It's time to make up a bunch of awards and hand them out to the most deserving people, places and things in the real estate, architecture and neighborhood universes of New York City! Yep, it's time for the 14th Annual Curbed Awards! Up now: the most over-the-top amenities developers offered residents this year.
New York City’s real estate market has seen its share of highs and lows over the course of 2017, but one thing hasn’t changed: the amenities offered at new luxury developments continue to get more and more ostentatious.
Over the years, we’ve seen everything thing from concierge jet service to luxury yacht service; and while this year’s crop of developments didn’t include anything quite that over-the-top, we did see high-end experiences, chauffeur service, and a fair number of fancy pools.
Here now, nine of the most exorbitant amenities offered to residents this year:
↑ Sky’s chauffeured Volvo
Penthouse residents of the Moinian Group’s enormous Sky development get access to a $105,000 chauffeured Volvo XC90 Excellence. The Sky Volvo features massage chairs with heating and cooling capabilities, crystal champagne flutes, and beverage warmers/coolers. This rarefied perk is only available between 4 and 9 p.m. and only travels between West 14th and 72nd streets between Sixth and Twelfth avenues.
↑ Circa Central Park’s curated kids amenities
FXFOWLE’s semicircular condo building, Circa Central Park just might be home to some of Harlem’s showiest amenities. The Artimus Construction-developed building offers residents of its 38 pricey condos fully equipped picnic baskets that you can use during a trip to Central Park, remote controlled boats, kids scooters, and a study room (with MacBooks) for kids.
↑ARC’s 70-foot saltwater pool
Few buildings in Queens are as amenity-packed as Lightstone Group’s 10-story building, ARC, in Long Island City. The crowning jewel here is the rooftop’s 70-foot-long saltwater pool, accompanied by barbecues and bocce courts. Other highlights include a game room with vintage arcade consoles, a golf simulator, and a “dedicated outdoor exercise space.”
↑ Waterline Square’s “club” with skate park
When starchitects Richard Meier, Kohn Pedersen Fox and Rafael Viñoly teamed up to design the trio of buildings known as Waterline Square, it was a sure thing that it would be anything but basic. Aside from boasting a pet spa and a dog training studio, there’s a shared amenity space, known as the Waterline Club, that comes equipped with an indoor tennis court, 30-foot rock climbing wall, swimming pool, an art and music studio, golf simulator, basketball court, indoor skate-park, indoor soccer field, “gardening studios,” and mini bowling alley. Fancy.
↑ Urby Jersey City flower-arranging workshops
After last year’s debut of Urby in Stapleton, Staten Island, we’ve come to know a bit of what to expect from this community-focused brand. Urby Jersey City offers familiar amenities like a community coffee shop and cooking classes, but it also has a few new, slightly ridiculous perks—namely the the Urby Creative Lab, a corner one-bedroom that’s staged as a space for small workshops like flower arranging and Feng Shui.
↑ Henry Hall’s jam room
The site that’s now home to Henry Hall, a high-end rental developed by Imperial Companies and designed by Ismael Leyva and BKSK Architects, was once where Legacy Records, a recording studio, once stood. To “pay homage” to that bit of history, the developers kitted out the building with a jam room for residents, with instruments and a karaoke set-up. That’s in addition to other over-the-top amenities like a roof deck, 24-hour concierge, a fitness center with “customized fitness programs,” and more.
↑ 555Ten’s bowling alley and pet spa
When it comes to amenities, Extell has earned a reputation for being the most extra, so it’s no surprise that its massive Midtown rental, 555Ten, is packed with over-the-top perks. Some are fairly standard—a rooftop pool and lounge, a sun deck, a high-end fitness center, a children’s playroom, and a game room. Others are a little more over-the-top: there’s a two-lane bowling alley as well as the pet spa/veterinary clinic run by Throw Me a Bone (get it?!).
↑ 125 Greenwich’s pool with panoramic views
The amenity spaces in this Rafael Viñoly-designed skyscraper are being brought to life by superyacht designers March & White, so of course they’re over the top. The so-called “wellness amenities” at 125 Greenwich Street include a relaxation lounge, a spa, and a pool with a panoramic view of lower Manhattan. Other perks include a screening room, a private dining room, and a lounge.
↑ 300 Ashland’s “Apartment Stories”
Two Trees Management is experimenting with a slightly different approach to the amenity-sphere and looking to promote “experiences” as the hot new thing. The developer launched a program called “Apartment Stories” where “influencers” (like Rookie founder Tavi Gevinson) promote their buildings by hosting special experiences exclusively for residents. (The building also opened its expansive outdoor plaza this year, but that’s a little less exclusive.)
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