last updated today at 04:38PM
Big hotels go boutique, better hedge against crunch? 
Jul 24, 2008 04:38 PM
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Aloft lobby From the July issue: An eclectic crop of boutique hotels is emerging in New York, and although they're all new brands, they are offshoots of well-established mainstays such as Hyatt, Marriott and the W Hotels. The big hotel chains have launched the new boutique hotel brands in an effort to appeal to a market that is as interested in earning frequent traveler points as it is in experiencing edgy, urban design and a hip bar in the lobby. Three offshoots of larger chains are scheduled to be built or already exist in New York Hyatt's Andaz opening at 75 Wall Street next year, W's Aloft brand, opening in Downtown Brooklyn next year, and Hersha Hospitality's Duane Street Hotel, which opened in January at 130 Duane Street.
more By Vanessa Weiman

NYC falls in most expensive city rankings
Jul 24, 2008 04:31 PM
New York City fell seven spots to No. 22 on the list of the world's most expensive cities, compiled by human resources consulting firm Mercer. The drop was attributed to the weak U.S. dollar and decline in housing prices. New York was the only U.S. city in the top 50, with Los Angeles at No. 55, Miami at No. 75 and Washington, D.C. at No. 107. Taking the top three spots were Moscow, Tokyo and London.

Madison Square mayhem … and more
Jul 24, 2008 04:25 PM
 
  • 1. Madison Square Garden officials have named a construction manager for the arena's renovation, another blow to Moynihan Station [Crain's]
  • 2. Two elevators are being dismantled New York State Pavilion in Queens [NYDN]
  • 3. Williamsburg's Metropolitan Cinema & Apartments takes shape [Curbed]
  • 4. Demolition is underway at the Purchase Building, built in 1936 underneath the Brooklyn Bridge, to make way for the Brooklyn Bridge Park [Brownstoner]
  • 5. Greenpoint's sub-neighborhoods include "Little Loftland" and "Sewage Town" [NYShitty]
  • 6. City marshals have begun emptying out Harlem's Record Shack, enforcing eviction orders at the famed 125th Street store [NYO]

Columbia to acquire city Manhattanville parcel
Jul 24, 2008 03:02 PM
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640 West 131st Street Columbia University is poised to acquire a 15,000-square-foot city-owned Metropolitan Transportation Authority parcel on 131st Street in the footprint of its Manhattanville expansion plan. The $3 million transfer, worth $200 per square foot, should occur some time in the spring of 2009, city Law Department spokeswoman Laura Postiglione said. The university will not pay the $3 million in cash, however, but will be credited for work performed at a park called Hudson River Piers that is under development in West Harlem, a source said. more
By Adam Pincus

Bus Terminal tower designs revealed
Jul 24, 2008 02:56 PM
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From left to right: Proposals Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects; Rogers Stirk Harbour & Partners; and Kohn Pedersen Fox Three architecture firms released designs for Vornado's planned tower above the Port Authority Bus Terminal. Rogers Stirk Harbor and Partners, Richard Rogers' London firm, which is designing Tower 3 at the World Trade Center, released a design that is made up of four boxes stacked atop each other and bound together by open truss work. Pelli Clark Pelli Architects of New Haven, Conn., released a design that features a basket-weave-like curtain wall. The sleekest of the three, by Manhattan's Kohn Pederson Fox, features a bright, glass-clad tower.

'Top Chef' to Williamsburg?
Jul 24, 2008 01:57 PM
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20 Bayard Bravo's "Top Chef New York" is expected to be hosting contestants at the new 20 Bayard condo building by McCarren Park in Williamsburg, now that production assistants have been seen moving equipment into the building. When asked what was being filmed, one crew member responded, "A mayonnaise commercial. Just a mayonnaise commercial." Building amenities at 20 Bayard include an 8,000-square-foot garden, playroom, fitness center, dog washing station, roof deck, and resident's lounge.

John Cushman III named iCrete co-chairman
Jul 24, 2008 01:16 PM
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John Cushman The construction and concrete technology company iCrete has named John Cushman III the co-chairman of its board. Cushman is the chairman of the global real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield, and serves on several other boards, including ARTOC Universal Properties in Cairo, Egypt and the Los Angeles World Affairs Council. He also recently completed a two-year term as national president of the Boy Scouts of America. TRD

Disgraced GOP leader sells Meatpacking parcel
Jul 24, 2008 12:21 PM
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James Ortenzio A former Manhattan Republican party leader who pleaded guilty last year to tax evasion sold a one-story building in the Meatpacking District to event planner and developer Robert Isabell for $40 million. The seller of 837 Washington Street, James Ortenzio, was the chairman of the Manhattan Republican Party in 2004 when the real estate partnership Fisher Brothers paid him $100,000 for consulting services. Ortenzio did not report the payment, as he was obligated to do. He was also convicted of violating the public officers' law. more
By Adam Pincus

Council approves Carroll Gardens rezoning
Jul 24, 2008 11:40 AM
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Carroll Gardens Part of Carroll Gardens in Brooklyn has been rezoned, following the City Council's approval yesterday. Carroll Gardens, known for its elaborate front gardens, had been governed by arcane zoning rules that counted the gardens in the width of the streets. Developers could then build larger, taller buildings because of the "wide" streets. First, Second, Third, and Fourth Places as well as Carroll and President Streets between Smith and Hoyt Streets are included in the change. It is unclear whether the development of the controversial 360 Smith Street, whose official address is on Second Place will be affected.

