Brewster Carriage House, 374 Broome Street: Review and Ratings

Review of 374 Broome Street by Carter Horsley

The very handsome, 6-story building at 374 Broome Street at Mott Street was converted in 2010 to 9 residential condominiums by Little Red House, LLC, of which Ross Morgan is a principal. 

Randall Collins was the architect for the conversion. 

The nicely proportioned, 19^th Century building formerly housed Brewster & Co., and Flandrau & Co., which crafted horse carriages. 

Bottom Line

This very handsome red-brick building has a prime location in the Special Little Italy District and is convenient to the many restaurants and boutiques in SoHo.

Description

The red-brick building was erected in 1856 and has a handsome cornice and a black cast-iron retail frontage on Broome Street. Many of the building's windows are multi-paned.

Amenities

The building has a doorman, fireplaces and an elevator. It is pet-friendly and has central air-conditioning, video security and a roof deck.

Apartments

Apartments have fireplaces and wide-planked flooring. 

Kitchens have Miele ovens, cooktops, refrigerators and dishwashers, and Bianco Boralis countertops. 

Baths has 10-inch rainwater showers, Bianco Dolomiti marble and Mutina Bark stone tile heated floors with walnut vanities and his and hers Wetstyle sinks.

The penthouse comprising the north section of the fifth floor and the south section of the 6^th floor has 6,164 square feet of interior space and 3,362 square feet of private terraces with six bedrooms. 

The penthouse on the south section of the sixth floor has 2,610 square feet of interior space and 1,800 square feet of terraces with three bedrooms and three baths and a fireplace. 

The three-bedroom unit on the south section of the 4^th floor has a large angled living/dining room with an open kitchen with an island. 

The one-bedroom, two-bath apartment on the second floor has 1,969 square feet of space with a fireplace.

History

According to an article from April 22, 2010, by Pete at curbed.com, "the renovation required restructuring below grade, necessitated by water damage around the old basement supports." The article described the building as "a grand old stack of bricks" and indicated that "by the mid-1900s the building was home to DeMartini Globe Canvas, the 'undisputed original' creator of the NYC bike messenger bag." 

"The cornice atop the articulated red-brick façade has been restored, newly installed brownstone arches now frame doorways on Mott, and the cast iron storefront along Broome, bold in black, looks as good as new," the article continued. 

Because the building is located in the Special Little Italy District, it applied for a special permit and Community Board 2 voted unanimously November 20, 2008, to recommend that the permit be granted. 

A commission found the granting of a special permit appropriate because of the extensive efforts of the applicant to market the upper floor spaces for commercial usage and it found that the proposed residential uses "will not burden the surrounding neighborhood."