Hudson Yards, the long-anticipated retail, performance space, and residential destination opened last Thursday, March 14th in a private star-studded event. The swanky launch for the new 25 billion dollar project welcomed thousands of A-List celebrities, influencers, and VIPs to celebrate; among them Whoopi Goldberg, Anne Hathaway, and Maggie Gylenhall. The grand opening for the public followed the next day.
In what is described as the most massive private real estate development in the history of the United States, the project was made possible by former New York City Mayor Bloomberg, who recognized during his years in office, that the far west side of the Hudson River was desolate and underutilized due to antiquated zoning that kept the location isolated. He went on to rezone the area allowing new business opportunities to emerge.
As Bloomberg sought advisement on how to bring his Hudson Yards vision to life, mega real estate developer Stephen Ross became one of the most influential supporters of the idea. Ultimately, after a few rounds of convincing biding, it would be Ross to land the deal for the project – and who better, considering the renowned properties he’s created, among them, the luxurious Time Warner building at Columbus Circle in New York City.
In addition to ultra-lux new condos for the rich, a significant attraction for Hudson Yards is its 2 billion dollar shopping mall. Being from New Jersey – a state with more malls than most other; naturally, I couldn’t resist checking out this place. Let’s just say there’s something for every tax bracket, from H&M and Banana Republic to Fendi, Kenzo and Louis Vuitton.
This is no ordinary shopping mall by any means though as it’s complete with art galleries, performance spaces, mile high observation decks and of course an array of impressive eateries of every palate persuasion. In other words – not your ordinary mall food court.
Overall, I was impressed with this place, but I left wondering if it’s really something NYC needs? I mean do we really need more diamond digs in the sky and glitzy, high-priced shopping malls to remind most New Yorkers of all the things they’ll never have? My answer is yes. Let me see how the other half lives honey … so I can figure out how to perhaps attain some of those ‘diamonds’ of my own. Full review coming soon but for now, check out the link below.
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h/t: Check out Hudson Yards and see for yourself what all the buzz is about.
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