New York, NY Technical Writer Looks at High Rises in the West Village

Karen Rempel New York NYC Technical Writer article for WestView NewsI recently toured one of the newest high rises that’s taking shape along the Hudson River in the West Village of New York City. 160 Leroy Street has a unique curvy design by Swiss architecture firm Herzog & de Meuron, making this star the most glamorous on the block. I wrote an article about the West Village’s new neighbor for the WestView News.

As neighbors go, 160 Leroy is more like Sophia Loren than Ralph Kramden, with the two private-elevatored penthouses selling this year for $51 million (7,750 square feet, with a rooftop pool) and $31.5 million (4,849 square feet, with a rooftop oasis), and a modest 9th floor one-bedroom (1,096 square feet, with double exposures) listed at $3.2 million. I concluded that this neighbor is going to be viewed 100 years from now as one of the most exciting architectural examples of our era.

New York, NY Technical Writer Publishes Tribute to Thomas Meehan in WestView News

Tom and his wife, Carolyn, having fun at a party in Fairfield, Connecticut during rehearsals for Ain’t Broadway Grand, which opened on Broadway in 1993. Photo by Merwin Goldsmith.

I was honored to write a tribute  to Thomas Meehan for the WestView News. He is the only librettist who had three Tony Award-winning musicals run for over 2,000 performances each on Broadway: Annie, The Producers, and Hairspray. He was so highly regarded that the marquees of Broadway theaters were dimmed for one minute in Tom’s memory on August 30th at 7:45 p.m.

The WestView News is published by and for the residents of the West Village of Manhattan; it is a monthly paper with a circulation of 20,000. This is my first piece in a New York publication, and I am thrilled to add this to my list of publication credits, and to be able to celebrate Tom’s life with his family, friends, and neighbors. He will be missed and remembered with love and admiration.

New York, NY Technical Writer and Web Content Developer designs Etsy store

Krystyna's Place Etsy StoreI worked a part-time job at Krystyna’s Place on Cornelia St. in New York this summer. I wanted to connect with people on the streets of New York, as a way of solidifying my transition from Vancouver to New York. I opened and closed the store, served customers, dressed the windows, and created an online store for Krystyna’s Place on Etsy. This web content development project entailed creating all the visual and design elements for the store, including a logo and header. I photographed 30 pieces that Krystyna had selected, measured them, wrote descriptions, and fell in love with the clothes!

This was the ideal summer job, allowing me to bring together my technical writing, photography, and design skills into a practical, hands-on situation with New York people and fashion. Now I can add fashion to the list of industries I’ve written for. For a fuller account, see my Wild Visions site.