As the majority of apartments in the city have blocked views, new development marketer Michael Shvo claims the harbor views from almost every unit in his latest project in Battery Park City are a must-have amenity.
The president of Shvo Marketing has turned his attention to 225 Rector Place, a rental building conversion on the southern tip of Manhattan with views of the Manhattan skyline, Hudson River and Battery Park.
Shvo is selling what’s outside of 225 Rector as much as he’s selling what’s inside the building. His newest assignment comes after he began sales for two condo projects in Midtown South — the Philippe Starck-designed Gramercy condos on East 23rd Street and the gallery-themed 650 Sixth Avenue. For those projects, he used nearby neighborhoods as marketing hooks.
While Gramercy is actually a few blocks east of its eponymous neighborhood, and 650 Sixth is a walk from Chelsea’s galleries, those areas were used to add cachet. Similarly, at 255 Rector Place, the marketing effort hinges on the surrounding park and waterfront area by asking, “What’s outside your window?”
“It’s a campaign that doesn’t really give you a lot of information but makes you think,” Shvo said. “With their busy lifestyles, people go on and assume it’s OK to look at a brick wall. But we’re making them think about what is really outside their window and maybe change their point of view.”
The 306-unit condo conversion at 225 Rector has studio, one- and two-bedroom units, some with private terraces. Penthouses are a mix of one- and two-bedrooms starting at 687 square feet. Prices range from $480,000 for a studio of 519 square feet to more than $1 million for a two-bedroom of 959 square feet. The average price per square foot for apartments is approximately $1,000.
“At 225 Rector, we really tried to create affordable luxury with phenomenal views,” Shvo said.
Though unit sizes in the rental conversion remained largely the same, the interiors were fully refinished. Bathrooms now have soaking tubs, commercial-style fixtures and marble tiling. Units were refloored with stained white oak. The architect for 225 Rector is Montroy Andersen, and units were refinished by Incorporated Architecture and Design.
The brick-and-limestone building will have ivy growing along the base of the exterior to match the greenery in the neighborhood. Residents will be steps away from boating, bike paths, trails for jogging and rollerblading, and a waterfront promenade.
“It’s for buyers with active lifestyles, who can now afford the apartment they want when they’ve been priced out of other buildings,” Shvo said.
“Battery Park City in my opinion is almost like living in a gated community without a gate,” he added.
YL Real Estate Developers purchased 225 Rector Place in the summer of 2005 from the Related Companies for $165 million along with 101 West 87th Street. Yair Levy, the head of YL Developers, has also partnered with Kent Swig to convert the Sheffield at 322 West 57th Street from rentals to condos.
The sales office located inside the 23-story 225 Rector opens early this month. Occupancy is expected this summer.
“Part of what we really want to offer here is affordable luxury in a building that is almost like living in a country club,” Shvo said.
Amenities at 225 Rector include a rooftop terrace and lounge with a screening room. The condo conversion also has a 3,050-square-foot, multi-level gym that includes a yoga room, and a 4,390-square-foot room housing a pool.
Potential residents of 225 Rector will include singles, couples and families with small children. With no playroom, the building is not designed as a family building, although buyers have the option to combine units into family-sized apartments.
Another recent condo conversion in the area is the Greenwich Club at 88 Greenwich Street. Buttonwood Real Estate redeveloped the Art Deco building into 458 condo units with an average price of $1,100 per square foot. The Downtown Club, located at 20 West Street, is another condo conversion in the area, with 283 units with an average price of $1,000 per square foot.