Twin Towers of Light in NYC

I can't let such an important anniversary as 10 years after the attack on NYC's Twin Towers on 9 September 2001 go by without a comment.


And, despite all the horror, tragedy and destruction that it caused, it's good to see Americans rebuilding themselves and that part of their city.  So, here's an amazing and moving display that's been lighting up the New York skyline for the last 2 nights.


Called the World Trade Center Twin Towers Tribute In Light, the light beams are made up of 88 light bulbs that are 7,000 watts each, which when illuminated are visible up to 60 miles away. 


They echo the original buildings and do a lot more; helping us all get past the terrible memories we have.




Francesco ...

The Street Aesthetics in New York City

Here's some more of New York City.

It's a great short video called 'The Street Aesthetic of New York City' shot by Christian Andersen.

Christian’s describes the video as 'I had a chance to go visit one of the greatest cities this summer. Right when I got of the plane and arrived downtown New York, I took my camera and strolled out through the busy streets of New York City. I wanted to capture the great culture and street aesthetic of New York and I think it turned out really well. The video includes recordings from both Manhattan and Brooklyn, where I spend hours capturing the culture and everyday life of native New Yorker.'

The Street Aesthetic of New York City from Christian Andersen on Vimeo.

Well done Christian and enjoy!

Francesco …

Another NYC Timelapse

Why do so many photographers and cinematographers focus their lenses on NYC? 

I suppose that’s because despite everything else there is that’s great about it, NYC is one of the biggest and most spectacular metropolis around with many, many huge buildings, even more people and water surrounding it.

Whatever the reason here’s another beautiful time lapse video of New York City by James Ogle.

Enjoy.

new york city. from James Ogle on Vimeo.





Francesco …

More High Rise Window Dangers

I’ve blogged before about the dangers of windows in high rise apartments for children and how we all need to make apartments safer.  But, the risks also extend to adults as this recent New York tragedy reveals.

Last week, a wall street executive died after falling from a fifth storey window on East 74^th Street in NYC.  Keith Mastronardi, 31, fell to his death while trying to open the bedroom window.  After spending the day in Central Park with his wife and 3 children he was enjoying a few martinis, turned to open window to let out some smoke, lost his balance and fell out of the waist-high window.

It’s reported his wife “heard a thud, the bang, and went to look out the windows and saw him there."

The apartment was not fitted with window guards, a requirement for NYC apartments with children under the age of 10.

The same risks exist in many apartment buildings around the world and it’s important we pay attention to this risk and make sure our strata buildings don’t kill.

See you hanging on tight when near open windows.

Francesco …

NYC Timelapse

Do you like NYC?

Well, here's a great timelapse video by Josh Owens. The music is “Down to the Cellar” by Dredg.

NYC - Mindrelic Timelapse from Mindrelic on Vimeo.

Enjoy!

Francesco

Santai Resort’s Service Contracts Reviewed by NSW Supreme Court

The Santai Resort is an idyllic strata title resort in far northern New South Wales. 

But not everything is quite so relaxed there because the strata corporation was unhappy with the long term service contracts that had been put in place there.  They covered caretaking of the common areas, providing letting management services to lot owners, security services for the strata complex and an agreement with a nearby club to allow owners and their guests to use the club facilities.

So, the Santai manager and the strata corporation ended up in the NSW Supreme Court arguing about the validity of these agreements.

And at the end of the hearing the Court decided as follows.

• The caretaking agreement was fine because it complied with the New South Wales laws covering it.
• The letting services agreement was also fine because it wasn’t a regulated caretaker agreement, the by-law authorising it was within the strata corporation’s power and even though Santai didn’t have the necessary real estate licence when the agreement began that did not make it invalid.
• The security services agreement was not valid because it defined the services so widely that the strata corporation had given away it’s control over common property to someone who was not a strata manager (as the New South Wales laws require).
• The club facilities agreement (and the by-law it relied on) were invalid since getting or providing services outside the strata scheme was not related to the lots, the common property or the relationships between lot owners and the strata corporation.

It’s another important case that clarifies some tricky legal principles as well as resolving more practical matters about how to run strata corporations in New South Wales.

