Dutch architect Ben van Berkel's first New York City project—the black and bendy Five Franklin Place—has been met with a perfect storm of positivity. The buzz was deafening even before renderings were revealed, and once Berkel's Broadway Burka got out there, the praise was nearly universal. Even Kanye West is a fan! But now it's time to sell the 55 high-priced luxury condos, and the full website has been launched to do just that. The FFP site is full of all the ambient tunes and endless talk of influences one would expect from a highfalutin project, but much to our delight, it's also got new renderings of some of the building's shared spaces, as well as floorplan porn galore, including the two Sky Penthouses. The presentation of the floorplans almost seems pedestrian when compared to all the fancy click+zoom of the renderings and such, but cut the Dutch some slack: they gave the world wooden shoes!
· Five Franklin Place [fivefranklinplace.com]
· Curbed's Five Franklin Place coverage [Curbed]
The Kentucky Derby may have been run over the weekend, but the real race is just getting underway. Once the jockey was selected we knew it was just a matter of time, and now the starting gun has fired and the gates have flung open (ctrl + alt + endmetaphor). Late grand dame Brooke Astor's legendary 778 Park Avenue duplex has hit the market at a $46 million asking price. Corcoran's Leighton Candler has the task of selling the 5BR, 5.5BA apartment on Floors 15-16, which is just above the full-floor spread recently purchased by rich guy William Lauder for $27.5 million. Surprisingly, the listing has several photos and complete floorplan pornage, and the apartment looks exactly like what you'd expect a classic Park Avenue duplex owned by a 4,000-year-old socialite to look like. We wouldn't pay a dime over $38.5 million, but that's just us.
· Listing: 778 Park Avenue [Corcoran]
· 778 Park Avenue coverage [Curbed]
The listing for Tribeca's 2 N Moore Street, the former "our suburb" and now most unique downtown property on the market, has been updated with the first renderings we've ever seen of the completed structure—a six-floor building connected to the two-story former NoMoore Bar. For just $35 million, you and your family can sunbathe on the roof of a classic old neighborhood watering hole. If that's not a lesson in post-millennial New York City, then we don't know what is. Also, thanks to a Curbed commenter's investigative URL experimenting, we've rounded up all the floorplans for the massive single-family townhouse in one easy-to-drool-over location.
· Listing: 2 N Moore Street [Corcoran]
· Tribeca's 'Our Suburb' Can Now Be Your Suburb [Curbed]
Floorplan Porn, PriceChopper, Celebrity Real Estate Wrap—the tale of Hudson Blue fits all of the above. As reported this week in your tabloid of choice—and New York—Leonardo DiCaprio bought an apartment at Riverhouse, the new luxury Battery Park City building that swears up and down it's eco-friendly (we're sure that underground parking garage will be filled with Priuses). But, wait, wasn't Leo supposed to move in to Hudson Blue, the boutique building along the West Side Highway no doubt inspired by the nearby Richard Meier towers? He sure was, even after the rest of the eight listings were pulled off the market and reconfigured as six units.
So what happened at Hudson Blue? In a shocking twist, the building is now being marketed as a single-family townhouse priced at $21 million (down from $25 million two weeks ago, per StreetEasy). Because this building was never supposed to turn out this way, the stats are slightly ridiculous. The Sotheby's listing has it at 11 bedrooms, 9 bathrooms and 5 half-baths, a total of 15,000 square feet. The freakin' thing is 10 floors! What family could possibly handle a house that big? Probably none, which is why the listing says a buyer can "develop as two or more condominium units." What made this one such a stinker?
