Golden age
Astor, Dakota, Fifth Avenue Hotel, Modena, Warren Street Hotel, The Maker, Brooklyn homewares, MORE
REAL ESTATE • Sold
Century 21
What’s the shelf life on luxury real estate? The Upper West Side is finding out in real time, as a number of its most notable addresses — sprawling, classic grande dame buildings — are working on their second century of refined living.
Broadly, the neighborhood has been struggling to keep up. The median price for condos on the Upper West Side climbed only 8.2% over the last 10 years, per Elliman’s Manhattan Decade Sales report (warning: you could easily lose an hour in that document). Co-ops are up a scant 7.4% for the decade. Both numbers trail the Manhattan average increase of 22%.
As for those aging classics, big-ticket listings do remain, sometimes at sale prices. Take this 4BR in The Astor (122 years old and recently retooled, above), which went into contract last month after a long haul on the market and a half-million-dollar price cut. Three blocks south and two east, this 3BR at The Dakota (144 yo) also required a hefty chop before finding a buyer in December.
For your consideration, the full details, plus another recent contract (also post-reduction) in a hundred-year-old building in the West ‘70s:
→ 1 W. 72nd St., #45 (The Dakota, Upper West Side, above) • 3BR/2BA, 2600 SF co-op • Closing ask: $4.75M • Formal dining room, eat-in kitchen, heavy molding • Days on market: 86 • Maintenance/CC: $11,057 • Agent: Daniela Kunen, Elliman.
→ 127 W. 79th St., Apt. #11C (Clifton House, Upper West Side) • 4BR/3BA, N/A SF co-op • Closing ask: $4.10M • Three exposures in 1927 building • Days on market: 135 • Maintenance/CC: $5829 • Agents: Lisa Lippman and Gerard “Scott” Moore, Brown Harris Stevens.
→ 235 W. 75th St., #402 (The Astor, Upper West Side) • 4BR/4.5BA, 3253 SF condo • Closing ask: $6.85M • Modernized with historic detail • Sales launch date: 7/27/17 • Monthly taxes: $5827; Maintenance/CC: $4390 • Agents: Michael Kafka and Katherine Gauthier, Elliman.
NYC REAL ESTATE LINKS: On Central Park West, Annie Liebowitz finds apartment buyer for $2M over asking • New School puts president’s Village townhouse on the block for $20M • Latest chapter in the battle to preserve Merchants House Museum in the East Village • The NYC brownstone in Mr. and Mrs. Smith is the show’s true star • Ready, set, go for the Hamptons spring real estate market.
CULTURE & LEISURE • Friday Routine
That flâneur life
ALEX OHEBSHALOM • ceo/founder • Flâneur Hospitality / The Fifth Avenue Hotel
Neighborhood you live in: Gramercy Park
It’s Friday afternoon, how are you rolling into the weekend?
I’m typically 10% less rigid or disciplined on Fridays, meaning: I’ll take the time to work out in the morning, and take morning calls from Gramercy Park with my La Colombe coffee. For me, Fridays have always been about family, and grounding or centering myself. In the evening, this means a wholesome, home-cooked early dinner with my loved ones.
Any restaurant plans?
When the lines aren’t as long in New York, it’s nice to get back to some of the cozy West Village spots that make me feel at home. Buvette for brunch on Saturday, and of course the newly opened Café Carmellini at my The Fifth Avenue Hotel for dinner. The “Duck-Duck-Duck Tortellini” is my favorite pasta dish in the city right now. Definitely looking forward to trying COCODAQ in Flatiron, as well as Four Twenty Five by Jean-Georges in Midtown, and ILIS out in Greenpoint.
How about a little leisure or culture?
I’m a sucker for people-watching in Washington Square Park, which has always felt the most New York to me. The Knicks are playing well this season, so I’ll make it to as many games as I can, and of course MoMA is always showing the best of the best; last month Ed Ruscha, and now Picasso!
Any weekend getaways?
I’ve been exploring more of the Hudson Valley recently, and continue to find really special hidden gems. The Maker in Hudson is exceptional: It’s like a curated jewel box that feels eclectic yet super residential. Troutbeck and INNESS are both wonderful, and just across the state line in Connecticut is the Mayflower Inn & Spa, which has an elevated spa program to complement the fantastic food and beverage.
What was your last great vacation?
