With 354 condominium apartments, The Chelsea Mercantile is one of the largest residential conversions of a commercial property in Chelsea.

The conversion of the handsome 1906 building was designed by the firm of Avinash K. Malhotra and Gruzen Samton, one of the city's leading architectural firms, for Rockrose Development, one of the city's leading residential builders and converts. It included the creation of a new, large rotunda lobby and the landscaping of a broad alley between different sections of the property.

Many of the apartments have exposed brick walls with 9-foot ceilings, beamed ceilings and walk-in closets and some of the penthouses have ceilings of 11 to 13 feet, fireplaces, skylights and terraces.

The apartments have state-of-the-art wiring and stainless-steel appliances in the kitchen with built-in garbage disposals. The master bathrooms have limestone walls and floors and most apartments have washer and dryer hook-ups. The building has a sundeck and its retail space is occupied by the Fresh Fields Whole Foods Market.

A couple of blocks south of the Fashion Institute of Technology to the north and not far from the famous Chelsea Hotel on 23rd Street, this building is in the heart of Chelsea, a district that exploded in popularity at the end of the 1990s as many art galleries moved into the area from SoHo and other downtown locations and as the Chelsea Piers recreation project opened on the Hudson River.

As the new millennium began, several new projects were initiated to transform the nearby stretch of the former flower market in the mid-20's along the Avenue of the Americas with new luxury apartment buildings that have further reinforced the neighborhood's strong renaissance.

There is very good public transportation in the area and it is very convenient to the very trendy Flatiron District to the east and Greenwich Village to the south.

The main "drag" of Chelsea is also nearby on Eighth Avenue where the wonderful Joyce Theater at 19th Street offers excellent dance performances and there are many restaurants in the vicinity.