via Sara Polsky/Curbed.com
HARLEM—The progress of sales at Harlem’s Apex Condos has been steady, though not in the blockbuster realm. The latest stat, via building reps: the place is 50 percent sold. StreetEasy shows 13 active listings for the 44-unit building and an average recorded sale price of $556/square foot. [CurbedWire Inbox]
Harlem resident and firefighter Khalid Baylor responded to an application he received at a street fair. Eight years later, he's one of the faces of the FDNY's diversity recruitment campaign. (Photo courtesy of DNAinfo/Jeff Mays)
“I was just out in the crowd and I saw this black firefighter who gave me an application and encouraged me to apply,” said Baylor, a Harlem resident.
He then went a step beyond. He made copies of the application and handed them out to his friends. Eight years later, Baylor, is an example of both the success and difficulties of recruiting minorities to the largest firefighting force in the country.
None of his friends followed through with the fire department application, but today, Baylor is a firefighter with Engine 35/ Ladder 14 on East 124th Street and Third Avenue. He is also one of the faces of the FDNY’s efforts to diversify its ranks, appearing on a new FDNY ad campaign with his 11-year-old son Khalid.
Read more from DNAinfo.
New Luxury Harlem Condominium Hits 40% Sold Mark
APEX Condominium’s offering plan has been declared effective and the new luxury building in Harlem is already 40% sold — more than twice the required percentage.
Closings are underway and the first residents have moved into their new homes, according to owner/developer RCG Longview and The Marketing Directors, Inc., the property’s exclusive sales and marketing agent.
The fast-selling building is located at 2300 Frederick Douglass Boulevard, on the southeast corner of 124th Street, in this burgeoning residential, retail and entertainment district.
“Surpassing another important sales milestone and being able to welcome our initial buyers into their homes is extremely gratifying. We can now offer prospective buyers the ability to move quickly from purchase to occupancy in our limited number of remaining residences,” notes Richard Gorsky, who leads the RCG Longview team.
“We’re confident the impressive sales velocity we’ve achieved to date will now intensify thanks to this latest accomplishment.”
Contributing to the sales success at APEX is a newly-streamlined budget and creative buy-down program which has significantly lowered the monthly common charges at the building. Under the new program, the average estimated monthly common charge for a one-bedroom home is approximately $572.
Also resonating with buyers is an impressive amenity offering which includes a private, secured entrance to the condominiums with an attended lobby, residents-only elevators, storage, and a rooftop terrace with panoramic views reserved exclusively for the residential condominium owners. In addition, homeowners enjoy shared hotel amenities such as a second, spectacular entrance, bar, fitness center and on-site parking.
“APEX is clearly striking a chord with buyers throughout New York City who are responding to its well thought-out designs, upscale finishes and appointments, high level of amenities and services, convenient location and exceptional value,” says Adrienne Albert, CEO of The Marketing Directors, Inc. “It’s exciting to reach the point where buyers are now moving in and enjoying all that this outstanding property has to offer.”
APEX features studio-to-three-bedroom residences priced from $340,000 to just over $1 million. The well-appointed residential floor plans offer approximately 476 to 1,810 square feet of living space with stylish interior designs that provide a contemporary look at an exceptional value.
There are dramatic oversized windows in many residences, wood flooring throughout and Bosch washer and dryers in every residence. Kitchens are notable for their custom two-tone cabinetry, granite countertops and a Kitchen Aid stainless steel appliance package that includes cook top, wall oven, dishwasher, refrigerator and microwave, while lavish master baths offer over-sized glass showers, custom designed vanities with polished marble counters and Grohe fixtures.
APEX Condominium’s location within the Frederick Douglass Boulevard Corridor offers residents access to the area’s ever-growing cultural, dining and recreational pursuits, including universities, the famed Apollo Theater, great restaurants, coffee houses, markets, movie theaters and other retail. APEX is also just one block from the 125th Street subway station which offers direct express commuter service to 33rd Street.
An onsite sales office and furnished model homes are open for viewing. For more information and to schedule an appointment, call 646-374-3900, or visit the APEX website at www.apexcondominiums.com.
The Sponsor of APEX Condominium has lowered the monthly common charges at the new luxury building in Harlem.
The average estimated monthly charge for a one-bednoom home is now approximately $572.00, according to owner/developer RCG Longview and The Marketing Directors, Inc., the property’s exclusive sales and marketing agent.
Addressing monthly common charges appears to be right on point as buyers have responded positively to the new program, with recent contracts pushing the 44-home building to the 30% sold mark.
“There’s tremendous public acceptance of APEX and we’re success fully attracting buyers from throughout New York City who appreciate the property’s well thought-out designs, upscale finishes and appointments, amenities and services, convenient location and exceptional value,” said Adrienne Albert, CEO of The Marketing Directors, Inc.
“The early success has already led to price increases on some of the lines.”
Located at 2300 Frederick Douglass Boulevard, on the southeast corner of 124th Street, APEX features 44 contemporary condominium homes situated on the top six floors of the new 12-story building which includes a 124-room Aloft hotel,
Residences are priced from the mid-$300,000’s to just over $1 million.
