Grayson Altenberg, a young Chef from Wisconsin, moved in to the Upper West Side of New York City looking for his own space to rent. He landed an apartment that earned much criticism and ridicule when it hit the rental market last June.
Found at 114 West 71st Street, the studio has no windows, no kitchen and no bathroom door. The floor area is so small that it can only accommodate one to two persons at the same time. There's no room for a table and hardly for a chair, Altenberg eats off a tray. He has a shoe tree behind the front door, his computer is on a shelf above his bed, and beside is his stack of folded clothes. Storage in the bathroom is just above the toilet and nothing more. Altenburg says that "It is literally a little bowl." Despite all these oddities, the fresh New Yorker still managed to fit some of his culinary supplies, condiments and utensils on overhead racks and shelves.
The list of the apartment's negative qualities may be even longer, but Altenburg decided to take it, one for its price which was offered only at $1,100 monthly, compared to a studio in the city with an average price of $2,844 per month.
Another factor for Altenburg is its proximity to the restaurant where he is working, in nearby Lincoln Centre. "This is all I need for the time being. My routine works here. I can get up in the morning. I can still take my shower. I can still make my coffee. I can get myself to work in five minutes," said the young chef.
The young chef also asserts that he chose convenience and location over space.
While he says he misses his big kitchen where he practices his trade, he takes consolation from the thought that he has "a very, very giant kitchen at Lincoln Centre."
Altenburg likewise considers Central Park as his living room. And this apartment? His big city crib!
