The Fairchild, 55 Vestry Street: Review and Ratings

Review of 55 Vestry Street by Carter Horsley

This very handsome, 7-story residential loft condominium, which is known as The Fairchild,  looks like a very well-preserved 19th century loft building in TriBeCa, but in fact it was only built in 2009. 

It is located at 55 Vestry Street and is also known as 415 Washington Street.  It is a bit larger than a very similar building known as the Pearline Soap Factory Building at 414 Washington Street. 

Both buildings were erected as one development project by Atlantic Walk and were designed by Joseph Pell Lombardi, one of the city’s leading residential converters of old commercial properties. Architect Karl Fisher subsequently finished this building. 

This building has 21 loft apartments.

Bottom Line

The Fairchild offers some stunning loft apartments, many with 22-foot-high ceilings, at a prime location in TriBeCa, close to the Hudson River.  With a 24-hour doorman and direct elevator access, it offers a very handsome and elegant residential lifestyle.

Description

With a traditional red-brick façade and large, arched windows and shed canopies, this building blends in well with the neighborhood’s many 19^th Century industrial buildings.

Amenities

Located in the Tribeca North Historic District, the Fairchild is within easy walking distance of the Hudson River Park. Piers 25 and 26 include a habitat planting zone, lawns, seating areas, a skate park, a mini-golf course, beach volleyball courts, basketball courts and other recreational activities. 

Residents of the building have access to the nearby Greenwich Hotel that was developed by Robert De Niro and has a fitness center, the Shibui Spa and a lantern-lit indoor pool. 

The building has a 24-hour doorman, bicycle storage, private storage and refrigerated grocery storage. 

The building is pet friendly.

Apartments

Apartments have walnut stained hardwood flooring and central heating and air-conditioning. 

Some of the apartments entered at street-level at triplexes and some units have terraces or balconies. 

Poggenpohl kitchens boast polished Caesarstone countertops and backsplashes, a 36" Sub-Zero refrigerator, a built-in Wolf oven and cooktop, Miele dishwasher, and a stainless steel Sub-Zero wine cooler. 

Lavish master baths feature large travertine tiles, polished Calcutta gold accented floors and fixtures by Toto and Kallista, while secondary baths boast stacked Botticino marble stone accented walls, marble floors and limestone showers.

History

The Fairchild was developed by Atlantic Walk Vestry, whose principals include Gerard Longo. Mr. Longo and his partners also developed a very similar but smaller new building at 414 Washington Street, known as the Pearline Soap Factory. Both sites were formerly used as parking lots.

Architect Joseph Pell Lombardi said that the juxtaposition of the two buildings on opposite sides of the street and oriented in opposite directions created "a spatial relationship" in which they respect the historic district with contextual materials and details but speak "to the 21st Century" through "the clarity and directness of the design.

David Howell designed the interiors.