Carter's Review

The Laurel is an attractive, glass-and-limestone-clad, 30-story, residential condominium tower at 400 East 67^th Street on the southeast corner at First Avenue overlooking the large St. Catherine’s Park that occupies about half of the block between 66^th and 67^th streets between First and Second avenues.

It was developed by Alexico Management of which Izak Senbahar and Simon Elias are principals.  Alexico, whose other projects include the very handsome 165 Charles Street designed by Richard Meier, and the Grand Beekman at 400 East 51^st Street, designed by Costas Kondylis, paid $143 million for the property.

The LEED-certified building, which also has an address of 1238-1244 First Avenue, was also designed by Mr. Kondylis and completed in 2008.

Bottom Line

One of the cleanest-cut new towers in this neighborhood, this project is across from a large park and offers many amenities including a bi-level fitness and Triathlon Training Center including a lap-pool, steam room and sauna.

Description

This building is close to Rockefeller University, New York Hospital and Sotheby’s but is not close to subways.

It is just to the north of the handsome St. John Nepomucine Roman Catholic Church on the avenue that was erected in 1925 and designed by John Van Pelt in what Elliot Willensky and Norval White described in their fine book, “The A.I.A. Guide to New York City, Fourth Edition” (2000), as “a wonderfully romantic paen to the Romanesque style for a Slavic…congregation.”

Amenities

The building has a concierge, a garage, a bicycle room, a doorman, and a bi-level fitness and Triathlon Training Center exclusive for residents with a 50-foot lap pool, steam room and sauna, treadmills and a two-story Laurel Club with a screening room, a dining room/conference room with catering kitchen and four children’s play areas.

The building has a large glass entrance marquee and revolving door entrance.  It has no roof deck and no balconies.

Apartments

Apartments have enclosed kitchens.

Apartments 3E and 4E have a long entrance gallery, an enclosed kitchen and a 20-foot-long living room.

Apartments 3F and 3F are three-bedroom units with an entry foyer that flows into a long gallery that leads past an enclosed kitchen to a 21-foot-long living/dining room.

Apartments J on floors 5 through 7 are two-bedroom units with long galleries leading past enclosed kitchen to 20-foot-long living/dining room.

Apartments D on floors 9 through 11 are one-bedroom units with foyers that open onto 21-foot-long living room with 12-foot-long adjacent dining rooms and an enclosed kitchen.

Apartment 11E is a two-bedroom unit with an entry foyer that turns into a long gallery leading past an enclosed kitchen to a 20-foot-long living/dining room.

Apartment 14 is a three-bedroom unit with a foyer that leads to a long gallery leading to a 23-foot-long corner living room with a 11-foot-long dining  alcove.

Apartment C on floors 15 through 24 are three-bedroom units with long entry foyers leading past enclosed kitchens to 25-foot-long living/dining rooms.  The unit on the 15^th floor also has a 26-foot-long terrace off the living room and one of the bedrooms.

Apartment B on floors 12 through 24 has a foyer that leads past an enclosed kitchen to a 24-foot-wide corner living room and an adjoining 12-foot-wide dining room.

History

The site was formerly occupied by the Bethany Memorial Church (Reformed in America) that was built in 1910 and designed by Nelson & Van Wagenen.