4 ms·
That building looks horrible, do people live there?
by ungreased0675 3mo ago
That building looks horrible, do people live there?
- q3k 3mo agoNo, they just shop there.
- hdgvhicv 3mo agoGround floor is a shop, pepper floors are basically empty.
- dotancohen 3mo ago^pepper^upper Though I have replaced pepper control arms on a vintage Mustang once. Rust does that.
- nephihaha 3mo agoI know. I was expecting something easier on the eye. Maybe a century of being behind billboards has wrecked it. The 1906/1907 photographs look much better.
- hinkley 3mo agoNeglect and dust. With the billboards up nobody not even the rain has been washing the facade.
- nkrisc 3mo agoBased on the pictures I can’t imagine anyone legally living there. I don’t know for sure, but I imagine usable windows are required for living spaces.
- timr 3mo agoEvery bedroom of a rental is required to have a window in New York. But in this part of town, the advertising rights alone probably vastly exceed any possible revenue from renting the building for residential use. It’s kind of like the tiny building in Times Square that has the ball on top. I don’t think people even realize there’s a building behind all of the billboards, but it was original New York Times building.
- nkrisc 3mo agoThat’s what I meant, but worded poorly: that for anyone to legally be living there it wouldn’t currently meet the standards. Renting any part of that building out is likely not worth the hassle compared to the ad revenue, as you noted.
- jen20 3mo ago> but it was original New York Times building. It was the second New York Times building! The original was on Park Row.
- bsammon 3mo ago> Every bedroom of a rental is required to have a window in New York. I don't think you meant this as specific as it sounds -- I suspect this requirement applies to coops, condos, and maybe even if you want to get official permission to use it as an owner-occupied single-family dwelling.
- timr 3mo agoThe rule is a residential rental rule. If you rent it out, the rule applies. The ownership structure does not matter. I think there's actually a parallel rule that theoretically applies to owner-occupied buildings, but for obvious reasons there's a lot less enforcement. Beyond real estate agents not listing an illegal bedroom as a bedroom, for example, nobody is going to hunt you down for using a non-bedroom as a sleeping place.
- lorreyfum 3mo agoMandamus will tax it
- hinkley 3mo agoThe ground floor is a Sunglass Hut from the looks of things. Then the first floor looks like it might be offices, or a fancy apartment. The other floors could be storage space for the tenants and the landlord. My first instinct was perhaps they raised the ceiling in the first floor to occupy some of the second. But thinking on it more, high ceilings without windows to go with them usually don't make the space feel that much bigger. You can spend up to a couple feet on crown molding but beyond that you're well into diminishing returns.
- UltraSane 3mo agoNot on the really rough looking floors. It has been used as a huge billboard for a very long time.
- mc32 3mo agoI was thinking the same question. It certainly looks unoccupied -I can’t imagine people living in the other side but then again it _could_ be very well maintained and decorated on the inside despite the eyesore looks on the outside. Moreover since the lower floors are commercial it must mean that at least the upper floors are keeping out the elements.
- wahnfrieden 3mo agoThere are several such buildings in NYC in prime real estate areas that are kept empty in order to prioritize billboard revenue.
- ianm218 3mo agoSource? My understanding is this is no longer true
- dylan604 3mo agoTFA as exhibit 1?
- ianm218 3mo agoHe said there are several others like this which I think is false, TFA wouldn’t be relevant.
- wahnfrieden 3mo agoThere are several that are either nearly or partly (several floors) empty
- ianm218 3mo agoI mean yeah its vacancy rate is like 20% in NYC… I asked for a source on buildings that are purposely vacant for advertising and it seems like that doesn’t actually exist
- wahnfrieden 3mo agoBuildings with mandated signage in Times Square keep the floors they cover vacant. You can look up sources yourself
- wahnfrieden 3mo agoOne Times Square is no longer fully empty (besides ground floor retail) you’re right that it is now just almost entirely empty as they’ve added an observation deck and a small visitors center/museum about the building as of January this year. Some other buildings in Times Square keep several floors empty to use for signage instead, a minimum of which is actually mandated by the city.
- amelius 3mo agoYou know your facade sucks when it looks better with a giant billboard covering it.
- codedokode 3mo agoIt just needs some minor cleaning and renovation.