190 Riverside Drive: Review and Ratings

Review of 190 Riverside Drive by Carter Horsley

This landmarked, 11-story apartment building at 190 Riverside Drive on the northeast corner at 91^st Street was erected in 1908 and converted by Property Markets Group to a condominium in 1999.

It was designed by Ralph S. Townsend of Townsend, Steinle & Haskell who also designed the Kenilworth on Central Park West, 425 and 640 West End Avenue, 38 and 46 West 9^th Street and the fire escapes on the front of the General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen at 20 West 44^th Street.

It has 51 apartments. Amenities include doorman, resident manager, gynm, and on-site self-parking. Its Upper West Side location puts it near Riverside Park, an express subway stop, and top dining and shopping.

Bottom Line

One of the most attractive, pre-war apartment buildings in the city, the building has high ceilings and many bay windows.

Description

In his September 5, 1999 “Streetscapes” column in The New York Times Christopher Gray wrote that in this building Mr. Townsend “ironed out the flamboyant Victorianism seen in the Kenilworth and left only the suave Renaissance assurance comparable to contemporary town house designs,”  adding that ‘the limestone trim and sophisticated lobby decoration are rare for a West Side apartment house.”

The building, which has many protected views of Riverside Drive and the Hudson River, has an impressive, 3-story, rusticated limestone base and extensive sidewalk landscaping. Its massing is nicely modulated between the third and 10th floors by limestone-clad piers that contain three windows each, two of which are angled. There are two piers along Riverside Drive and three on the side-street. 

The building also sports an attractive cornice and a balustrated balcony above its second floor.

It has quoins.

It has extensive sidewalk landscaping and a two-step-up entrance.

Amenities

The building has a doorman, a live-in superintendent, and a bicycle room.  It has no health club and no garage.  It permits pets.

Apartments

Apartments have high ceilings.

Apartment 7/8A is a 5-bedroom duplex unit with a 30-foot-long entry foyer that leads to a 21-foot-long living room with a fireplace and an adjacent sun room, a 13-foot-long office, a 14-foot-long library and a 20-foot-long dining room with four windows that leads to a 25-foot-long kitchen.

Apartment 9A is a four-bedroom unit that has an 8-foot-long entry foyer that leads to a 18-foot-long gallery that opens onto a 16-foot-long library, a 23-foot-long living room with a bay window and a decorative fireplace next to a 21-foot-long dining room with a decorative fireplace and a 7-foot-long solarium office. The apartment also has a 26-foot-long butler’s pantry and a 19-foot-long eat-in kitchen.

Apartment 11C is a three-bedroom unit with a 10-foot-long entry foyer that leads to a 19-foot-long gallery that opens onto a 22-foot-long living room with a corner wood-burning fireplace next to 15-foot-long library and a 15-foot-long media room.  The 17 foot-long dining room connects to a 17-foot-long, eat-in kitchen and a 32-foot-long hallway to a master bedroom with a gas-burning fireplace.  The apartment also has a 10-foot-long staff room.

Apartment 4C is a five-bedroom unit with a 19-foot-long entry foyer that lead to a 23-foot-long living room with a corner fireplace next to a 20-foot-long dining room with a bay window adjacent to a 17-foot-long kitchen.

Apartment 8C is a two-bedroom unit that has a 7-foot-long entry foyer that leads to a 5-foot-widecoat room and a 15-foot-wide gallery that opens onto a 20-foot-long library with a bay window,  22-foot-long  living room with corner fireplace, a 12-foot-long, six-sided dining room next to a 12-foot-long home office.  A 19-foot-long hall off the gallery leads to a 17-foot-long eat-in kitchen.

Apartment 2D is a two-bedroom unit with a 25-foot-long dining area off an 11-foot-enclosed kitchen.  The dining area leads to a 29-foot-longhall that opens onto a 17-foot-long living room and a 20-foot-wide master bedroom with a bay window.

History

The building was bought from Roman Sherer, whose family had owned the building since the 1940s, in 1996 by Property Markets Group for $7 million.

Location

One of the city's best private schools, Trinity School, is a few blocks to the east on 91st Street and there are many restaurants and stores nearby on Broadway.

This neighborhood is one of the city's finest architecturally. There is good bus service on Riverside Drive and Broadway but the nearest cross-town bus service is on 86th and 96th Streets where there are also subway stations.