Gilded Age mansions and ornate townhouses line the streets of Manhattan’s Upper East Side, where A-listers like Madonna and Spike Lee have snapped up property. Annie Hall director Woody Allen calls the neighborhood home, too, living in a gorgeous Georgian-style pad on East 70th Street. Next to that sits another historic gem.
The five-story townhouse was originally built in 1869, though master builder Michael Reid, who worked on the Ritz-Carlton and the Morgan Wing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, spearheaded the redesign of its facade in 1899. Today, the home’s distinct two-story copper bay window reflects its Victorian-era charm from the curb.
The parlor-floor dining room.
Hayley Ellen Day
Art historian Susan Weber Soros, ex-wife of billionaire George Soros, reportedly bought the property for $22.3 million in 2012. It changed hands in 2014, when investor Chris Cole bought it through an LLC in a $31 million off-market deal, according to the New York Post. He brought it back to market for $33 million in March 2015, property records show. Three price cuts later, it sold for $19 million in November 2016—a $12 million loss from what he paid.
Measuring 20 feet wide and covering over 6,400 square feet, the spacious abode features five bedrooms, grand entertaining rooms, a custom library, a glass-roofed breakfast room, and a private irrigated garden that soaks up sunlight.
Versailles parquet flooring spans the foyer, where a leafy wallpaper sets the elegant tone. Further in on the entry level, a cozy den is warmed by a marble wood-burning fireplace, and a kitchen is brightened by a skylight. Nearby, a glass-encased breakfast room opens directly out onto a 26-foot-deep garden with a built-in barbecue.
An entertainment room on the top floor of the residence.
Hayley Ellen Day
One flight or elevator ride up to the parlor floor, the living room showcases soaring ceilings of over 12 feet, a fireplace, and a massive bay window overlooking 70th Street. A butler’s pantry, a formal dining room, and one of two terraces are also spread across the level. The third floor, meanwhile, is outfitted with a library featuring the second bay window and a primary suite with two walk-in closets and a view of the garden.
Four more en-suite bedrooms are spread across the fourth and fifth floors, while a skylit entertainment room with a fireplace sits on the top floor. The Manhattan townhouse, located between Park and Lexington, is now available for $22.5 million with Jed Garfield, Caylyn Sullivan, and Kalli Meagher of Leslie Garfield.
Click here for more images of the Manhattan residence.
Hayley Ellen Day
Authors
Demetrius Simms
Demetrius Simms is a digital staff writer at Robb Report. Following a brief stint in public relations, their work has now appeared in lifestyle and culture publications such as Men’s Health, Complex…