Only in New York

Cindy Allen -- Interior Design, 9/1/2003 12:00:00 AM

I have a tiny confession to make. For each and every issue, I set out with almost Herculean resolve to cover the topics and locales dictated by our fair and balanced editorial calendar. Yet, almost every time, New York designers display an uncanny but superbly accomplished habit of evading the geography police and sneaking into our lineup of features. So it's with a sigh of relief that I welcome our September issue, entirely —and unabashedly—dedicated to New York. The city has, after all, overcome incredible adversity to remain a world-class creative capital, year after year.

Defiant, therefore, of the antics of Ohio utilities, we boarded innumerable high-speed elevators to show you the finest views our city has to offer a design aficionado. The panorama takes in Chelsea's notorious church night- club, Limelight, reinvented as techno-sleek Avalon by Desgrippes Gobé Group; City Hall's august reception rooms, refurbished by Drake Design Associates; and the scene at Studioilse's Soho House, the funkiest A-list destination in the Meatpacking District. On the home front—whether duplex or pied-à-terre—check out gorgeous TriBeCa, SoHo, and West Village spreads, plus our new department, City Life.

With love from the Big Apple, no matter how you slice it, Cindy Allen