1) Architect William Pedersen loves the look of One Jackson Square so much, a building he designed, that he is considering downsizing from his 2 bedroom Upper West Side condo for a 1 bedroom in the great glass undulater, explaining the design is "like pouring water over a rock in the stream." We agree, but Mr. Andrew Berman not so much, complaining "This building is flashy and geometric and luminescent, but the Village’s 19th- and early 20th-century architecture is solid, fairly modest and at most quirky." We like the water and rock and stream explanation better. [Posting/C.J. Hughes]
2) Remembering the Bronx actually existed and shocking their friends in the process, a couple discover the reemerging beauty of the Grand Concourse, buying an 1,800-square-foot 3 bedroom /2 bathroom apartment for $220,000. [Joyce Cohen/The Hunt]
3) Rather than going the condo route to raise money for needed renovations, the Third Church of Christ, Scientist on East 63rd had agreed to be leased out for private events in exchange for the cost of repairs. CB 8 was at first supportive, but after the Rose Group organized the first few events, they have changed their mind and withdrawn their support for a permanent liquor license. However, the Rose Group and Church are soldiering on, planning a full slate of events for fall. [Lenox Hill Report/Jennifer Bleyer]
4) Various tenant boards, building managers and supers are working to green up New York City buildings, which account for close to 80% of the City's greenhouse gas emissions. Many of the needed changes require large upfront investments and take many years to pay back, but some, like using fluorescent bulbs, thermostatic radiator valves and motion sensors for lights, are relatively low cost and provide an almost immediate payoff. [The Cost of Saving Energy/J. Alex Tarquinio]
5) A 19 year old college student has been terrorizing his parents West End coop, brandishing a knife at a doorman, drawing swastikas on storage lockers and pouring water down a freight-elevator shaft onto a building worker, and now the neighbors want him and his parents gone. Said parents can't believe it and are rallying the staff in little Alex's defense, with one worker saying "I've never seen him do anything, never - not since I've been here."[West End Avenue Terror Tenant/NY Post]