Would you rather live at 650 Sixth Avenue, 50 West 20th Street, or The Cammeyer? Before you answer – they’re all the same building. This 1892 Ladies Mile monolith, traditionally identified by its Sixth Avenue address, has recently become The Cammeyer (which used to be the name of a shoe store on the premises), which is evidently thought by someone to be most appealing.
Toward the end of 2010, it was reported that more than 50% of the available units in The Cammeyer had been sold – a marked improvement over recent years. To some, this has suggested that the name change has had its desired effect. My guess is that the 17 percent tax break, announced last summer, has more to do with it.
After all, there’s nothing wrong with the building. It’s a beautiful, historic Manhattan structure, gracefully renovated, well-situated. Its prices, for the area, are not unreasonable – they start with 700-square-foot studios ($895,000) and work their way up to 2,134-square-foot penthouses (considerably more).
“This was the epicenter of fashionable living, of forward-thinking design, and an all-things-possible attitude,” The Cammeyer’s website breathlessly informs us. “It is the same now, yet completely reimagined.”
No comment is necessary – though it may be hard to resist, for anyone in possession of an all-things-possible attitude. But don’t blame the building. Look at it. Love it. Live in it. And refer to it as 650 Sixth Avenue. Because if there was anything in rebranding, we’d be calling it 650 Avenue of the Americas.