This case reference is Santai v The Owners - Strata Plan No. 77971 [2010] NSWCS 628 decided by the NSW Supreme Court on 17 June 2010 and you can find it here.

I’ve also prepared another Casewatch on this important decision which you can read at my professional website here.

Francesco …

NYC Timelapse Video

I love big cities for many reasons.

The buildings, the scale, the noises, the variety of people and the many many things that are always going on.

Well, New York is one of the biggest and most busy.

So, here's NYC compressed in a timelapse video.

NYC - Mindrelic Timelapse from Mindrelic on Vimeo.

It's created by Josh Owens and the music is by Dredg.

Enjoy!

Francesco ...

Under the City there are many Adventures

We are so focused on what’s above ground that we forget that underneath exists an amazing subterranean world.

In this video by Andrew Worner called Undercity, he explores the tunnels under New York.

UNDERCITY from Andrew Wonder on Vimeo.

It’s really cool. So, enjoy !

Francesco …

Street Art is No Bull

I’ve been busy posting about serious stuff for a while now … so it’s time for some street art.  And this time it’s a bit unusual.

You’ve heard of or seen the giant sculpture of a bull on New York’s Wall Street near the NY Stock Exchange.  It’s the symbol of the capital markets … everything that’s good (and bad) about them.

But here’s that bull in a crocheted cover … all pink and cute looking.  That bull’s gorgeous !  And it’s cold in New York at the moment.

It’s the work of street artist Agata Olek and the bull’s outfit lasted two hours before being removed by the authorities.

See you in your crocheted poncho next winter.

Francesco ….

Aerial fly through of NYC

Here’s an fantastic video of New York City from the air filmed on a minituare camera on a remote control plane.

The you tube link is here.

It’s made by Nasty Cop and  it's amazing !!!

Francesco …

Run Rabbit ... Run Run Run

I was thinking about how the green agenda means that we should use cars less and more of other kinds of transport - like pushbikes, etc.  And in Sydney there is a significant push for that by the Hon. Clover Moore MP with her cycleways around the inner Sydney areas.

The most obvious things that's done to Sydney has been giving up some of the road ways to cyclists as you can see in these photos.

This is probably a trend that will continue (for good or bad reasons). 

But what if we took this kind of green initiative even further and promoted walking, jogging or running more and handed over the road ways to people (rather than limit them to the footpaths).  You might think it's a bit crazy and unlikely but stranger things have happened.

And if it does it might look a bit like this time lapse video of the runners at the 2010 New York Marathon taking over the roads, bridges and freeways.  It's amazing !!!

See you on the new Sydney running ways to be constructed in 2020.

Francesco ...  

Buildings as Movie Screens … That’s Cool

We need to more imaginative about ways to get the best and most use from our buildings.  After all ... they’re expensive to buy and run and take a lot of work by a lot of people.

Just living in them and using gyms. pools, spas, barbeque areas and gardens is not enough.

In Chelsea, NYC one building was used as the projection surface for a multimedia which you can see below or here. 

Amazing Building Mapping - Vimeo Festival from Dan Ilic on Vimeo.

The video was shot by an Australian comedian, Dan Ilic. And it’s pretty cool.

I like it … and hope we see more and more of it in the future.

Francesco ….

Battle for the Tallest Building in the USA

For most of the last century the fight to have the tallest building in the USA has raged between New York and Chicago.  And, the fight continues.

At the moment the distinction belongs to Chicago’s Willis Tower, which is 1,450 feet high. 

But that is soon to be eclipsed by the 1,776-foot One World Trade Center in New York that is now under construction.

Chicago had hoped to get it back with its plans for Chicago Spire, a 2,000-foot tower designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava slated to overlook Lake Michigan. But financial problems have stalled construction since 2008 on the proposed luxury residential building.

Most recently, Anglo Irish Bank Corp. moved to foreclose on a defaulted mortgage valued at about $77 million including interest and other unpaid charges held by the developer, Shelbourne Development, according to a recent filing in Circuit Court of Cook County, Ill. Lorig Construction Co. of Des Plaines, Ill. earlier filed suit seeking about $512,386 for what it alleged was unpaid work on the project.

