Avalon Clinton, 515 West 52nd Street: Review and Ratings

Review of 515 West 52nd Street by Carter Horsley

This huge, red-brick, rental complex at 515 West 52^nd Street is known as the Archstone Clinton.

It was designed by Fox & Fowle and opened in 2007.

It was developed by Archstone-Smith and The Dermot Company and contains 627 rental apartments.

The attractive, 23-story, mid-block complex stretches from 51st to 53rd Streets west of Tenth Avenue.

In announcing that leasing had started in February, 2007, Daniel Doern, vice president of development of Archstone-Smith said that "Clinton is at the doorstep of everything that makes New York the greatest city in the world; it's close to the Theater District, 9th Avenue restaurants, Times Square, Lincoln Center and The Shops at Columbus Circle, and also has the added benefit of towering over many low-rise buildings, which offers residents unparalleled views of Midtown Manhattan and the Hudson River."

Since then, another huge mixed-use project, Mercedes House, opened across 53nd Street just to the best of the tall windowless white tower with vertical black accents on Tenth Avenue between 53^rd and 54^th Streets. Mercedes House is notable for its sinuous mid-block form and staggered penthouses.

The massing of Archstone Clinton is one of the most complex in the city as its two major towers are slightly angled and have different tops and balcony configurations and its low-rise wing that extends to Tenth Avenue and 53^rd Street has unusual fenestration and its own-mid-block arcade.

Bottom Line

This rather dazzling, high-rise centerpiece of the low-rise Clinton District is unexpected in its complexity and scale and the Far West Midtown neighbor is beginning to change dramatically. The towers offer spectacular vistas in all directions.

Description

The roof of the south tower slants to the north but the roof of the north tower is flat and broader.

Fifth-Second Street divides the project into two parts by the northern section has a broad, curved plaza facing the southern section.

The complex has 23,000-square-feet of retail space and space for two non-profit theaters, and two landscaped through-block arcades.

Many of the units have balconies and the towers have angled sides to lessen their sense of monumentality.

The tops and bottoms of the towers are faced in red-brick masonry with tight banded rustication but most of their façades are glass with corner windows and discrete air-conditioners.

One of the towers has a large glass entrance marquee with a revolving doors and the entrance at 517 West 53^rd Street has hanging lights to illuminate the sidewalk.

The low-rise wing at the corner of Tenth Avenue and 53^rd Street has an interesting irregular fenestration on the 2^nd through the 4^th floors beneath the glass-sheathed two-story top with completely different fenestration and large balconies. 

The south section of its low-rise structure’s avenue frontage is windowless and has a large masonry section framed by glass adjacent to the recessed double-height alleyway to leads to the rest of the complex that simplistically is reminiscent of the great canyon approach to the fabulous city of Petra, or at least some of the city’s old alleys.

Amenities

The complex has roof gardens, a library, residents' lounges with kitchens, a media room, a children’s playroom, personal storage bins and two fitness centers. Amenities also include 24-hour doorman and concierge service and an attended garage and valet that offers dry cleaning and laundry and apartment cleaning services.

Apartments

Apartments have floor-to-ceiling windows, washers and dryers, and are cat-friendly. 

Kitchens in the north tower have black-granite countertops, stainless steel appliances and Cherry wood custom cabinetry.  The south tower has white granite kitchen countertops, white-on-white appliances and maple wood custom cabinetry.

Apartment 1816 is a two-bedroom duplex unit with a 24-foot-wide living room that opens onto a 15-foot-wide dining room next to an open 15-foot-wide open kitchen and a staircase to a 12-foot-wide loft with a 25-foot-wide terrace.

Apartment 1142 is a two-bedroom unit with a long entry foyer that leads to an 8-foot-wide dining area next to an 8-foot-long pass-through kitchen and a 12-foot-long living room with a corner window.  The unit has a 28-foot-long terrace.

Apartment 970 is a two-bedroom unit that has a very large entry foyer that leads past a 7-foot-long open, pass-through kitchen to a 15-foot-wide living/dining area with a slightly angled corner window.

Apartment 910 is a two-bedroom unit with a large entry foyer that opens onto an 8-foot-wide open kitchen with a pass-through and a 20-foot-long living/dining area with a 13-foot-wide angled balcony.

Apartment 1210 is a two-bedroom unit with an entry foyer that leads to a 19-foot-long living room that opens onto a 13-foot-wide den and a 9-foot-wide dining area next to an 8-foot-long pass-through kitchen.  The unit also has a 22-foot-long terrace.

Apartment 731 is a one-bedroom unit that has an entry foyer that leads to a 13-foot-long pass-through kitchen with an angled corner window next to a 10-foot-wide dining area and an 12-foot-long living room with a corner window.

History

Archstone was acquired in 2012 by Equity Residential and AvalonBay communities.