See the full clip here: Brokers Weekly – The Common Touch in Harlem – 6.15.11
A Limited Collection of Studio to 3 Bedroom Contemporary Condos:
*From $340,000 to over $1 Million
*Attended Lobby
*Parking
*Residents Only Rooftop
*Terrace
*Fitness Center
3% Broker Commission
Sales Center located at 2300 Frederick Douglass Blvd. NY, NY 10027
Call: (646)374-3900
Visit: www.apexcondominiums.com
The 800-square-foot patio of Marcus Samuelsson’s condo includes “a whole kitchen,” with a grill, a stove and more. (Photo courtesy of the NY Post)
There are numerous reasons why chef Marcus Samuelsson, owner of Harlem hot spot Red Rooster, loves his apartment. For one thing, it’s smack in the heart of Harlem, where he’s wanted to live ever since he was a boy growing up in Sweden. For another, it boasts a copper Blue Star stove, which he calls the “best of the best.” And for still another, he has plenty of room to create recipes.
But the main reason he loves his home is because it’s where he first met his wife, Gate Haile (he calls her Maya).
SNEAKER PEEK: Samuelsson’s apartment has colorful flourishes including a closet where he stores his shoes. (MICHAEL SOFRONSKI)
The 800-square-foot patio of Marcus Samuelsson’s condo includes “a whole kitchen,” with a grill, a stove and more.
“It’s really for chefs,” he says. “It has the highest BTUs of any stove. I test recipes in my kitchen. The idea of a dish starts here, and then I execute it at the restaurant.”
The other addition was another stove — on the patio.
HARLEM HOTTIES: Samuelsson and his wife, Gate Haile, have room to spread out and numerous quirky pieces in their 2,200-square-foot condo. Samuelsson, who decorated the apartment himself, creates recipes — and art — in his home. (MICHAEL SOFRONSKI)
Both those kitchens and all that 2,200 square feet of space were originally for just Samuelsson himself. At that point, he hadn’t even met Haile. He filled the apartment with antiques and quirky pieces he’d accumulated over the years.
“Not long after I moved in and finished the apartment, I decided to have a housewarming party,” he says. “That was when I met Maya. Someone brought her. She’s a model, about 6 feet tall and stunning. But the main thing that attracted me is that she’s a very sweet girl.”
One thing led to another, and the couple (who were both born in Ethiopia and returned there for their 2009 wedding) soon moved in together.
“I brought all the furniture myself,” Samuelsson says. “All that was left for Maya to bring in was televisions and computers. And if it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t even have a television set.”
TVs aside, there’s no question that the apartment fulfilled many of Samuelsson’s longtime dreams.
“I think this building has one foot in the past and one foot in the future,” he says. “It looks old from the outside, but it’s very modern on the inside.
“I always wanted loft space. I work very thematically. Before I create a recipe, I
write down the concept of what I’m making. Then I paint those ideas — I make a collage.”
He points to a painting he did of some 1940s musicians.
“Those people didn’t have much money, they ate fried chicken feet and had a good time,” he says.
Read more from the New York Post.
The Sponsor of APEX Condominium has lowered the monthly common charges at the new luxury building in Harlem.
Thanks to a newly-streamlined budget and a buy-down program, the average estimated monthly charge for a one-bedroom home is now approximately $572.00, according to owner/developer RCG Longview and The Marketing Directors. Inc., the property’s exclusive sales and marketing agent.
Noting that the building has an at-tended lobby, rooftop said, “By streamlining the budget, we were able to create significant savings which combine with the new five-year Common Charge Buydown program to produce a compelling incentive for buyers to move forward today.”
Recent contracts have pushed the 44-home building to the 30% sold mark. Located at 2300 Frederick Douglass Boulevard, APEX features 44 condo on the top six floors of the new 12-story building which includes a 124-room Aloft hotel. Prices range from the mid-$300,000’s to just over $1 million.
See the full clip: Brokers Weekly – Apex
By Ben Fractenberg
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
The students will attend a play about the Kindertransports, which rescued Jewish children before WWII.
More than 650 Harlem students will attend a play this week about a young Jewish girl’s escape from Nazi Germany before the outbreak of World War II.
The students will be in the audience for Thursday’s performance of the play “My Heart In a Suitcase” at the Schomburg Center at 515 Malcolm X Blvd.
The drama, based on a true story, follows the life of a 12-year-old girl, Anne Lehmann, who left her family in 1938 aboard a ship bringing children to England during the Nazis’ rise to power.
The so-called Kindertransports carried 10,000 children from Germany, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and Austria to England in the lead up to World War II. Many of the children ended up living in English foster homes while their families perished in the Holocaust.
Enterprise Rent-A-Car and ArtsPower, a traveling theater group that produces plays based on classic literature and historical events, organized the event.
Read the article from DNAinfo.
A father and son bond over a game of skully, played in the streets of New York for generations, during the weekend Street Games in Harlem. (Photo courtesy of Tara MacIsaac/The Epoch Times)
NEW YORK—The fourth annual Street Games at Thomas Jefferson Park in Harlem brought parents and children together to enjoy the games that have been a part of childhood in the city for generations.
The Department of Parks and Recreation and the Walt Disney Company set up areas to play handball, skip double-dutch style, or hop on a pogo stick, among other favorite street games Saturday afternoon.
A live band played James Brown’s “I Feel Good,” as a parks’ employee got funky with some smooth moves. The Motown vibe pervaded the park, evoking nostalgia while creating new memories.
Read more from the Epoch Times.
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