· Listing: West Village Mansion With River Views [Sotheby's]
· Hudson Blue to Try, Try Again with Sotheby's [Curbed]
· Celebrity Real Estate Wrap: Leo's Baby Blue [Curbed]
From the outside, the top of starchitect Enrique Norten's One York—the new ultra-glam bridge between Soho and Tribeca that's just a fake Gucci bag toss away from the overrun sidewalks of Canal Street—is all glass at sharp angles. How will that play on the inside? As it turns out, fabulously (more to come on that later this week), but in terms of straight floorplan pornage, it also creates some pretty cool stuff. A little less than two months ago, One York's $25 million penthouse duplexhit the market, in all its expansive glory. The 3BR, 3BA apartment (with two bonus half-bathrooms tossed in for good measure) checks in at 6,568 square feet, with 1,900 total square feet of outdoor space, courtesy of one whopper of a setback. Inside those glass walls, the top floor is given over to massive dining and living spaces (party for 200, anyone?), while the lower level layout includes such flourishes as a freewheeling soaking tub, couch in the closet and plasma TVs that swing out from bathroom walls. Don't believe us?
Location: 535 West End Avenue, at 86th Street Size: 20 stories, 22 half- and full-floor units Prices: $8,750,000 to $21,000,000 Architect: Lucien Lagrange Architects Developer: Extell Sales & Marketing: Corcoran Sunshine
For all those who wonder why they don't build them like they used to, this one is for you. Extell's new ultra-luxury development caught some heat in the Times and elsewhere for its "pre-war" marketing, despite being new construction. It's "pre-war style," they responded, and the truth is we were ready and willing to pile on the mockery, but the building is now open for business, and it's absolutely gorgeous. Staggeringly so. Current rendering kings dbox handled the images, and we don't think we're being outrageous when we say this could turn out to be another 15 Central Park West (minus the park part). The building is the first New York City project from French architect and former SOM partner Lucien Lagrange. The apartments are gigantic—3,744 to 8,451 square feet—as are the prices (only three apartments are currently listed). The question is, will high-end buyers searching for trophy properties be drawn to this McClassic? Given 15 CPW's success and the gimme gimme gimme state of the luxury market, most likely. There are really too many details to get into in this space, so click through the gallery for the complete guided tour.
535 West End Avenue
535 West End Avenue, Upper West Side Floorplan Porn, White Glove, Pre-WWIII website, listings
We've taken note of this special floorplan porn collection before, but the window display adds some detail about the $32.95 "one of a kind" 15 room penthouse in an "historic pre-war building with tons of amenities." Plus, doorman. If only.
· So Clean You Can Eat Off the Floorplan [imjustsayin/flickr]
· Floorplan Dinnerware [fishseddy.com]
More from the spirited StreetEasy discussion about this UWSer: "Gotta love the door that opens up....to the hallway....that leads to the kitchen. Unfortunately, there are lots of apartments just like this in all the older buildings in NYC." So, how to fix?
· Listing: 202 West 78th Street [Elliman]
· Thread: Is This The Worst Layour Ever? [StreetEasy]
About two weeks ago, a new $10MM+ listing for the Metal Shutter Houses—Japanese-born architect Shigeru Ban's luxury collection of stacked bodegas along West 19th Street's Starchitect Row—popped up on the Corcoran website. Oh dear, did the penthouse deal fall through? A quick surf over to MSH's always-impressive website reveals the facts. This massive 5BR, 5BA duplex is actually a combination of the two remaining unsold units, and the new SuperShutter, called East-West House if you want to get all official, takes up the full sixth and seventh floors, 4,644sqft of minimalism in total. Just like that, the number of unsold units has been cut in half. Left unanswered: why the listing fails to mention Metal Shutter Houses. Where's the Metal Shutter Pride?