In November I set up a road trip through the Italian countryside. My fiancée and I started in Rome and discovered this newly converted Borghese Palazzo called Palazzo Vilòn. Definitely a treat if you appreciate old world architecture and great Roman heritage. We kept the bellies full with the best carbonara at Al Moro and amatriciana at Trattoria Trilussa, and we were off to Umbria to visit another newly converted 600 year-old castle hotel called Reschio. Arguably one of the most special hotel experiences I have had maybe ever — we felt like we had been transported. Beautiful rolling hills, horse stables, ancient spa rituals… It is romantic in every sense of the word.
Finally, we drove north to Modena to visit Massimo Bottura and Lara Gilmore’s countryside retreat, Casa Maria Luigia. This Emilia-Romagna haven really capitalizes on modern luxury through its service, extensive art program and, of course, world-class dining led by Chef Massimo. I would recommend this route to anyone with five days to spare.
What product or service do you always recommend?
I’m all about health and wellness. Daily hot/cold therapy with dry or infrared sauna, coupled with a cold plunge or shower. This always leaves me feeling my best and strongest. Check out the new Bathhouse in Flatiron, The Well, or Remedy Place.
CULTURE & LEISURE • Score
Mitski, Beacon Theatre (Upper West Side), Fri @ 8p, center orchestra, $184 per
Trombone Shorty, UPAC The Broadway Theater (Kingston, NY), Fri @ 8p, orchestra, $72 per
Celtics vs. Knicks, Madison Square Garden (Midtown South), Sat @ 830p, section 107, $874 per
CULTURE LINKS: The best movie theaters in NYC, ranked — and where to sit • Standout performances mark NYC Ballet’s winter run • Chinatown Lunar New Year parade is this Sunday • Monse founder on his love of Rockefeller Center • Christopher Astley’s ‘Terrain’ is a slice of serenity at Martos Gallery • Bored Ape Yacht Club acquires Moonbird NFT creator Proof • New private school perk: A James Turrell Skyspace.
GOODS & SERVICES • The Nines
Homewares stores, Brooklyn
Antik by Chused & Co (Brooklyn Heights), furniture and home goods from the interior design firm
Whisk (Brooklyn Heights), hip kitchen supply store, wide selection
The Primary Essentials (Cobble Hill), tightly edited homewares and gifts from independent designers
Collier West (Boerum Hill), jam-packed boutique with antiques, art, gifts
Michele Varian Shop & Design (Boerum Hill), for the designer’s own collection of textiles, pillows, wallpaper, and more
The Black Home (Downtown Brooklyn, above), interior designer Neffi Walker curates selection ‘steeped in the beauty of Blackness’
Slope Home (Park Slope), for artisanal kitchen, bath, home goods
BEAM (Williamsburg), furniture and lighting curated with a bold eye
Big Night (Greenpoint), for playful barware, party supplies, oddities
Additions or subtractions? Hit reply or found@foundny.com.
GETAWAYS • Staycation
The intersection of Crosby and Warren
The Warren Street Hotel, which debuted earlier this month in Tribeca, is this season’s highest profile hotel opening. With a dazzling cerulean blue facade of floor-to-ceiling windows, it’s a striking addition to the neighborhood. FOUND dropped by last week.
First impressions: As befits the latest spot from England’s Firmdale Hotels — the team behind Soho’s Crosby Street Hotel and Midtown’s Whitby — the interior palate is vibrant and fun, with wild fabrics and dramatic art throughout ground floor common spaces.
The rooms: That aesthetic continues in the 69 rooms spread across 11 floors, with wildly patterned headboards crowning most beds. One notable touch: top floor rooms are designed for stays of 30-plus days, featuring first-NYC-apartment-sized kitchenettes (albeit with tonier finishes). For a mid-March weekend night, a standard king runs $925/night.
Food & drink: From the lobby, turn right into the Warren Street Bar and Restaurant, with a long bar at front, plenty of tables, and, at rear, a separate glassed-in room (the Orangerie), bookable for private parties and, soon, high tea service.
The verdict: A lively new alternative to the nearby Greenwich Hotel and an instant contender for our New Guard Hotels Nines (though maybe not the top slot, still reserved for the current king, Nine Orchard).
→ The Warren Street Hotel (Tribeca) • 86 Warren St. • Restaurant reservations.
GETAWAYS LINKS: Major sand replacement project on Montauk’s ocean beach nearly complete • How Fire Island was saved — for now • The Faraway Hotel marks a new chapter for Martha’s Vineyard • Fathom’s 24 favorite hotels in Italy.
LOST & FOUND • Behind the Paywall
Dispatches from the frontline, from FOUND subscribers for FOUND subscribers: