15 Union Square West
15 Union Square West is a residential building on East 15th Street overlooking Union Square in Manhattan, New York City. Originally Tiffany & Company’s 19th-century headquarters, it was refurbished and reopened in 2008 as high-end apartments.
Commissioned by Charles Lewis Tiffany in 1869, John Kellum designed the original structure, which included 16-foot cast-iron arches that rose above the park. The building cost $500,000 and opened in 1870.[1] At the time, the store was described as “the largest of its kind devoted to this business of any in the world,” and dubbed the “palace of jewels”.[1] Tiffany & Co. stayed there until 1906. By 1925 the building was occupied by the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America trade union.[1]
By 1952 it was owned by Amalgamated Bank. After a fatal accident where a pedestrian was struck by a falling piece of cast iron, they stripped the original façade and covered it with white brick. The building then stood unchanged for more than 50 years.[1]
Brack Capital Real Estate purchased the property in 2006, and restored the original six-story structure and added six newly constructed floors to create a boutique condominium with 36 residences. The brick façade was dismantled and the original arches were reconditioned and wrapped behind a façade of glass and black anodized aluminum. The original structure was topped by an additional six stories of all glass residences. Designed by Eran Chen of ODA-Architecture, previously of Perkins Eastman, the building blends historic and contemporary elements.[2][3]
In 2011, two of the two-bedroom apartments were purchased by tennis player Caroline Wozniacki for $9 million.[3] Earlier that year, the retail portion of the development was purchased by the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio (STRS) for $57.88 million.[4]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Christopher Gray (July 2, 2006) "Before Tiffany & Co. Moved Uptown ", The New York Times. Retrieved 2013-09-25.
- ^ Dana Rubinstein (April 25, 2011) "Opulently Hidden, In Plain Sight", The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2013-09-25.
- ^ a b Josh Barbanel (June 4, 2011) "Condo Doubles for Tennis Star", The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2013-09-25.
- ^ "Brack Capital Sells New York Retail Unit for Nearly $58 Million". National Real Estate Investor. January 25, 2011.
External links
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- 1870s architecture in the United States
- Apartment buildings in New York City
- Commercial buildings completed in 1870
- Commercial buildings in Manhattan
- Residential buildings completed in 1870
- Residential buildings in Manhattan
- Retail buildings in New York (state)
- Union Square, Manhattan
- Victorian architecture in New York City