What do model Nina Agdal, Million Dollar Listing New York star and real estate agent Luis D. Ortiz, and New York Knicks power forward Kristaps Porziņģis have in common? Celebrity, sure, but more interestingly: They’re neighbors at Sky, a sleek 71-story high-rise that towers over midtown Manhattan’s west side, with views of the Hudson River and beyond. Designed by the Rockwell Group (the firm behind Ian Schrager’s New York Edition hotel), Sky’s 1,175 apartments, glamorous to be sure, are only part of the draw.
Ironically, the building’s crown jewel sits at its bottom: The Life Time Athletic club, a state-of-the-art fitness facility with one indoor pool, two outdoor pools, and a regulation size basketball court that another Knickerbocker, Carmelo Anthony, helped design (and where you can find Porziņģis and pals playing ball when they’re not at the Garden).
River views from the David Rockwell model unit at the Sky
Photo credit: Eric Laignel
“Carmelo made sure the court was two things,” says Mitch Moinian, Sky’s developer. “One: [That it was] unique in terms of design—that’s where David Rockwell came in with patterned flooring and floor-to-ceiling wood. Two: He [insisted] it be professional grade. Recently, I was shooting hoops with some friends and missed—which rarely happens—and the Knicks’ [point guard] Derrick Rose caught the ball and gave it back to me. I’m not kidding: That’s normal at Sky.”
Instagram posts of the building and its pool by Carmelo Anthony and swimwear designer Orlebar Brown
@carmeloanthony, @orlebarbrown
“I consider it my personal court—it’s [basically] got my name on it” Anthony says. “I come with my teammates to practice in our free time. We love it. I’m happy so many people get to enjoy it—except Mitch: I beat him every time.”
Yayoi Kusama’s “Large Pumpkin,” 2014, in the tower’s motor court
@yogadaniellebrooke
But make no mistake: Life Time isn’t just love and basketball. Part of what makes the athletic club—and the building as a whole—such a hot spot is the trendsetting crowd of residents (and non-residents) who flock there to see and be seen. So catch some rays at the resort-style pool, ‘gram one of Yayoi Kusama’s seminal pumpkins in the motor court (it’s on permanent display), or take a salsa class with Ortiz. (“I’m Puerto Rican, so I was obviously a part of that,” he jokes.) No matter how you play it, Sky is a little piece of hobnobbing heaven on earth. “I’ve probably met more people in the building than I have in my daily life,” says Ortiz. “And that’s saying a lot.”
