The pool at 15 Central Park West

From the July issue: One of the selling points emphasized by brokers at the Edge condominium in Williamsburg is the major weekend scene at the pool, with lots of sunbathing, picnicking and socializing. At 20 Pine’s pool in the Financial District, neighbors regularly practice yoga and host parties.

But there will be no pool parties at 15 Central Park West this summer. Even as the weather heats up, the atmosphere at the über-exclusive condominium remains subdued, residents say, and the pool area is often deserted.

The Robert A.M. Stern-designed building has become the condominium of choice for hotshot celebrities like Denzel Washington and Sting, and finance bigwigs such as Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein and Citigroup Chairman Emeritus Sanford Weill. [more]

The Real Deal was on the party circuit this week, soaking in the New York City views from Dumbo to Harlem. We feted the launch of the East River Ferry, got our spa on with the folks from Trump Soho at nearby rental building 55 Thompson Street, followed Robert A.M. Stern to 1280 Fifth Avenue and, for a moment, envisioned ourselves in Sarah Jessica Parker’s high-heeled shoes, as we checked out the Greenwich Village townhouse she once sought to buy. Check out our adventures in the photo gallery above and after the jump. – Sarabeth Sanders and Katherine Clarke [more]

Another day, another stunning 15 Central Park West resale attempt.

On the 37th floor of the Zeckendorf brothers’ limestone masterpiece, the owners of a 2,761-square-foot, three-bedroom spread are angling for a roughly $13 million profit on their original purchase price.

The $23.95 million asking price for the unit, which belongs to William Lawrence, founder of Meridian Capital Partners, and his wife, Gloria, and which popped up on the resale market yesterday, places it squarely in the building’s top tier, though it is hardly setting records.

But nonetheless, a 124 percent markup (the Lawrences’ paid just under $10.7 million for the apartment in 2008) is nothing to sneeze at, and is one of the most ambitious resale attempts in the past year at one of the city’s most celebrated condominiums. [more]

Stuart ElliottFrom the March issue: With more resilience than one might have anticipated, New York City developers are still thinking outside the glass box. Pundits said the recession was supposed to mean the death of good architecture in Manhattan, as developers sought to do more “value engineering” on their projects. Fancy design was expected to be the first thing to be eliminated from the budget. But recent projects — led by 8 Spruce Street, Manhattan’s new tallest residential tower — show that’s not the case. Not only vital for New York’s competitiveness among world cities, this sort of forward-thinking architecture is great news for the real estate world — and for real estate values. [more]

400 West 12th Street, unit 7B

The Robert A.M. Stern-designed blockbuster condominium conversion Superior Ink is now virtually sold out, with only a couple of townhouses remaining on the market. But Stern-ophiles who missed out on buying a place now have the opportunity to rent a three-bedroom, three-bath unit in the 17-story project, located at 400 West 12th Street. Apartment 7B hit the market last week for $30,950 with Elliot Bogod of A & I Broadway. [more]

From left: Frank Gehry, Bruce Ratner and 8 Spruce Street

Ever notice that many of the most successful skyscraper architects are short in stature? Slate’s Witold Rybczynski rattles off several examples of starchitects who always seem to be shorter than the developers they’re posing next to: I.M. Pei, Robert A.M. Stern, Frank Gehry, Norman Foster. Daniel Libeskind, he said, is 5 feet 4 inches. In the 1920s, designers Raymond Hood, of 30 Rock, Ely Jacques Kahn, of 2 Park Avenue, and Ralph Walker, of 1 Wall Street, were apparently often referred to as the “Three Little Napoleons of Architecture.” As Rybcynski puts it, “it’s hard not to see a psychological compulsion at work when short people design tall…buildings.” [Slate] [more]

Superior Ink and Rockets owner Leslie Alexander

Houston Rockets owner Leslie Alexander has pulled off a successful flip at Robert A.M. Stern’s Superior Ink with the $31.5 million sale of his unfinished penthouse, and set a new record price for a downtown Manhattan condominium to boot. The Wall Street Journal reports that a foreign, non-celebrity buyer closed yesterday on the 6,300-square-foot full-floor spread after winning a bidding war, and plans to use the apartment as a pied-à-terre. [more]

The lobby of 1280 Fifth Avenue

The new, Robert A.M. Stern-designed condominium at 1280 Fifth Avenue hosted a celebration Wednesday, giving real estate pros and potential buyers a sneak peek (see photos above). While the Museum for African Art, which will open in the adjacent building in 2011, was not available for preview, guests on hand boldly entered the new condo construction — signing waivers before touring the nearly complete building. Nancy Packes, who is president of her own, independent development
marketing firm, Nancy Packes Inc., and Brown Harris Stevens Project Marketing, the exclusive marketing agency for the building, which was developed by Brickman, said that five units in the 116-unit building have sold, while another six units are in negotiation.

[more]

From the September issue: As the downturn continues, work has fallen off even for some of the most celebrated architects working in New York City.
In a widely reported move this June, Frank Gehry was booted from
the Atlantic Yards arena job in favor of an architectural firm that
would save the project money. And last month, Robert A.M. Stern told The Real Deal that his firm has seen projects put on hold because of the economy (he declined to give specifics).
In response to the slowdown, some starchitects are scaling back
their office operations and shifting to more institutional work to deal
with the drought of new development projects.

A second D-line apartment at 15 Central Park West is available for resale within several weeks of the first one going on the market. The three-bedroom, 3,173-square-foot unit 35D is on the market for $26 million, according to Streeteasy.com. Donald Opartny, a partner at Goldman Sachs, purchased the unit in January 2008 for $11.6 million. Brown Harris Stevens’ John Burger, a senior vice president and managing director, and Richard Wallgren, a BHS vice president, have the listing. Burger declined to comment on the unit, saying he is under a confidentiality agreement for the listing. [more]