Construction on the exterior of the building is quickly wrapping up. This hotel project is just one of many boutique hotels being built on the Lower East Side. If this project looks familiar to The Bowery Hotel, you’re correct, it’s the same development
The taxi of the future has been spotted today! These two cabs were seen driving on Houston and Avenue A, and are part of a pilot program. The cab design is sleek, modern and surprisingly, does not look too minivan-esque like the original model. Expect to see a fleet of cabs (13,000 strong!) hitting the streets next year when the program launches.
Hurricane Sandy’s aftermath is just now starting to take full affect for those who commute via the R train. The line, which carries an estimated 650,000 daily commuters will be largely shut down for the next 14-months.
The train will not run into or out of Manhattan thanks to the 30 million gallons of corrosive salt water that flooded the Montague Street Tunnel.
Commuters have been told to utilize other yellow-line trains. R train service will be running between manhattan and Queens as well as in Brooklyn, but access across/under the East River will not exist for another 450 days.
Plan ahead to avoid even more aggravating MTA service changes.
As the hoop-lah surrounding Citi Bike begins to calm down, the program is really coming into its own. Screen shots taken from the program’s website show just how successful things are starting to become.
The first image you see below shows how signups have increased between 600-700% in just the first few weeks of the program. The program should continue to increase in popularity over the coming weeks as more stations open up. The cooler weather should also get more tourists on board as well. 
This image below shows the rather steady increase in cumulative trips. The beautiful display will continue to rise as more rides occur and at a higher frequency per day. In just the two months of Citi Bike, the system has logged over 1.5 million trips! 
I saved the best for last. This graph shows the total miles traveled since the program went into service. We are now getting very close to the 4 million mile mark in just two months! No one can argue that this program has and will undoubtedly continue to be a success, especially when we get more stations open and even more New Yorkers on board!
It was recently announced that Time Warner Cable and Cablevision will be partnering in a joint venture to bring free wireless Internet access to 32 New York City Parks. The service will be available free in 10-minute intervals up to three times a day for non-subscribers, and is free (with no time limits) for all Cablevision and Time Warner subscribers.
The service will be particularly effective for the over 52 million tourists who visit the city each year. International data charges are astronomically priced. This free service will enable tourists and New Yorkers alike to access the Internet, make Skype calls, send iMessages, and stay connected to their digital world.
Expect to see this service popping up in the next couple of months. The deal is signed through 2020, but I expect the service to last indefinitely.
Click here to access the full article.
President Obama is starting to get serious about climate change. In recent talks, he has mentioned the need for massive increases in green living. Anyone who lives in an urban core can tell you how hot and unbearable the summers can get. A great way to combat both air quality and spikes in urban core temperature readings comes in the form of green roofs.
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has been a leader in bringing green roofs to one of the largest cities in the world. The city even announced the rise of rooftop agriculture with the largest urban farm in the US currently under construction on a Brooklyn rooftop. Bloomberg, Obama, and politicians across the world are leading the way in reclaiming urban space for non-industrial use.
These green roofs serve a variety of purposes that are both helpful to those in the building, and everyone around. First and foremost, green roofs lower the temperature of the buildings roof by considerable amounts. Rather than having black tar or reflective tin roofs that can sizzle in with surface temperatures upwards of 130 degrees, green roofs rarely get hotter than the actual air temperature. Roof or rain gardens also help with rain water run off, something that is a major issue in coastal cities. Rain gardens filter excess water, and some can even store water to be used by the building tenants later on. A third attribute green roofs provide is fresh, clean air. Trees, plants, and other shrubs help clean the air and lessen ozone levels that so often spiral out of control in urban cities.
The super cool pictures below show how urban architecture can be infused with green design. Most of the pictures are taken from abroad, let’s incorporate them into US design!
Top of Chicago’s City Hall
Green Parking Garage in Namba Park, Japan
Vancover Convention Center
Vancover Convention Center (cont’d)
The best revenge is massive success. –Frank Sinatra
Happy Saturday
This video is circulating the Internet, and rightfully so. This is one of the worst heatwaves I have ever experienced!
Caught a rare glimpse inside 250 Broadway today as workers renovate the vacant retail space. While a tenant has yet to be announced, work is being done to prepare the site once again. New York City construction codes require construction crews to close off their work spaces and shield the public from any unwarranted noise and pollution.
Life + Real Estate + New York 