The Avonova condominium, located on 81st Street and Broadway

Overview

Continuing on our recent theme of conversions, we have the beautiful Avonova condominium. The building is being converted by Ed Gellert and Brad Cohen. According to a CityRealty report from last year, Gellert is executive director of U.S. commercial real estate investing of UBS AG. Avonova was originally built in 1912 and was designed by Sicilian architect Gaetano Ajello. Ajello was a prominent builder on the Upper West Side and this building exemplifies his style of work. The NY Times did a tribute to Ajello in 2006 when his Claremont Theatre project on 135th Street was designated a landmark. The interview, which was mostly information conveyed by his sister, reports that Ajello actually assigned Rosario Candela, a fellow Sicilian and uber-famous New York architect, his first job in the city.

The building entrance. Notice the deep light court used by Ajello. This will be a courtyard for the conversion.

Units & Prices

My understanding is that the building had a mix of tenants when taken over. Some were rent-stabilized, other rent-controlled, and others paying market prices. Currently, 40 units are being offered out of the 117 available in the building. Prices range from about $700,000 for a spacious studio, to over $2.8M for the 2,000+ foot unit on the 12th floor.

Street Easy is showing about a dozen units currently available, mostly 2-bedrooms averaging around $1,400/foot. There are one and three-bedrooms available as well.

Features & Amenities

Avonova will have all the modern amenities which make residents happy without going ‘over the top’ and raising the monthly common charges unnecessarily. There will be a fitness center, a club for residents (with catering kitchen) and a rooftop terrace. There will also be a playroom for kids and an impressive entrance courtyard and lobby.

Kitchens will include stainless steel appliances, custom lacquer cabinetry, and stone countertops. The baths have marble floors, Zuma soaking tubs, and Walnut vanities with stone countertops. The renderings on the website look very nice.

A view of the escutcheons on the facade of the building. These represent family and honor.

Location

I love the Upper West Side. It’s very family oriented and friendly. 81st Street is one of those great streets that are close to everything. Zabars, the dream-like food market, is one block away. Barnes & Noble is across the street, as is Starbucks and a host of other retail. Subways and buses are all over and getting a cab is no problem because Broadway runs both ways.

If you visit the website, it will point out all the restaurants, nightclubs, shopping, parks, etc. which are within walking distance. Pretty much anything you can think of nearby—and most of it can be delivered.

81st Street btw Broadway and Amsterdam

Investment Potential

Buying buildings is becoming increasingly expensive for developers. No doubt Gellert and Cohen had to shell out a fortune for this project. While $1,200/foot might feel fairer, $1,400/foot is about right. Like I’ve been telling my readers lately, don’t expect to a flip a condo like this, expect to live in it and enjoy the fabulous lifestyle. We give a B+ for investment potential and will update again after we’ve taken the sales tour.

This entry was posted on Monday, January 14th, 2008 at 10:06 am and is filed under Avonova - 219 West 81st Street. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.