I like coax (cable TV type, RG58 or RG6) connecting to a longwire. They
sell a connector you can solder the longwire onto this (It's a type F
connector usually for coax). Also they have a type F connector to 1/8"
minijack which will go into many of the radios. Not sure if you have
minijack or just a wire for your radio.

I've tried a longwire without coax, and it picks up too much noise
inside the house. The coax helps you just get the signal from the
outside. It sounds like you're in an apartment in New York or
something, and that you'd probably need to 'dangle' the antenna down.
Vertical antennas will pick up more noise than a horizontal antenna.
Ground the outside of the coax if you can, but I did not notice much
difference when I did.