An Interview With The Young and Popular Builder

East One Coffee Roasters is a wonderfully hybrid eatery that opened on a prominent corner of Brooklyn’s Carroll Gardens earlier this spring. The front space, perfect for latte sippers and wine glass clinkers, blends seamlessly with the rear dining room despite the latter being far from traditional and boasting a number of conversation-worthy characteristics. More on BrooklynGet the Scoop on Mister Dips: Williamsburg, Brooklyn’s Newest Burger SpotTina’s Place: An Inclusive Taste of Bushwick, BrooklynGrindhaus Hooks Critic Pete WellsAl di Là Voted the Best Italian Restaurant in Brooklyn25 Years of Slow Food: A Look Back and Gaze Forward Continue reading “An Interview With The Young and Popular Builder”

A Polished Apartment in a Famous Beaux Arts Building

“Putting together two apartments in a 110-year-old building in New York has its challenges,” admits Alexander Gorlin, principal at Alexander Gorlin Architects of the pied-à-terre he overhauled with project designer Kate Kaiser in the famed Upper West Side Beaux Arts building, the Ansonia. Still, the challenges were ones he was more than ready to embrace. His clients, author of Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother Amy Chua and her mystery-writer husband, Jay Rubenfeld, wanted a comfortable home to unwind in when visiting the city (the pair are also both professors at Yale University), with enough space to host their two daughters. Something modern, but with traditional Asian touches. Continue reading “A Polished Apartment in a Famous Beaux Arts Building”

Closing Down Street Restaurants to Make Way For An Office Project

Chez TJ owner George Aviet in his Michelin starred restaurant on Jan. 7, 2014. Photo by Michelle Le On Tuesday night, the Mountain View City Council is set to discuss what to do with two historic Villa Street restaurants that are part of a new downtown office project. Representatives of the restaurants Chez TJ and the Tied House brewery announced last month they were planning to eventually close down to make way for a four-story office project. The office development by the Minkoff Group could provide space for the eateries to reopen, possibly as a merged gastropub. The Mountain View City Council has not yet sanctioned the office project, and the proposal already faces some hurdles. City staff note that both restaurants are located in historic buildings that are supposed to be protected and preserved. Elected leaders could allow the structures to be demolished. Or city staff suggests a better option might be to relocate the historic buildings to a new site. This would be complicated and costly, but the staff report notes that these problems would mostly be the responsibility of the developer. They say the buildings could be reused as affordable housing, classrooms or for other public uses. The Mountain View City Council will discuss the project in a study session scheduled for 5:30 p.m. at the Plaza Conference Room at 500 Castro St. An agenda of the meeting can be found here. Continue reading “Closing Down Street Restaurants to Make Way For An Office Project”

Understanding the Definition of Smart Buildings

The methods we use to measure smart building performance are still immature and fragmented, writes Joseph Aamidor.

Like any solution sale, smart building vendors typically create detailed business cases to convince building owners and operators to make a purchase. In the past, these business cases were based primarily on energy savings. Over the past few years, there has been some push to quantify other bottom-line savings opportunities, such as reduced maintenance costs and avoided equipment replacement. Continue reading “Understanding the Definition of Smart Buildings”