Matt Chaban
As Mikhail Prokhorov and a cadre of globetrotting countrymen continue to expand their presence in the city, one of their comrades is shedding some of his, and at a considerable loss. In the summer of 2007, Boris Belotserkovsky, the boss of Russia's one-armed bandits, bought a sizable one-bedroom on the 13th floor of the recently converted Plaza for $5.1 million. Now, the 1,100-square-foot jewelbox on the north side of the luxurious landmark has just... MORE >
Gowanus hotel rivalry blooms while new music spot opens [BK Paper, Brownstoner] Businessweek says Upper East Side has city's most expensive block... MORE >
In her four years atop the city's Department of Transportation, Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan has masterminded a re-engineering of the city's streets that not so long ago would have been impossible. Bike lanes proliferate, parking spaces have been transformed into cafes, and Broadway, the most famous road in the world, has been almost entirely closed to cars from Columbus Circle to Union Square.... MORE >
Last week, former banker, current art dealer and all-around nice, rich guy Robert Mnuchin bought a gorgeously renovated townhouse at 14 East 95th Street for $14.25 million. But is the new home for him or his daughter, Valerie Mnuchin... MORE >
-- John Livingston knows a thing or two about building in New York, seeing as how he runs one of the city's biggest general contractors, Tishman Construction. Perhaps this insider knowledge helped him knock $875,000 off the price of his new home, a discount of nearly 20 percent. Mr. Livingston and wife Susan just paid $3.625 million for a three-bedroom, three-bath co-op on a high floor at 1130 Park Avenue. The north- and west-facing... MORE >
Mark Walberg's old 15 CPW pad goes to mysterious European woman [Post] Geithner sees mortgage overhaul in next two years [MSNBC] Just in time for the double dip... MORE >
Last year, New York magazine, via the magic of stats wizard Nate Silver, declared Sunnyside, Queens, the third best neighboirhood in the city. The first two were obvious--Park Slope and the Lower East Side--but the choice of the (for how much longer?) working-class neighborhood just off the 7 train was a bit of a... MORE >
There are plenty of wild real estate tales in New York, but one of the more unusual ones popped up in New York back in January. A London-based family owned a three-bedroom pied-à-terre at 40 Bond Street, the delightful love letter to cast-iron living designed by Herzog & de Meuron for Ian Schrager. They had bought the seventh-floor condo in 2007 for $6.4 million. They loved the place so much, two... MORE >
New blog wants to re-establish New York's rudeness [DNAinfo] Another Slope dive snazzin up for Atlantic Yards [BK Paper] NBC buys Rock Center office space from GE... MORE >
Steve Madden is known for his flashy-yet-affordable shoes, so it might come as a surprise that he has spent the last five years in a rather quaint brownstone on the Upper East Side. In July 2006, just over a year after he was released from a 31-month prison stay for securities fraud, Mr. Madden and his wife Wendy bought a duplex co-op in a three-story townhouse at 175 East 73rd Street. The building had been... MORE >
Exactly a month ago, The Observer reported that Xerox CEO Ursula Burns had sold her high-floor three-bedroom at the Beekman Regent on East 51st Street. It appeared she was moving to Connecticut, perhaps to be closer to headquarters. Now it turns out she was not trading in her 2004 model but upgrading it to one of 2009's finest, the Related-developed, Robert A.M. Stern-designed Brompton at 205 East 85th... MORE >
Moinian already working on his comeback with new midtown hotel? [Post] Most Americans don't anticipate a double dip in housing [Real Deal] Manhattan problems: Bellhop's cab whistle driving neighbors crazy... MORE >
Last week, the board of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey approved yet another increase in the budget for Santiago Calatrava's winged transit hub at the World Trade Center, bringing the price of the station up to a level once deemed untenable while also dipping into the Port's ground zero reserve funds for the first... MORE >
In Europe, Icelander Jon Asgeir Johannesson is best known for invading London and buying up some of its poshest stores before his Baugur empire collapsed amidst claims of fraud and embezzlement to the tune of $2 billion. In New York, his crimes are far worse: invading the penthouse of the Gramercy Park Hotel and outfitting it with drab IKEA... MORE >
It came as a surprise to many that the Jets beat the almost perfect Patriots in the first round of the NFL playoffs a few months ago, but the even bigger upset may be that New England's All-Pro quarterback Tom Brady has, after more than two years of scouting, found a buyer for his stadium-sized condo near the top of the Time Warner... MORE >
