1) The two-story building at 746 Madison Avenue has had a wacky history, from synagogue to dance studio for "lithe young girls" to lighting shop. And an intriguing chapter has yet to be written. A developer is looking to add 12 stories and take the building condo, with a design by Page Ayres Crowley (right). The first four storieds would connect to a corner town house the developer also owns, and the entrance to the apartments would be right through the town house on 65th Street. [Streetscapes/Christopher Gray]
2) A look at how West Chelsea has gone from seedy industrial area to seedy industrial area with galleries to luxury residential clustereff. It's all about the High Line, of course, but some longtime residents wonder what all the fuss is about. [Living In/C.J. Hughes]
3) The Times takes a trip to the Streit's matzo factory, soon to be sold and eventually (OK, probably) torn down to make way for condos. Said one longtime employee about curious factory passersby: "I tell them it’s Jewish bread. But to Spanish people, we just tell them it’s crackers." [Urban Studies/Deborah Kolben]
4) When a relative kicks the bucket and the family winds up with New York real estate on its hands, trouble often follows. "Lawyers and brokers who have seen the drama play out describe qualified buyers who walk away frustrated, families who become permanently estranged over asking prices, and delays that siphon money in the form of carrying costs, legal fees and slashed sales prices." ['Heirs to a Headache'/Teri Karush Rogers]
5) Totally awesome quote from the subject of this week's Hunt: "My parents, when they saw what I was paying $800 for, were sort of dumbfounded," he said. "They are immigrants from Nigeria, and they didn’t understand why I wanted to live in a closet in Hoboken." Frankly, it is a little hard to understand. Anyway, a lot of condo shopping in Jersey City follows. [The Hunt/Joyce Cohen]