(Photo Credit: Edward Reed)

Mayor Bloomberg, Billy Joel, Clive Davis, and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum announced that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum will open an annex in New York City in the heart of SoHo.

When the 25,000 square foot annex opens in November, it will be the first location outside the Museum's home in Cleveland. The announcement took place at 76 Mercer Street, the future site of the annex.

The state-of-the-art facility will focus on the defining moments in rock and roll history and will be designed to resonate with both the casual music fan and the seasoned rock enthusiast. It will feature an array of exhibitions, including a permanent "New York Rocks" gallery that will highlight key locations around New York City that have musical significance.

The annex will also showcase selected relics from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum's vast collection, including Bruce Springsteen's 1957 Chevy, John Lennon's Record Plant Piano, Elvis Presley's motorcycle jacket, a handwritten poem by Jim Morrison and more.

Some highlights:

• New York Rocks will feature an oversized interactive map to highlight key locations around New York City that have musical significance, including Studio 54 and The Chelsea Hotel, and will showcase items such as the notebook in which Billy Joel wrote all the lyrics for "The Stranger" album;
• Cleveland Gallery, which will include special exhibits and displays that give visitors a taste of the larger experience at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland; and, Special Rotating Exhibit, which will feature one select artist or band, with special attention to their time spent in New York City, rotating every six to nine months.

The annex will open in November, but advance tickets will be available through http://www.rockannex.com/ beginning in October.

Press Release

http://www.rockhall.com/

Courtesy of: Mitchell J Hall

NY1 reported Senator Hillary Clinton is pushing a bill that would send millions of dollars to the city for mass transit.

The Saving Energy Through Public Transportation Act of 2008 would provide $1.7 billion over two years to systems across the country that show dramatic ridership increases.

New York City would receive $237 million out of the pot for handling nearly one-third of the nation's transit passengers.

Clinton says the funds would allow mass transit systems to lower fares and expand operations.

200 West 56th Street

Own a Share of Manhattan - The Manhattan Club -  Time Share Condominiums

The Manhattan Clubs Convenient Midtown Location Gives You Easy Access To Central Park, The Theater District, Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Museums, Fine Dining, And World Famous Shopping.

The Full Time Concierge Staff Is At Your Service, Whenever The Need Arises. Imagine your own elegant suite right in the heart of New York City just for those times you want to be in Manhattan.

Junior Executive Suites to Penthouse Suites Available.

An affordable way to own luxury in Manhattan. Own a share in the The Manhattan Club.

A unique Concept For Individuals Who Travel To New York For Business And Leisure.

From The Moment You Step Into The Lobby You Will Feel Right At Home. With A Combination Of Elegance, Service and Convenience.

Spacious Luxury Suites, Private Lounge, Fitness Center, Meeting Rooms, Concierge Service, Valet Parking. Everything For You. In The Center Of Manhattan, Its Easy To Get To Anywhere.

A Great Idea In Manhattan.

Now There Is A Way To Afford A Luxury Suite In New York.

Each Suite Typically Features High Ceilings, Large Windows, Plush Fabrics, Elegant Furnishings.

Includes A Refrigerator, Dishwasher, Microwave, Bose Radio, Computer, Printer, Plazma Tvs, And Multiple Phone Lines.  

The Comfortable Marble Bathrooms Are Complete With Plush Towels, Terry Robes, And An Array Of Fine Toiletries.

 Fully Deeded Condo Ownership - 1 week Flexible Staying Plans.

The Manhattan Club Is A Member Of Resort Condominium International, The Largest Vacation Exchange System In The World. This Will Give You The Opportunity To Trade Your Week For Any One Of Approximately 3,500 Locations In 85 Countries Worldwide.

 Available Listings:

200 W. 56th St. Manhattan Club	Price	Location	Type	Rooms	Beds	Baths	Approx. Square Footage	Monthly Charges
	$18,000	Midtown West Side	Condo	3	1	1	550	$110	Mitchell Hall Add to Contacts 6464429543
	MLS#: 513822 Active Listing
	$19,999	Midtown West Side	Condo	4	1	2	700	$134	Mitchell Hall Add to Contacts 6464429220
	MLS#: 463488 Active Listing
	$21,500	Midtown West Side	Condo	2.5		1	550	$110	Mitchell Hall Add to Contacts 6464429181
	MLS#: 520237 Active Listing
	$21,900	Midtown West Side	Condo	3	1	2	700	$85	Mitchell Hall Add to Contacts 6464429180
	MLS#: 453996 Active Listing
	$23,999	Midtown West Side	Condo	3	1	2	700	$125	Mitchell Hall Add to Contacts 6464429424
	MLS#: 537087 Active Listing
	$24,999	Midtown West Side	Condo	3	1	2	700	$126	Mitchell Hall Add to Contacts 6464429627
	MLS#: 524014 Active Listing
	$32,000	Midtown West Side	Condo	2.5		1	550	$110	Mitchell Hall Add to Contacts 6464429639

Contact: Mitchell Hall to buy your share of Manhattan

Brokers and agents welcome locally and globally. 

