Could a Pedestrian Bridge Connect Jersey to Lower Manhattan??? - Curbed NY

New Jersey can sometimes feel like it's a world away from New York City, but in reality, it's only a few miles from Jersey City to Manhattan—the Hudson River crossing itself is only about a mile. And one Jersey City resident wants to breach that divide in a unique way: with a pedestrian bridge. ( Jersey Digs) Kevin Shane, who came up with the idea, worked with Jersey-based Jeff Jordan Architects to conceptualize plans for a Hudson River crossing called the Liberty Bridge that would begin in JC, cross the Hudson River, and end in Battery Park City. His reasoning: "With the increase in commuter traffic from Jersey City and Hoboken and the unbearable, often delayed mass transit options that are getting worse over time, the bridge could provide a new access point to Manhattan for the hundreds of thousands that go into NYC each day." The renderings, which you can check out below, show a High Line-esque walkway (with various ADA-compliant access points) with benches, plants, and artwork. The bridge would also, according to the site, "provid[e] a 200+ foot view over the Hudson unlike any experience before." Of course, this is all just a proposal—Shane admits the challenges to getting it done are "monstrous"—but it's certainly interesting to consider.

[All renderings via Jeff Jordan Architects]

· Liberty Bridge [Official] · The Highline has Nothing on Jersey City's New Pedestrian Bridge [Jersey Digs]

Source: Could a Pedestrian Bridge Connect Jersey to Lower Manhattan? - Pie in the Sky Ideas - Curbed NY

Luxury Sales Slow With 13 Contracts at $4m+ Last Week - The Real Deal

Manhattan’s luxury residential market maintained its relatively tepid pace. A total of 13 contracts were signed this week at $4 million and above, only a slight improvement over last week’s paltry total of 10. The persistently low demand at the high end has also continued to depress prices, with the average unit this week going into contract for $6.3 million, down from $6.6 million last week. The median price, $5.3 million, was also down from last week’s figure of $5.9 million. The one clear positive sign was a strong fall in the average discount from the original asking price, which came in at 2 percent this week, down from a two-year-high of 12 percent last week. The week’s top contract was for the four-bedroom unit M10 at Witkoff Group’s 150 Charles Street in the West Village. The triplex 5,600-square-foot condo features 19-foot ceilings, a fireplace and a 458-square-foot garden. The unit was sold from floors in 2013 for $12.5 million. The developer allowed that buyer to reassign the contract for the unit. 150 Charles started closing over the summer. Construction there is nearly complete. The second most expensive unit of the week was a co-op, 11C at Halstead Property’s 1125 Park Avenue on the Upper West Side. The nine-room corner unit, which features a library, was asking $9 million. It was last purchased in 2005 for $5.3 million, and has since been renovated. [Olshan Realty] – Ariel Stulberg - See more at: http://therealdeal.com/blog/2015/10/05/luxury-sales-slow-with-13-contracts-at-4m-plus-olshan/#sthash.ngKhoDwh.dpuf Source: Olshan Realty | 150 Charles Street | 1125 Park Avenue