So another victim of the GFC is another tall building in the USA ... what a shame.


Francesco ...

Graffitti’d Roller Shutter in NYC

Roller shutters are not the most attractive things in the world when closed (sorry Viking Shutters). 

But they can make great cavnavasses for graffiti artists as this spectacular artwork on a roll garage door in NYC’s Lower East Side shows.

Enjoy.

Francesco ….

Crazy City Cyclist

I love cycling as it’s a fast, fun and healthy way to get about.  And, it’s very green too.  But it’s not completely safe and not so popular with other road users.

Well here’s a film of one crazy cyclist pushing the safety and (un)popularity limits by terrorising New York City drivers, riders, pedestrians and pets.  


He’s Nigel Sylvester and the film is Run 4 Cover by The 13th Witness. You can see more about his antics here.

Run 4 Cover (Starring : Nigel Sylvester) from 13thWitness™ on Vimeo.

I’m not sure this is what Clover Moore is trying to encourage in Sydney with her new Cycleway.  But you never know ...

See you all over the streets (and footpaths) on a bike.

Francesco …

A New New York Skyscraper

In New York they’re planning another skyscraper.

It’s a 67 story skyscraper near Penn Station in Midtown Manhattan. The height of the proposed tower is just 34 feet (10 metres) less than that of the Empire State Building and only 900 feet (280 metres) away from it.

If built, the new skyscraper would be in direct competition with the Empire State Building (which has stood alone for 79 years), obstructing the view of it in some directions and permanently changing the midtown skyline.

NYC Mayor Bloomberg is in support of the new building, and City Council voted in favour of the proposal.

If the remaining hurdles to development are overcome, the New york skyline will change another time this decade.

Francesco ….

Strata for Grass & Shrubs … What the Hell !!!

We build in the air for people don’t we …and everything else can live on  (or under) the ground.

Well, that’s increasingly wrong as we think vertical for more and more things as space on the ground disappears.

New York is pretty full but now there’s one more park up in the air.

The High Line is a novel park in Manhattan’s West Side built on an elevated railway that was in use until 1980.  After sitting in disrepair for almost 20 years it was scheduled removal.

Local residents banded together in 1999 and proposed that the elevated railway be turned into a park, construction began in 2006 and the first section of the park opened in June of 2009.

It’s a great example of reclaiming unused urban property and turning it into something that benefits a community.  Work is continuing and when the High Line is completed in 2011, it will span nearly 1.5 miles in length and feature many plants native to the New York City region.

You can see more images of the High Line here and this video  (narrated by Ethan Hawke) gives a great overview.

And, it’s also inspired at least one other project.  In San Francisco, an architecture group has proposed that the soon-to-be-replaced eastern span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge is converted into a mixed use development called Bay-Line.

So, why not get more and more things off the ground and into the sky ???

And, maybe when we have no cars we can use all those freeways, bridges and tunnels for something more people, animal and plant friendly.

Francesco …

Really Really Small Apartments

There’s plenty of talk about increasing densities and that small single dwellings will become the new homes to more and more people.  But how far have things gone and how far could they go ?

In Australia typical apartment sizes are 90 sqm for two bedroom apartments. 55 sqm for one bedroom apartments and between 25 and 35 sqm for studio apartments. 


But overseas that’s luxurious ….

The New York Post reported on a tiny apartment where Zaarath and Christopher Prokop (and their two cats) live.  It’s only 16.25 sqm …. which is pretty damn small.  So small that they don’t (or can’t) cook in the apartment and cannot keep all their clothes there.  But it does fit a queen size bed and has a separate bathroom with a shower.  It fascinating to see how they manage their lives around the small living space, so read the article here.

But, if you think that only occurs overseas, last week I saw an even smaller apartment for sale in Sydney too.  At 15 sqm it’s tiny but it is in Darling Point and it was cheap … selling for $190,000. Have a look at the advertisement.

All of which makes me think why we need so much space after all and why we can’t live in 20 to 30 sqm of space if other facilities for our lifestyle are conveniently available.


What do you think ?  Is small good ?  And , do you know of any other smaller apartments ?

Francesco …