The house of Versace is designing interiors for a Manhattan landmark currently undergoing renovations and a condo conversion.

One Madison Avenue, the former Met Life Clocktower building near Madison Square Park, will be converted to residential condominiums

The Italian design house has been hired to do interior design work on the Clock Tower in the Flatiron District.

Erected as the tallest building in the world in 1909, a title it kept for four years until the Woolworth Building at 233 Broadway was completed.

The renovations include 55 condominium apartments, common areas and a spa. Donatella Versace will personally design a luxury club in the building. Versace designed the interiors of The Plaza last year.

The area is now being called Madison Park. A 60 story luxury building One Madison Park is is being constructed at 23 East 22nd St. Those apartments will have incredible views of the Clock Tower. The building is mostly sold although the building's penthouse top three floors 7500SF and a 580+SF wrap-around terrace is available for $45 million. 

The Upper West Side:

The Upper West Side boundaries are 59th Street to the South, 110th Street to the North, Central Park West to the East and the Hudson River to the West.

The Upper West Side neighborhood has a different spirit and outlook than the Upper East Side. The Upper West Side is known for its individuality, creativity, diversity and cultural pursuits.

The Upper West Side is home to some extraordinary buildings. Landmarks of Art Deco, Beaux Arts, or Gothic Revival architecture, the great celebrity apartment buildings of Central Park West.

The Dakota, El Dorado, The San Remo Apartments, The Ansonia, The Oliver Cromwell, The Langham, The Kenilworth, Hotel Des Artistes, The Beresford and The Ardsley.

Central Park West, Riverside Drive and West End Avenue have always been known for their grand large apartments. The Upper West Side is a diversified neighborhood attractive to every demographic and lifestyle.

The Lincoln Center complex is home to the Metropolitan Opera and Julliard School of Music, Avery Fisher Hall, Alice Tully Hall, the New York City Ballet and the Vivian Beaumont Theater.

The American Museum of Natural History is located on a stretch of Central Park West and Columbus Avenue between 77th and 81st Streets.

The museum's new Hayden Planetarium is a galactic spectacular and is well worth the invested time.

It is a true pleasure to walk along the Upper West Side and take advantage of the well established blocks, boutiques, and restaurants. The Upper West side is known for it's food emporiums.

My favorites are: Fairway, Zabars, Citarella and the famous H&H Bagels all located on upper Broadway.

©Mitchell Hall 2006-2008

Riverside Park stretches over four miles along the Hudson River from 62nd to 158th Streets, the 330 acres of Riverside Park provide recreation and relaxation for a uniquely diverse population.

Riverside Park is widely regarded as Manhattan's most spectacular waterfront park. As one of only 10 officially designated scenic landmarks in the City of New York, it has a long and storied history.

Rugged bluffs and rocky outcroppings created through prehistoric glacial deposits once descended directly to the Hudson River shore. They were densely wooded until 1846, when the Hudson River Railroad cut through the forested hillside.

Today it is enjoyed by all through it's many playgrounds, bike paths and dog runs.

In 1865 a scenic drive and park was built on Manhattan's Upper West Side. The development of the park encouraged the construction of mansions along the drive. Monuments placed along the drive during this era included Grant's Tomb (1897), Soldiers and Sailors Memorial (1902), Firemen's Memorial (1913), and Joan of Arc (1915).

In 2000, seven acres of land stretching from 68th to 72nd Streets was added to Riverside Park, called Riverside Park South. This section of the park now known as the Joe DiMaggio Highway, and Trump/New World (the site's developers).

Riverside Park South includes a soccer field, three basketball courts, and a public pier extending 750 feet into the Hudson River.

At 79th Street is The Boat Basin and The Rotunda a hidden Manhattan treasure that many New Yorkers enjoy once they discover the hidden treasure below the west side highway.

Recreational facilities include a range of sports courts and fields, a skate park, a large portion of the Manhattan Waterfront Greenway (for bicycles), and the 110-slip public marina at 79th street, The 79th street Boat basin an important part of New York State's Water Trail.

For more information events and schedules NYC Parks and Recreation

Courtesy of: Mitchell Hall

©Mitchell Hall 2006-2008

Photo courtesy NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission.
The Otis Elevator Building, built in 1911-1912

Comprising 30 Buildings, District Recognized for Its Distinctive Architecture and Role
as a Major Center of Manufacturing, Warehousing and Freight Handling.

The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission unanimously approved the designation of the West Chelsea Historic District, a collection of 30 architecturally distinctive buildings that recall New York City's standing as the leading manufacturing center in the United States during the last half of the 19th
century.

Several of the nation's most prestigious manufacturers had a presence in West Chelsea at the end of the 19th century and during the first decades of the 20th century including the famed Otis Elevator Company the John Williams Ornamental Brass and Iron Works -- and the Reynolds Metal Company (521-537 W. 25th St.), a maker of tin foil wrappers and bottle caps that was founded by the nephew of tobacco maker R.J. Reynolds.

