1) A second penthouse at 15 Central Park West has hit the market, joining Dr. Lindsay Rosenwald's duplex on the 18th and 19th floors of the "House" building (which officially doesn't have a listing price but is said to commanding at least $90 million). A penthouse on the 40th floor of the "Tower," a 5,270-square-foot four bedroom apartment that also includes a ground-level 1,100-square-foot space for the help, is now asking $80 million, after closing in April for "just" $21.9 million. The owner is London-based investor Amit Ben-Haim, who made his money from selling off a medical device company he founded. According to brokers, the apartments are "already attracting interest from a stream of billionaires and their representatives," so call these penthouses the anti-Pierre. [Big Deal/Josh Barbanel]
2) Mount Sinai Medical Center's 31-story black Annenberg Building at 99th Street off Fifth Avenue is often said to be a blight, but would the East Harlem locals rather have that than an even taller condo building that could come about as a result of Mount Sinai selling off the development rights to fund a new 11-story SOM-designed medical building nearby? Critics are worried that the Durst Organization's 564-foot-tall proposed tower would leave part of Central Park in the shadows. And there's also the sensitive affordable housing topic. The city has yet to approve the deal. [The City/Gregory Beyer]
3) The rent-stabilized tenants of 220 Central Park?the 30 or so left in the building?are still fighting the demolition of their 20-story building, and they won a recent court battle which at least buys them some time. The Clarett Group and Vornado are trying to get everyone out so they can build a 41-story glass condo on the site, and the other tenants have all moved or been bought out. The holdouts, which include Corcoran's Leighton Candler, reportedly turned down an offer of $1 million per apartment to vacate. [Big Deal/Josh Barbanel]
4) Upper East Side preservationists are trying to landmark architect Frederick Sterner's "block beautiful" on 63rd Street between Lexington and Third Avenues, even though his creations have mostly been razed or altered to the point of non-recognition. Spike Lee is still keeping it real, though. "How paradoxical that preservation may now come to a block that needed it decades ago," sniffs Christopher Gray. [Streetscapes/Christopher Gray]
5) The Hamptons summer rental season (for non-beachfront homes) has slowed to the point where owners are offering some big bonuses, like free boats, free cars, a year's supply of gas and, naturally, gratis plastic surgery. [In the Region/Valerie Cotsalas]
6) After four years of complaints, the MTA will install a better fence around and patrol the LIRR train tracks that run alongside the Bay Ridge Towers, a pair of 30-story co-ops. So find a new plane to light your garbage fires, mole people! [The City/Jake Mooney]
7) Cute teacher couple wants to become first-time buyers, and because they're young and poor and blue collar, they head to Queens. But will it be Woodside or Sunnyside? And what's with that weird bidding process? [The Hunt/Joyce Cohen]
8) Another young hedge-funder pays too much for a studio apartment. [The Sell/Beth Greenfield]
Loading comments...