Yikes! It’s a Garage The building of few private garages has set off municipal alarm bells. Fearing copycats, the city has moved swiftly to tighten the rules.

Habitats | Hillcrest, Queens: A Semi-Secret Garden in Queens A watercolorist and her husband have a lushly planted backyard at their home in Hillcrest, with plants that figure in her paintings.

The Hunt: Shoe Leather Produces a Studio for a Shoestring Budget For Patrick Shindell, finding something in Manhattan in his price range — under $300,000 — was a tall order.

Living In: Hints of Recovery for Riverfront Village A Rockland County village on the Hudson River was hit hard by the recession, but is making a slow recovery back.

Posting: Condo Projects That Didn’t Cut Prices Many condominium projects are returning to the market after waiting out the downturn, and some haven’t reduced prices.

Streetscapes/Readers’ Questions: A Stable and Its Dakota Connection Readers’ questions pertain to the Dakota Stables and the Lexington School for the Deaf.

Square Feet | The 30-Minute Interview: Andy Frankl Questions for the president and founder of IBEX Construction, a company based in New York that specializes in stores and commercial interiors.