The West Chelsea Historic District is one of the few remaining industrial areas associated with Manhattan's once-thriving port and waterfront. The three large properties between 11th and 12th Avenues are directly tied to waterfront business, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company Freight Warehouse, the Starrett-Lehigh Building, and the New York Terminal Warehouse Company's Central Stores.

The long blocks of West 26th and West 27th Streets between 11th and 12th Avenues form one of the city's most impressive industrial streetscapes. The remaining structures centered around the presence of rail facilities. The R. C. Williams building, for example retains a second-floor loading dock opening directly onto the High Line.

Several buildings were constructed for companies that had a notable impact on the city's development: the Otis Elevator Company, the Cornell Iron Works and the Reynolds Metal Company. Ranging in date from 1885 to 1930, most of the structures are brick-faced with stone trim and intended for manufacturing or storage.

Styles include classical revival, Beaux Arts, Moderne and modern. Many of the buildings are designed by significant architects including Cass Gilbert, Clinton & Russell, Cory & Cory, Schickel & Ditmars, and the noted industrial architect, William Higginson.

This district joins the High Line in preserving industrial architecture and infrastructure. West Chelsea is New York City's 92nd Historic District.

From the LPC Press Release

About The Upper East Side:

The Georgica:

a new condo on the Upper East Side

(named after Geogica Pond in East Hampton)

The Upper East Side has been considered Manhattan's most prestigious residential neighborhood covering the East of Central Park to the East River, and from 59th Street at its southern boundary to 96th Street at its northern boundary.

While the most coveted, prewar homes on Fifth and Park Avenues are beyond the financial reach of all but the wealthiest New Yorkers, there are also surprisingly good values that abound nearby. There are exceptional values in all ranges of housing from post-war hi-rises to brownstones, and from rental to coop/ condominium ownership.

It is the perfect quiet, residential area to raise a family with proximity to Manhattan's best private and public schools. Central Park, itself, is the best "backyard" anyone could dream of with it's zoo, playing fields, tennis courts, parklands, rowing and world class natural charm.

The city's largest concentration of its toniest shops and cafes can be found on both sides of Madison Avenue. Yet elsewhere lurking on the eastside, you will find other famous, outrageously expensive stores such as Sotheby's and Christie's auction houses, Henri Bendel, Tiffany's, and Louis Vuitton.

Upward of 70th Street, Fifth Avenue, also known as Museum Mile, is home to some of the foremost art institutions in the world such as The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Guggenheim, the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Frick Collection. Between 86th Street and 96th Street between 5th Avenue and Lexington is the Upper East Side neighborhood Carnegie Hill, named after the Carnegie mansion on 91st and Fifth.

Gracie Mansion

Even the official residence for the Mayor of the City of New York, Gracie Mansion overlooks the East River from East 88th Street.

Although current Mayor Michael Bloomberg prefers to live in his own $40 million Upper East Side townhouse.

©Mitchell Hall 2006-2008

Morningside Park Entrance

The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission unanimously granted scenic landmark status to Morninside Park. Designed by Fredrick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux (co-designers of Central Park) Morningside Park in Manhattan was chosen for its unusual topography, scenic views and noteworthy public sculptures.

Located on along a rocky ledge extending from 110th to 123rd streets and between Morningside Drive and Manhattan Morninside Avenues, the park is comprised of approximately 30 acres that were excluded from the street grid under a proposal by Andrew Haswell Green, a commissioner and comptroller of Central Park.

Olmsted and Vaux developed a design for the park in 1873 that was revised 14 years later, partly because of a sharp decline in the city's economy. Such important institutions as Columbia University, the Cathedral of St. John the Divine and St. Luke's Hospital decided to build along Morningside Drive across from the park before it opened in 1895.

Morningside Park features a massive buttressed masonry retaining wall with a parapet, overlook bays, imposing entrance stairways, natural rock outcroppings, and curving pathways across the site. It also boasts three important sculptures: Lafayette and Washington (1890, by Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi, the sculptor of the Statue of Liberty); the Carl Schurz Monument (1909-1913, by sculptor Karl Bitter and architect Henry Bacon, who is responsible for the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.) and Bear and Faun/Seligman Fountain (c. 1910, by Edgar Melville Walter, a sculptor and student of Auguste Rodin).

Built on a steep incline, multiple playgrounds nestle at the bottom of its cliff-like hillside, and visitors pause along its heights to take in a unique view. Winding paths bordered with flowers and trees lead to a cascading waterfall, across from which local teams play on its baseball fields. Parents bring their children to play in its playgrounds and learn in its after-school program, and on Saturdays local farmers sell their goods in an outdoor market.

Morningside Park brings to 10 the total number of scenic landmarks in New York City.

For more information events and schedules: Morningside Park: NYC Department of Parks and Recreation 

more info: Friends of High Line