle]

The Spy Who Came in From FiDi: So where does a Russian spy…

admin — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 14:17:30 +0000

So where does a Russian spy get an apartment these days? If that spy is Anna Chapman, the answer is 20 Exchange Place. The Times reveals that Chapman had a two-bedroom at the FiDi luxury rental building, from which she also ran her online real estate business. Did she ditch the courtesy bike during a getaway? [NYT]

Bagel Wars: With the closing of a Key…

admin — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 13:44:00 +0000

With the closing of a Key Food in Flushing, longtime residents are feeling marginalized by the remaining grocery options, mostly Asian markets that don’t carry the foods these residents want. So what would they like the Asian market to stock to fill the void? Bagels, pet food, and Boar’s Head bologna. (Oscar Mayer won’t cut it.) Even local politicians are getting in on the campaign. [WSJ]

Rent Wars: With distressed (mostly rent-stabilized) buildings trading…

admin — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 13:00:00 +0000

With distressed (mostly rent-stabilized) buildings trading hands for cheap, the NYT looks at what one tenant activist calls the “second wave of predatory investors using vacancy decontrol to evict tenants and jack up rents at the expense of affordable housing.” Yep, harassment allegations are back in vogue, but where are all these mean new landlords coming from? Well, in the case of one portfolio of Bronx buildings, eBay! [NYT]

Comment of the Day: “The PanAm Worldport was pretty cool…

admin — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 21:27:11 +0000

“The PanAm Worldport was pretty cool way back when, but it’s a wreck now. The best features — driving right through the terminal, and being able to park on top of it now — have been rendered useless since 9/11. I say let this one go — but please preserve the IM Pei terminal.”—MidC Frank [Jet Age Grounded]

Stuy Town Refund Watch: The big, lingering question mark from…

admin — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 20:57:48 +0000

The big, lingering question mark from the epic Stuyvesant Town/Peter Cooper Village rent-stabilization lawsuit is whether or not formerly market-rate tenants will get retroactive refunds on the rent overcharges they were paying to MetLife and later Tishman Speyer. The Stuy Town Tenants Association is now claiming victory following a just-released court decision. The TA’s website links to the decision and a letter from City Councilman (and Peter Cooper resident) Dan Garodnick calling on the landlords to pay up. [STPCVTA]

In The Rezone: Everyone and their mystic has a…

admin — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 20:25:58 +0000

Everyone and their mystic has a rezoning plan for Chinatown, but the Architect’s Newspaper gives us a look at one that may actually influence city policy. It’s being pushed by developers who want more action on Canal Street, and the controversial rezoning of Harlem’s 125th Street is being used as a model. One planning consultant says Centre Street and the Bowery are “good places to do signature gateway buildings.” Whatever, just don’t mess with our Three-card Monte guy. [Archpaper]

In Contract: As we suspected when the words…

admin — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 19:25:20 +0000

As we suspected when the words “no longer available” appeared next to the pair of Downing Street townhomes being offered for $33 million, the houses are indeed in contract. The prospective buyer plans to combine them into one 12,127-square-foot mega-mansion. The third townhouse is also off the market, but, good news for Downing fans, it will be back this fall at a slightly higher $17 million. [Real Deal; previously]

Where’s My Gentrification?: Fort Greene-based dance company owner Mark…

admin — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 18:43:56 +0000

Fort Greene-based dance company owner Mark Morris tells Capital he isn’t convinced about this whole “BAM Cultural District” thing that developers are pitching: “I see my building and some new, big, empty condominium towers. And I know everything that’s supposed to be happening, just like I know there’s supposed to be a building on the site of the World Trade Center, but who knows when that is? So the BAM Cultural District, which I think it’s called, is I guess still developing in people’s minds, but I don’t see anything happening at all.” [Capital]

The F-Word: Though it feels like we’ve seen…

admin — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 18:18:45 +0000

Though it feels like we’ve seen an increase in notable foreclosures (hello Damon Dash!), PropertyShark’s numbers show a 25% decrease in scheduled Manhattan foreclosure auctions year over year, and a 55% decline from last quarter. Currently one in every 27,357 households fit the bill (few actually make it to auction). PropShark discussed the latest Brooklyn and Queens numbers earlier. [PropShark]

Launches & Releases: An idea so simple, yet so…

admin — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 17:26:44 +0000

An idea so simple, yet so ingenious: Bodega Delivery, a big list of, yep, bodegas that deliver, divided up by neighborhood, with phone numbers, minimum order requirements and accepted forms of payment. Of all the scenarios the website spells out that would make this list useful, we feel this one most applies to us: “There’s a blizzard outside and you need coffee, eggs and bread for breakfast?” ALWAYS. [Bodega Delivery]

Rent Wars: Another Stuy Town copycat case bites…

admin — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 15:31:50 +0000

Another Stuy Town copycat case bites the dust: a judge ruled this week that the tenants of the Upper East Side’s Clermont York could not sue their landlord over rent. The Clermont tenants claimed the building accepted tax credits in 1997-98, and that units decontrolled between 1993 and 1997 should go back to stabilized rents. The judge said he didn’t think the tenants should bypass the Division of Housing and Community Renewal with their case. Said one lawyer, “The predicted [post-Stuy Town] confusion is starting to occur.” Finally! [WSJ]

‘Burg Needs Its Booze: More interesting notes (following up on…

admin — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 13:59:08 +0000

More interesting notes (following up on yesterday’s Apple store murmurings) from the Brooklyn Real Estate Roundtable, via the Brooklyn Eagle. South Williamsburg’s fingerish Zazza Williamsburg luxury rental building is not yet fully leased, despite those bidding wars. Also, The Edge’s commercial broker explains the complex’s CVS and liquor store leases: “We started with very lofty goals because Williamsburg is very chic, but the reality is people there need basic services.” Finally, a place for this lady to numb her pain! [Brooklyn Eagle]

Get Him to the Apthorp: Another celebrity sighting in the Apthorp…

admin — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 13:30:00 +0000

Another celebrity sighting in the Apthorp has made its way to the real estate gossips, in this case Jennifer Gould Keil. This time we’ve got comedian/actor/crazy dude Russell Brand and his singer/pin-up/California Gurl fiancée, Katy Perry. They reportedly checked out a $2.83 million 1BR apartment on the second floor, but c’mon, there’s no way this couple picks the Upper West Side over a place downtown, right? Keil also reports that Heidi Klum and Seal have been renting the Novogratz clan’s 400 West Street townhouse/bball court. [NYP]

Jet Age Grounded: As part of Delta’s massive revamping…

admin — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 13:07:26 +0000

As part of Delta’s massive revamping of its Kennedy terminals, the former PanAm Worldport (aka Terminal 3) will be demolished, flying-saucer-roof and all. Lasting symbols of the stylish 1960s jet age are having a tough go of things at Kennedy lately. The Port Authority also wants to demolish I.M. Pei’s “Sundrome,” which is the old Terminal 6. At least Eero Saarinen’s old Terminal 5 is landmarked, so we’ll still have a place to grab a martini and grope a stewardess—er, if it ever reopens. [NYT]