· Listing: 524 West 19th Street [Corcoran]
· Construction Watch: Metal Shutter Mania Surfacing [Curbed]
· Metal Shutter Mania: Ban's Bamboo and a Sales Office Too! [Curbed]
Michael Hirtenstein is the mogul/lunatic who is buying up most of Enrique Norten's One York to build the bachelor pad to end all bachelor pads. His purchases in the building now total five-and-a-half units, with 17,000 square feet of indoor and private outdoor space. The apartments and the build-out will cost him $35 million. For a dude who's all about the billiards room and the outdoor pool and other panty-dropping pursuits, it's surprising that his old residence, 23 Gramercy Park South, is so boring. Boring, of course, being a 27-foot-wide, four-story Greek Revival townhouse measuring over 8,800 square feet. Braden Keil reports on the Big Hirt's dealings, noting that the 1847 townhouse is being listed by two—two—superbrokers for a cool $20 million. The home will be the site of a Metropolitan Home/Showtime designer showcase and host charity events in September, and then it's all yours. Key to the park included, 'natch.
· Listing: 23 Gramercy Park South [BHS]
· Listing: 23 Gramercy Park South [Corcoran]
· Hirt so good [Gimme Shelter, second item]
Last week when we posted about this hole-y corniced condo at 72 Mercer / 501 Broadwaycommenters were all over the place. One said it was "great fucking architecture...contextual and beautiful" while another declared it was "adequate design at best...lame...pointless...geometry is poor and underdeveloped." Perhaps a little floorplan porn for for the west-facing penthouse will generate equally diverse displays of language.
· Some PoMo Up Top of Soho's 501 Broadway [Curbed]
· Comment of the Day: 501 Broadway [Curbed]
Whew, 2007 was a wild one, wasn't it? To honor the insanity that crept into all matters neighborhoodish and real estatey, we present the Fourth Annual Curbed Awards. This year, the awards will be presented in small batches through Monday. Today, we tackle the year in real estate and development.
Another Curbed feature familiar to regular readers is Floorplan Porn, in which the most outsized, over-the-top floorplans are revealed. Here now, the Top 10 Most Pornarrific Floorplans of the Year. Strap in.
A $29.5 million listing at the Pierre has just gone into contract after a lengthy stay of 587 days on the market, per StreetEasy. Why did it take so long to sell? Probably because the buyer had to figure out what he was going to stick in all those closets—22 in all on first count, including the one in the separate guest/staff apartment down the hall. Makes you wonder how many clothes cubbies that $70 million penthouse—743 days on the market!—is rocking.
· Listing: The Pierre Hotel's Finest [Sotheby's]
To anyone out there who isn't fascinated and excited by every development pertaining to YVES (YVES!), we're sorry, but you are dead inside. YVES is the most important building in the history of Chelsea. In fact, if the cement used to pour YVES was mixed with the ashes of a burned Hotel Chelsea, it would only be more appropriate. We've already peered deep into the heart and soul of the YVES renderings, and now a crop of floorplans have hit the website. On first glance, there's more shapes than a Tetris game. Above is Unit D2, a simple 2BR 2.5BA number with 1,090 square feet and a nice 488-square-foot terrace. After the jump is the show stopper so far: Unit B9, a 3BR, 3BA duplex with a terrace and some hot curvy stair action. YVES floorplans ... collect 'em all!
It's no Stanhope, but this bit of floorplan porn has pedigree to spare. The layout is that of the Belview mansion, the home owned by merchant Jacob Walton that was bombed by those dastardly Red Coats in 1776. You may know the location as the current site of Gracie Mansion, which was built using some of Belview's foundation. The Times' David Dunlap reports that a descendant of Walton has donated never-before-seen renderings and illustrations of the home to the Gracie Mansion Conservancy, and they will be on display starting today. Yawn, you call this a mansion? Where's the bathrooms? And where did they stick the Sub-Zero? This thing is a mess.
· In Drawing, Guide to Past of Gracie Mansion Site [NYT]
· Slideshow: Rediscovering the Belview Mansion [NYT]
They've changed the name to 995 Fifth Avenue to wash away the bitter taste of failure, but the Stanhope Hotel name used to represent Fifth Avenue opulence, so we'll refer to it as such while gazing at the glorious floorplan for this 8,360-square-foot, six-bedroom, full-floor apartment. Hobbit holes be damned, when a bathroom is big enough to have separate "Her Bath" and "His Bath" mini-rooms, that's impressive. And that's without even mentioning the multiple wet bars. Yours for just $33 million.
