New Film Studio Breaks Ground in The Bronx

Move over, Brooklyn: The South Bronx may become the city's next film and TV production hotbed. this month, York Studios is breaking ground on a $100 million movie studio on a 10-acre vacant lot off the Bruckner Expressway in Soundview. 

The production complex is about 2 miles from Silvercup Studios' new $40 million facility in the Port Morris neighborhood, which opened in August.

The new production center will be the second for York Studios, which opened a 40,000-square-foot space in Maspeth, Queens, in 2012.

The hit show Elementary and a number of feature films, including The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and This Is Where I Leave You, were shot there.

Executives for the studio said they decided to expand because of the production boom taking place in the city, stemming in large part from the $420 million annual tax-incentive program that was just renewed through 2022.

Queens MediaWorks, whose principals include veteran reality-television execs and international soccer star David Villa, plans to open a 150,000-square-foot production studio for unscripted and nonfiction TV programs in Queens.

York specifically looked for space in the Bronx because of its easy access to Midtown, Westchester and Queens. The borough also offers an abundance of options for location shoots, many of which have yet to be seen on film.

The first phase of construction will yield a 170,000-square-foot facility housing five soundstages and support space at a cost of $45 million.

Three of the stages will be 15,000 square feet, and two will be 18,000 square feet. They are expected to be up and running by October 2018. The next phase will create three larger stages.

When completed, the development, which was designed by Gerald Caliendo Architects, will have nearly 350,000 square feet of production space.

The studio is projected to generate nearly $100 million in new tax revenue for the Bronx, employ more than 400 industry professionals and create hundreds of construction jobs. The city has already approved $33 million in tax benefits for the site over the next quarter century.

Last year a record 52 prime-time episodic television series were filmed in the five boroughs, a 13% increase from 2015. The city was also home to 336 feature-film projects, an almost 40% increase, according to the Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment.


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The Upper West Side’s Soon-To-Be Tallest Building

Construction in Manhattan’s Lincoln Square neighborhood has permanently changed the skyline in recent years, from the Fordham University expansion to the towers at Riverside South.

But the soon to be constructed 200 Amsterdam Avenue, which will soar to 668 feet, will be the tallest building on the Upper West Side.

The building site, which was the longtime home of the Lincoln Square Synagogue, was acquired for $275 million in 2015 by SJP Properties.

200 Amsterdam will sit on the west side of Amsterdam Avenue between West 68th and 69th Streets and rise 55 stories.

The new tower will have 112 luxury residences covering more than 450,000 square feet.

The Upper West Side’s stringent landmarking means that new development like this is generally very rare for the neighborhood.

The recently-completed 160 West 62nd Street presently stands as the tallest building in Lincoln Square, at 598 feet, while on the proper Upper West Side, the San Remo holds the torch at 400 feet.

While 200 Amsterdam Avenue will top out 668 feet above street level, the building would be almost invisible in either the Midtown or Downtown skylines.

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42-Story Skyscraper Planned Across from City Hall Park

Lower Manhattan will be getting yet another skyscraper. A new 42-story, mixed-use building will soon begin to rise directly across from City Hall Park at 265-267 Broadway.

The project is just one of several developments which will be getting underway this year in Lower Manhattan, including a 25-story tower planned next to Trinity Church, and a 54-story residential tower going up at the former site of J&R Music, at 23-32 Park Row.

The 42-story Gene Kaufman designed tower will soar 510-feet-tall between Warren and Chambers streets, with a hotel on the lower floors and luxury condominium residences above.

An 80-room hotel will take up the first 12 floors, including a lounge, lobby, garden, and offices on the first floor, and a restaurant and kitchen on the second floor.

The next 27 floors will be comprised of 38 full-floor and duplex condominium units. The top three floors will house to a super-pricey, ultra-luxury, triplex penthouse.

Demolition of the existing 5-story office building is expected later this spring, followed immediately by construction for the new 42-story tower.


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CitiView Tower Will be Tallest Building on Queens Skyline

A new residential project is threatening to take the title of Queens’ tallest building from Long Island City’s iconic 50-story Citigroup tower.

Flushing-based developer Chris Xu plans to build a massive 66-story, 802-unit building at 23-15 44th Drive, next to the CUNY School of Law, directly across the street from Citigroup’s 1.4 million-square-foot, 50-story One Court Square tower.

The building, named CityView Tower, is slated to stand 984 feet tall, would loom over Citigroup tower – the tallest building in the city outside of Manhattan.

It will also be 70 feet taller than a skyscraper planned for 29-37 41st Avenue near Queens Plaza, which made headlines last year for its potential to become Queens’ tallest tower at 914 feet.

Flushing developer, Chris Xu, purchased the Court Square site from Citigroup last summer for $143 million.

According to United Construction and Development Group, Xu’s development company, the project will be called “Court Square City View Tower.”

Located in the most desirable neighborhood in Long Island City, and with its proximity to the 7, E, G and M subway lines, as well as the East River Ferry, the development will provide unprecedented convenience for its occupants.

Midtown Manhattan is less than five minutes away by subway or by car. The residential tower will be surrounded by a vibrant dining scene with some of New York’s most innovative eateries and taverns; lush riverfront parks with playgrounds, fishing piers and running paths; and notable art galleries and studios, including MoMA PS1 and Sculpture Center.

The 66-story high rise will contain 802 luxury residential units and 100,000 square feet of commercial space, covering a total of 999,664 square feet.

Designed by Hill West Architects, the glass-covered tower will come with unparalleled skyline views and luxury amenities that include a pool, a communal terrace, a fitness center, and a yoga room. Some of the hi-end apartments will also have balconies.

Plans indicate that 20,000 square feet of retail space and a residential lobby will occupy the ground floor, with parking for 103 vehicles located on the second floor.

The number of apartments varies from 32 units on the fifth floor and 24 units on the sixth, to 11 units each up to the 60th floor. The three highest residential floors will hold just three apartments each.

Citigroup had originally planned to build a third Court Square tower on the 36,000-square-foot site, but put the site up for sale over post-recession concerns.


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