therealtamara

Henderson Place

Queen Anne houses in a little mini cul de sac, that’s Henderson Place. East End Avenue between 86th and 87th

Finley Walk

The East River Esplanade in the 80s is also a wonderful park surrounding Gracie Mansion.

Air rights

The chances are that the small fry helped the big guy get this tall.

This may be a more intriguing opening for this little essay than all the rest of the information I will share with you. Here goes:

My favorite air rights movie (who ever thought there would be such a genre) is Burlesque.

Selling air rights can be a lucrative boost to a property in need of a financial lift.

In NYC, buildings are zoned block by block by size.

A developer can aggregate rights from buildings abutting his project or those across the street.

We lived in a small coop, which benefited from this kind of sale.

Our coop occupied 5 storeys in an area where it could have been 12 floors high. We were able to assign our right to those extra flights to a developer in an adjacent plot. He added 7 extra floors to his already tall rental. Win win.

Roosevelt Island lighthouse

It’s a part of the views from the Esplanade that always grabs my attention.

I admire the entire Roosevelt Island complex, but the lighthouse is a landmark that always makes me smile.

I noticed that a sculpture park has developed in front of the lighthouse. It was built to honor Nellie Bly. I don’t know how well I can illustrate it from these photos [above].

A beautiful day

4. The addition to the Chapin School does not feel like an organic build-out.

We were not the only ones who felt the need to complain today. J and I commiserated over too much sun. When I saw him later, my friend “Junior” agreed.

Yes, it was sunny and gorgeous. Yes, it was warm and bright. But… there is always a but it was too darn hot for an April afternoon.

I walked up the river, a route you are familiar with from my posts here. It appears I took 50 photos on this little trip. Strikes me as a lot.

I have a plan for sharing many of these with you.

1. I will riff on the Roosevelt Island ligthouse. 2. There will be an article on air rights. 3. Look for a pictorial on the East River’s John Finley Walk. 4. I continue to criticize the build-out to the Chapin School. 5. My favorites along the way are the Queen Anne houses at Henderson Place.

Sightseeing

Our friend J.
told us there would be ducks at the Glenwood at 72nd-73rd & York. Don’t look like ducks or do they? They don’t act like pigeons either, but they aren’t quacking. Took me several looks to recognize how right she is.

A new bagel and bialy joint constitutes a kind of local tourism.

There is no sign of the Church of the Epiphany, which used to occupy this site at 74th & York.

The Church of the Epiphany that was. You’ll find it on 74th Street in the Jan Hus space these days.

Redo

If your coop or condo needs a remodel or complete makeover…

You bought your home and a lot of it is perfect. You wish the kitchen counter was a little wider or that the bathroom had more storage space.

A renovation is a chance to get it right.

Once you’ve finished tweaking the space, it’s going to feel more like your own.

It might be a small adaptation like fresh bright paint. We did that and so much more years ago when we had a coop.

You might feel comfortable with a total re-gut. There are many folks willing and some very able to assist in such a project.

I am going to recommend just one today.**

It’s called Real Renos which is a clever shortcut from “(Real) Renovations.”

**Full disclosure regarding my connection here: Real Renos is owned and operated by a friend and neighbor. Not incidentally, it has a stylish logo and an informative website.