Cityfile: New York's Most Notable and Influential

Happy Birthday | Super-publicist Peggy Siegal is turning 62 today. David Hasselhoff turns 57. Donald Sutherland is 74. Producer Mark Burnett is 49. Phyllis Diller is 92. Defense attorney Peter Neufeld is turning turns 59. Linda Gibbs, the Deputy Mayor of Health and Human Services, is turning 50 today. Comedian Beth Littleford is 41. View producer Bill Geddie is turning 54. Lucie Arnaz, the daughter of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, is 58. Author and blogger Cory Doctorow is 38. And old-time TV host Art Linkletter turns 97 today. A list of people with birthdays this weekend—including Chace Crawford, Ian Schrager, and Steve Forbes—is below.More

• Carlos Alejandro Pérez Dávila, an heir to one of the richest families in Latin America (his cousin is Andrès Santo Domingo, husband of Lauren) has sold his four-story townhouse at 176 East 75th Street. The 5,800-square-foot mansion, which had been listed for $10.9 million, was purchased by Keith Meister, the son of tycoon Robert Meister, for $8.6 million. (Keith's brother is Todd Meister, Nicky Hilton's ex.) As for Dávila, he's already found a new home. He paid $19 million for 47 East 68th Street in 2007. [Cityfile]
• Ian Schrager has put his 3,630-square-foot penthouse duplex at 285 Lafayette Street up for sale for $12.5 million. Neighbors in the building include Iman, David Bowie, and Janice Min. [NYP, BHS]
• Lee Neibart, CEO of Apollo's AREA Property Partners, has gone into contract to sell his 16th-floor condo at 15 Central Park West. The three-bedroom apartment, which Neibart and his wife Joyce bought for $7 million in January and re-listed a few weeks later, had been priced at $8.2 million. [Cityfile, BHS]More

Because clearly there aren't enough hotels in NYC to satisfy the swarms of tourists looking to spend $500 a night on a room, Ian Schrager is building another one. And it's not going to be a plain, old five-star hotel either. Schrager is planning to convert 1414 Avenue of the Americas—currently an office building—into a "six-star" property, a designation that technically doesn't even exist in the hotel world, but is used from time to time anyway. (That's how Dubai's ridiculously over-the-top Burj Al-Arab describes itself, for example.) It's good to see Schrager is finding inspiration in his former hotel company's current ad slogan. And at least he won't have to worry about evicting the tenant on the ground floor as part of the renovation process: Jeffrey Chodorow's ode to the last boom, Kobe Club, closed last month. You see, sometimes the recession comes in handy! [NYP]

• Ian Schrager is bringing in some firepower to the Gramercy Park Hotel: Danny Meyer's Union Square Hospitality will take over space formerly occupied by Wakiya, and David Rockwell will handle the design, although the "Italian-inspired" restaurant doesn't have a chef or name just yet. [NYT]
• In a chat with the Observer, Meyer says he's "intrigued by the possibilities" of working with Schrager. He also says he has no plans to take over the Rainbow Room, and remains undecided about a bid for Tavern on the Green. [NYO]
• Rumor has it Todd English is out at The Libertine at the Gild Hall hotel. [TFB]
• Keith McNally's Minetta Tavern has added a late-night menu. [GS]
• A group of sad Beatrice Inn regulars gathered at the Cooper Square Hotel on Friday night. In attendance: one-half of the Olsen twins, Chloe Sevigny, and "some skinny guys with mustaches," naturally. [DBTH]
• The sandwich shop Crosby Connection opened on Bleecker today. [Eater]
• The best street food in NYC, at least according to the Post. [NYP] More

• Adam Platt's annual "Where to Eat" guide is now online. [NYM]
• Ian Schrager may be talking to Scott Conant about taking over the Wakiya space inside the Gramercy Park Hotel. [Eater]
• Daniel Boulud shares a few of his fave places to eat in NYC. [Independent]
• The NYT asks the months-old question: Is Chloe the new Beatrice? [NYT]
• Hope you can do without guacamole: An avocado shortage is looming. [LAT]
• More options for New Year's Eve, in case you've yet to make plans. [FB]
• The documentary on Le Cirque and the Maccioni family airs tonight. [HBO]

Some people dream of owning a castle; Calvin Klein wants to tear his down. Five years after the designer paid nearly $30 million for a gaudy 50,000-square-foot Southampton estate known as Dragon's Head, Klein filed an application this week to demolish it so he can replace it with a more modest (and much more minimalist) 17,500-square-foot number. To lend credibility to the plan, Klein had neighbors Ian Schrager and Aby Rosen write letters to the Southampton Village Board of Historic Preservation and Architectural Review on his behalf. We're not exactly sure how having someone who was in trouble for destroying an endangered bird habitat on his property this past summer bolsters his cause, but we'll keep a good thought for you, Cal! A few more photos of what's been described as "Disneyland on LSD" after the jump.More

♦  Kim Cattrall and Sarah Jessica Parker are apparently incapable of getting along: A day after Kim confirmed that there will be Sex and the City sequel, Parker told fans "not to get their hopes up" and that "Kim is excited, but all the deals are not yet done." [Daily Star, People]
♦  It looks like spending time in court, soup kitchens, and sanitation departments hasn't helped Naomi Campbell much. She infuriated passengers on her flight back from London on Tuesday by cutting in line while going through customs at JFK. She swears it wasn't her fault because it was the airline that offered her an escort. [R&M]
♦  Ian Schrager is getting married next Saturday. The bride-to-be is a ballerina named Tania Wahlstedt. [P6]More

• Daniel Boulud chats about the re-opening of Daniel on Monday (photos here) and explains why he shouldn't be held responsible if you get fat from eating too much of his food. [HuffPo via GS]
• A list of the 10 best wine bars in New York. [NYO]
• Dinosaur BBQ has 4,837 more Facebook fans than Florent. [GS]
• The endlessly-embattled SoHo restaurant Lola has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. [NYO]
• The East Village bakery Vesuvio's is still closed but still very much missed. [Eater]

• A former employee at Wakiya, the restaurant locatede in Ian Schrager's Gramercy Park Hotel, has filed a $5 million suit against the restaurant, the hotel, and Schrager's company. She claims she was assaulted by a co-worker and fired because she spoke Spanish. [NYS]
• Daniel Boulud's Bar Boulud is expanding: It will take over the space next to it on West 64th Street, which is currently occupied by a Chase branch. [NYP]
• Now you can get Michael Psilakis' grilled quail spiedini from his and Donatella Arpaia's Mia Dona delivered to your doorstep. [VV]
• Has Rose Bar jumped the shark? [DBTH]
• Jeffrey Chodorow is still so not over Frank Bruni's 2007 zero-star review of Kobe Club. [Grub Street]

• Hotelier Ian Schrager is paying $14.9 million for the triplex penthouse at 40 Bond Street. Once it's complete, Schrager will kick back in a 8,500-square-foot space, with 4,000-square-feet of outdoor space and 11-foot ceilings. [TRD]
• Harper's Bazaar creative director Stephen Gan has purchased a 1,875-square-foot, three-story townhouse at 105 Mercer Street for $3.55 million. The buy comes four months after he sold his Washington Park condo for $2.5 million.
• Brit actor Ralph Fiennes paid $2 million for a condo at 321 West 13th Street. The two-bedroom pad features a wood burning fireplace, chef's kitchen, and views of the Empire State Building.