Curbed Inside: Stuy Town Goes Modern (No, Really!)

Thursday, May 8, 2008, by Joey

Curbed Inside visits the interior of a structure with an eye towards revealing the design and architecture. Got a place for us to check out? Drop a line.

Change is not looked at very fondly at Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village, the largely rent-stabilized megacomplex on the East Side between 14th and 23rd Streets. New owner Tishman Speyer, which bought the 110 buildings for $5 billion in 2006, knows this all too well. Start landscaping, and parody blogs get launched. Tweak the pet policy, and the oldtimers get downright ornery. But Tishman's goal is to make money off this thing, so the company has not been afraid to do what it takes. Since taking over the property, 3,800 market-rate rental apartments have been renovated in an effort to draw in young professionals who can afford the $2,750/month and up rents. But it hasn't worked, at least not to the extent Tishman would like, so they headed back to the drawing board.

For the past year, architecture and design firm Cetra/Ruddy has been secretly working on a brand new style of renovation for the 60-year-old apartments. That style—with condo-like finishes (condo finishes, in Stuy Town!) has now been put into practice inside a handful of apartments, including two model apartments in Stuyvesant Town (a 1BR and a 2BR), and one model 2BR unit in Peter Cooper Village. All newly renovated apartments in the complex will get the "Modern" treatment starting now. The 3,800 previously renovated units are now called the "Classic," and will remain as such. "Modern" apartments will be priced 5%-6% higher than the "Classic" ones, and a few have already been rented. Yesterday, Tishman Speyer and Cetra/Ruddy were finally ready to share their creations with the world. Above is a combined gallery of Stuy Town's two new Moderns, and we'll have Peter Cooper Village's later this afternoon. People of Stuy Town: Please refrain from rioting until all women and children have been safely evacuated from the premises.
· Stuyvesant Town [stuytown.com]