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About The Brompton, 205 East 85th Street
This highly detailed, Post-Modern-style apartment building was designed by Robert A. M. Stern in the manner of numerous pre-war, red-brick-with-stone-trim apartment buildings on Park Avenue.
The facade details do much to lessen the visual sense of the building's bulkiness and almost disguise the fact that a southern portion is cantilevered over the handsome adjacent low-rise building on the northeast corner of Third Avenue and 85th Street, not far from a post office on the same block.
It is interesting that this building was erected at the same time as another, very similarly sized apartment building one block to the west on the southeast corner of 86th Street and Lexington Avenue. That building, developed by Extell, is known as the Lucida and was designed by Cook + Fox and is completely different from the Brompton as its facades are entirely glass. It is on the same block as a fire station that makes frequent stentorian use of its sirens.
Both buildings are significant upgrades to the ambiance of 86th Street, replacing run-down and not particularly attractive low-rise buildings. It is interesting that they are separated by a much taller and older apartment building at 185 East 85th Street that is notably for its rounded balconies and entrance marquee. It could be argued that the taller building, never considered an architectural gem, is the best looking of this trio at least from the viewpoint of form.
Mr. Stern designed this building for the Related Companies for which he has designed several other successful apartment towers on the Upper East Side. He also designed 15 Central Park West for the Zeckendorfs, widely considered the most successful new luxury apartment building in the city in many years with its all-limestone facades.
The website for the Brompton described it as "stylishly proper," which was rather apt as its attention to detail was very impressive even if not revolutionary. The building has about 14,000 square feet of retail space and takes advantage of an "inclusionary housing" bonus by providing some affordable housing units off-site within the boundaries of Community Board 8.
The buildings on Third Avenue were once owned by Henry Sturman, who died in 1973 and his daughter held onto them until 1998 when Philip Pilevsky got a controlling interest in them and he is the owner of the retail portion of this building. In 2002, Related bought the building on the northeast corner of Third Avenue and 86th street, which houses a Gap store and an Equinox gym.
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