15 Union Square West

15 Union Square West, on East 15th Street overlooking Union Square in Manhattan, New York City, was Tiffany & Company’s 19th century headquarters. It was refurbished and opened in 2008 as high-end apartments.

Commissioned by Charles Lewis Tiffany in the 1869, John Kellum designed the original structure, which included 16-foot cast-iron arches that rose above the park. The building cost $500,000 and opened in 1870.[1] At the time, the store was described as “the largest of its kind devoted to this business of any in the world,” and dubbed the “palace of jewels”.[1] Tiffany & Co. stayed there until 1906. By 1925 the building was occupied by the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America trade union.[1]

By 1952 it was owned by Amalgamated Bank. After a fatal accident where a pedestrian was struck by a falling piece of cast iron, they stripped the original façade and covered it with white brick. The building then stood unchanged for more than 50 years.[1]

Brack Capital Real Estate purchased the property in 2006, and restored the original six-story structure and added six newly constructed floors to create a boutique condominium with 36 residences. The brick façade was dismantled and the original arches were reconditioned and wrapped behind a façade of glass and black anodized aluminum. The original structure was topped by an additional six stories of all glass residences. Designed by Eran Chen of ODA-Architecture, previously of Perkins Eastman, the building blends historic and contemporary elements.[2][3]

In 2011 two of the two-bedroom apartments were purchased by tennis player Caroline Wozniacki for $9 million.[3] Earlier That year, the retail portion of the development was purchased by the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio (STRS) for $57.88 million.[4]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Christopher Gray (July 2, 2006) "Before Tiffany & Co. Moved Uptown ", The New York Times. Retrieved 2013-09-25.
  2. ↑ Dana Rubinstein (April 25, 2011) "Opulently Hidden, In Plain Sight", The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2013-09-25.
  3. 1 2 Josh Barbanel (June 4, 2011) "Condo Doubles for Tennis Star", The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2013-09-25.
  4. ↑ NREI Staff (January 25, 2011). "Brack Capital Sells New York Retail Unit for Nearly $58 Million". International Real Estate Investor. Retrieved 2016-04-19.

External links

Coordinates: 40°44′10″N 73°59′28″W / 40.736202°N 73.991185°W / 40.736202; -73.991185

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