French handbag retailer buys on Madison Ave. for $48M
Jul 24, 2008 11:00 AM
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713 Madison Avenue Fashion bag maker Longchamp bought the building housing one of its two Manhattan retail stores on the Upper East Side for $48 million. The Paris-based retailer and manufacturer of fashionable bags, clothes and accessories bought the five-story townhouse at 713 Madison Avenue from heirs to the Mailman family. The Mailmans have given millions of dollars to Columbia University's School of Public Health. The sellers were Jody Mailman Wolfe and another company affiliated with the family. more
By Adam Pincus

Current Issue
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From The July Issue

The biggest problems in New York City real estate

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In the wake of the subprime and credit crises, problems are becoming apparent even in New York City's usually buoyant real estate market. For this supplement, The Real Deal has chosen to bring some plaster: First, we home in on macro difficulties, as well as some less-discussed problems. More

Developers falling into a Catch-22

It's a tough time to be a residential developer, as The Real Deal explores in a series of stories. Projects are taking longer to sell out, placing developers in a bind as lenders typically won't let them lower prices. And as units sit, developers find themselves with additional costs. Some developers are choosing to go with Plan B and switch from condos to rentals, but even that is far from a safe bet these days. More

In Hamptons, it's no vacation

Multimillion-dollar homes are still finding takers in the Hamptons, but the notoriously tony vacation destination is showing serious signs of softening. While the market there does not mirror the meltdown in the rest of the country, the Wall Street cash that has long flooded into the East End is clearly not flowing as freely this summer. This month, The Real Deal offers a series of stories on what's happening on the South Fork. More

Real estate sites rise in 'Bloglyn'

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Over the last few years, the number of local Brooklyn blogs has multiplied exponentially; May's Brooklyn Blogfest drew more than 100 bloggers, and some have even begun to call Brooklyn, 'Bloglyn.' For the bloggers, though, this is not just filling time it's about having a say in the development of the borough. More

Summer doldrums take hold of residential market

The pace of residential sales in Manhattan continues to slow, causing a backlog of inventory. The rest of the summer doesn't look any more promising. Sales activity is down by roughly one-third from the same point last year, Jonathan Miller, president and CEO of appraisal firm Miller Samuel, said last month. More

Staving off commercial foreclosure

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This time, the mortgage banking industry is not taking any chances. Stung by the subprime mortgage crisis, the tightening credit market, Wall Street layoffs and other bleak economic indicators, banks are nervous. And this time around -- in contrast to other periods in real estate history -- lenders are not waiting for the owners of commercial properties to go into foreclosure. More

Developers in a bind over prices

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Developers of flagging residential condo projects in the city may be faced with a new real estate Catch-22: the prospect of having to provide additional equity to lenders or take out more loans if they want to cut prices to attract buyers. More

Crisis or correction?

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Although the Federal Reserve has tried to stimulate the market by lowering rates and making it easier for banks to borrow money, brokers and economists have noted that developers, building buyers and consumers continue to struggle to get loans, particularly from large banks. More

Selling in pieces

As the credit market tightens, demand is slowing for multi-property portfolios the most expensive investment sale category. Of the property packages that do sell, more and more are being split into smaller pieces when they change hands. More

Architects drafting a better office space in Garment District

Once a thriving manufacturing area where an immigrant influx spurred the growth of the apparel industry, the Garment District, bounded roughly by Fifth and Ninth avenues and 34th and 42nd streets, by the 1990s had become one of the most depressed parts of Midtown Manhattan with the gradual loss of clothing factories, suppliers and wholesalers due to pressure from cheaper clothing imports. But it seems that at least one industry has quietly taken over the area over the past few years: architecture, along with its counterpart, engineering. More


Special Reports

Condos on the chopping block
Prices come down to help move new projects
Adding it all up
A tally of numbers that matter: construction costs, the high-end market, and foreign buyer migration
Manhattan's biggest firms
Our annual survey of the top Manhattan firms
New terrain forces brokers to adjust
How brokers are shifting strategy in a more challenging market
Heading back to school
The state of the real estate education industry
Luxe gets pinch of reality: A look at Manhattan's top sales
Analysis of the ultra-high-end residential of the market
Watching Wall Street
Implications of the financial sector's trouble on real estate
Luxury suburban market still sparkling
A look at the top 10 sales by area



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