Rafael Viñoly Connecticut home stands out but sits on market with low price

A glass and steel Rafael Viñoly home in Ridgefield, Conn., that cost an estimated $20 million to build, is currently on the market with an asking $3.2 million, the New York Times reported.

The residence at 191 Ridgebury is “more museum than living space,” according to the Times. The late owner donated it to Fairfield University in 2010, and the University is still trying to sell the home, which the paper said is out of place in a town noted for adhering to its past architecturally.

Alice Lawrence, widow of Sylvan Lawrence, a Manhattan real estate developer who died in 1981, donated the house to the university. She had hired Viñoly to design the Ridgefield house, and it was unclear why in the end she chose to donate it to the university.

But the university was happy to accept the gift. Despite its annual $78,000 tax bill, the university believes it will profit in the end.

“It’s not an albatross,” said David Frassinelli, the university’s associate vice president for facilities. “We were very happy to receive the gift.” [NYT]