Stella Tower, 425 West 50th Street: Review and Ratings

Review of 425 West 50th Street by Carter Horsley

This top half of this very attractive, mid-block, telephone company building at 435 West 50^th Street has been converted to residential condominiums by JDS Development, Property Market Associates and Starwood Properties.

The 17-story building is known as Stella and is named after the wife of the building’s original architect, Ralph Thomas Walker, who also designed the similar Walker Tower at 212 West 18^th Street in Chelsea whose top was also converted to residential condominiums by JDS Development and Property Market Associates.  The Walker Tower has 50 apartments and the Stella 51.

Cetra/Ruddy was the architect for both conversions, which will retain commercial space for Verizon, the successor firm to the original developer, New York Telephone.

Bottom Line

The top half a very handsome and impressive pre-war commercial building in Clinton has been converted to residential condominiums by the same team that did a similar but more luxurious conversion in Chelsea known as the Walker Tower. 

Description

The beige-brick building has 8 setbacks on 18^th street with decorative piers and grills.  It has a double-height entrance.

The building’s windows were enlarged to accommodate floor-to-ceiling windows.

Amenities

There are wood-burning fireplaces in each of the building’s four penthouses, one of which also have a large terrace.

The building has a very large and ornate attended lobby with Art Deco-style detailing, a fitness center and a very dramatically lit resident’s lounge.

Apartments

Apartments have ceilings that range from 10 to 14 feet in height.

Master baths have walnut washstands, herringbone Black Zeus marble floors and radiant floor heating.

All secondary baths have blackened steel vanity mirrors that glide over floating walnut wall shelves.

All kitchens have polished concrete countertops and a Miele appliance package.

Apartment 15F is a three-bedroom unit with a 6-foot-wide entry foyer that leads to a 19-foot-long living room next to a pass-through 12-foot-long kitchen.

Apartment 16C is a two-bedroom unit with a 9-foot-long entry foyer that leads to a 12-foot-long, pass-through kitchen next to a 20-foot-long living and dining room.

Apartment 10D is a one-bedroom unit with a 12-foot-long entry foyer that leads to a 21-foot-long living and dining room with a pass-through 12-foot-long kitchen.

History

A third telephone company building designed by Walker  at 140 West Street is being developed of Magnum Real Estate Group that paid $274 million site near the World Trade Center and plans to convert the upper 22-floors of the very distinguished, 32-story tower that is known as the Barclay-Vesey Building.  Ben Shaoul is the head of Magnum Real Estate Group.

Mr. Walker also designed the great One Wall Street tower, one of Lower Manhattan’s signature skyline towers.