· 995 Fifth Avenue [Official Site]
· Listings: 995 Fifth Avenue [Corcoran]
· Selling the Stanhope: Here Come the Models [Curbed]
If you've ever wondered what a closet with a little something extra would be like, we bring you one of the penthouses at 76 Madison. It was brought to our attention by a tipster, who noticed that its most defining feature, one of the elevators:
There's nothing especially exceptional about the layout except it has a in elevator that services the master bedroom's walk in closet. Could come in really handy if the owner needs to avoid certain delicate situations.
Penthouse 2 (asking price: $3.8M) is a 2BR with 1,900 square feet and an 850 square foot terrace. The building's butler service, though, doesn't show well in the floorplan.
· 76 Madison [76madison.com]
· 76 Madison: Not for the Faint of Heart [Curbed]
A rather bizarre ad in the Times' Key magazine yesterday for 133 West 22nd Street reminded us: What's up with 133 West 22nd Street? The Chelsea newcomer was briefly noted for its curves, then promptly forgotten. Well, the website is now up and running, complete with a slew of interior renderings (note the robot insect that looks to be attacking the bathroom sink, and the stray pair of boots by the toilet). There's also some floorplans, and while it may not be as lavish a spread as other Floorplan Porn contestants, we're digging the layout on Penthouse A, if only because we get to see how the curved facade will interract with the units. Our assessment: terrace party! No word on how much it'll cost you just yet.
· 133 West 22nd Street [133w22.com]
· New Development Architecture Showdown: Chelsea vs. LES [Curbed]
Making our weekly check on the listing for Lenny Kravitz's penthouse at Soho's 30 Crosby Street to see if Corcoran has added fresh listing photos (answer: no), it dawned on us that as much attention as we've lavished on this place over the years, we've never gone and done up its floorplan porn. And that's a damn shame, given that it might be the most pornalicious floorplan of them all. Above, the sixth floor, complete with hot tub and, um, undulating wall? Asking price on this puppy is holding steady at $19.5 million, by the way.
Rounding out a week of obsession concerning apartments with great outdoor spaces, here's one of the penthouses at architect Enrique Norten's One York Street, which topped out last month just below Canal Street on the Tribeca fringe ("elegantly poised between discreet Tribeca and dynamic Soho," as the brokerbabble places it.) There's not much that's discreet about this place, though, which makes sense considering the $8.5 million asking. Is the rectangular patch on the left side of the outdoor space a micro-swimming pool? Good times. And so totally L.A. after all.
· Listing: 1 York Street 11A [Brown Harris Stevens]
· Norten's 1 York Street: L.A. is Landing [Curbed]
Above, check out the floorplan for a charming two-bedroom apartment, with 2,085 square feet of interior space. The apartment, as it turns out, is in the charming neighborhood of Nolita, which must mean the asking price is quite the charmer too. Were this an edition of PriceSpotter, we'd wager we'd see guesses in the $4-5 million range. So hold on to your seats as the asking price for the third-floor floor-through flat at 11 Spring Street is revealed to be $6.7 million, or a truly charming $3,213 per square foot.
After we spotlighted the $17.95 million penthouse at 11 Spring Street last week, a tipster notes that not just the flat above but also the "townhouse" on the first and second floors has hit the market, the townhouse with an asking tag of $15.15 million. Which brings the total asking for the three units in the building to $39.8 million—which is, terrifyingly, not totally outrageous given selling prices of other large downtown townhouses as of late, but still a hell of a lot more than the ~$12 million the developers paid for 11 Spring last year. And again it occurs to us that we're probably in the wrong business.
· Listing: 11 Spring Street Flat [Corcoran]
· Listing: 11 Spring Street Townhouse [Corcoran]
· On the Market: 11 Spring Street Penthouse, $17.95 million [Curbed]
The heart-stopping news that the triplex penthouse at Nolita's legendary 11 Spring Street has just hit the market offers three reasons for reflection and contemplation:
1) Asking $17.95 million for 4,600 square feet (including the top level, which is very nearly all outdoors space). Why have we not found a spouse with her own hedge fund yet? (Interested suitors, please use the tipline.)
2) Interior layout, per the floorplan presented after the jump, looks cramped, but the new renderings of the makeover by architect Edward Asfour(above) look spacious. Either way, it's not as glorious as the floorplan for the floors that News Corp. scion Lachlan Murdoch created for himself and his family—before he fled for Australia and put 11 Spring back on the market back in 2006. Also NB the facade fully stripped of street art—still wishful thinking, we'd wager.
3) Speaking of Lachlan Murdoch, it's worth recalling that he paid $5.25 million for the whole damn building in 2004 before flipping it to these developers last year. Observes a Curbed tipster, "I think the whole building sold for $12 million back in 9/06 (asking was $14.75M). Nice profit if they can sell @ $3900/SF!" Indeed.
Within the realm of floorplan porn lurks one of our favorite subgenres: speculative floorplan porn. Like the layout above, for example, which is what you could build if you scooped up the roof rights at 11 Riverside Drive, also known as the Schwab House. Grand visions of a 4,400sf duplex with an 1,100sf terrace set the price tag high on this chunky patch of roof. Perhaps a little too high. The Manhattan Loft Guy sends word:
That’s some serious chopping for PH- W2 at 11 Riverside (Schwab House)
Not sure how much of this space actually exists yet (not the upper floor, for sure; and maybe not even the lower floor), but you do get a “board that is committed to helping turn your dream into reality” and an “Opportunity to create an urban oasis”.
Price just dropped from $3.8mm to $2.8mm. Build out for another million???
It's an absolute steal as it sits right now. Think they'll let you just pitch a tent up there?
· Listing: Riverside Drive [Halstead]
Above, the floorplan for the duplex at 123 West 15th Street, the crazy conversion(right) that has the neighborhood rioting. Described by a Curbed tipster as "wonka-riffic," they're certainly among the coolest floorplans we've come across in some time. According to the Corcoran listing, the duplex boasts 2,054 square feet, with an asking price of $2.995 million. Not too shabby, though the plan to put the bedrooms on a lower floor than the living space is an odd one.
We live in heady times, friends. Today's evidence: this here apartment for sale in Donald Trump's 845 United Nations Plaza tower, with an asking price of $7.399 million. A close look at the floorplan for the unit (square footage not disclosed) reveals what a Curbed tipster describes thusly: "Is it just me or is this a 7.3 Million Dollar... ONE Bedroom?" (Sure, you could use the den as a second bedroom. If you suck.)
Interesting, the Corcoran listing shows both the above floorplan and what's presumably an older floorplan, from the time back when the owner here had to make do with this space carved up into—oh, the pain—three bedrooms. Our suggestion to prospective buyers: consider eliminating all interior walls to create what would surely be the snazziest $7.3 million studio in the neighborhood.
Like a new secret club that requires entrance through an unmarked phone booth, ultraluxe new development 25 Bond taunts us with the sheet amount of work it takes just to get inside. Last week, a simple website seeking "discreet inquiries" was revealed. For those who inquired discreetly enough, turns out there's a secret backdoor to an alternate version of the website, this featuring much more about the building, including the dramatic two-apartment second story floorplan above. Marketese: "Of the nine total units in building only two 3,800 (+/-) square-foot units are available or combine them into a magnificent 7,600 (+/-) square-foot New York residence. Each unit comes with two private attended parking spaces. From $9.1 million."
· 25 Bond Floorplans [bonding.25bond.com]
· 25 Bond Inviting 'Discreet Inquiries' [Curbed]
Comments
Above, the floorplan for the duplex at 123 West 15th Street, the 
