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If you’re looking for the ultimate in luxury housing in New York City, look no further than the Woolworth Tower Residences in the Tribeca neighborhood of Manhattan. The Woolworth Building has stood tall on Broadway since 1912, and it was the tallest building in the world until 1930. Originally, the building was the home of Woolworth’s department stores and the Irving National Exchange Bank.
Exterior of the Woolworth Residences.
Today, the top 30 floors have been converted from office space to luxury residences. Woolworth Tower Residences have all the amenities you would expect from a luxury condo building, including the tower’s original 50-foot swimming pool (which Frank W. Woolworth used as his own private pool), a sauna, hot tub, fitness club, and the 29th-floor Gilbert Lounge, which was designed as a billiards retreat, complete with pool tables, a catering pantry, televisions, sofas, and more.
The swimming pool at Woolworth Tower Residences, previously used by Mr. Woolworth as a private pool. (Source)
While the layouts of each individual residence vary a bit depending on their location within the building, each unit was designed with several similarities. Each residence is centered on a beautiful great room with high ceilings, herringbone oak floors, and terra cotta facades surrounding massive windows, which provide sweeping views of the city, as well as the Hudson River, East River, and Upper Bay.
The kitchens are similarly stunning, with custom cabinets, marble countertops and back-splashes, and conveniently integrated appliances that provide both form and function to the space. Each unit also has a master suite complete with a luxurious bathroom, including marble-trimmed windows, heated floors, platinum fittings, steam showers, and free-standing bathtubs. And let’s not forget the fact that every condominium in the building has a private 185-bottle wine locker.
Luxurious kitchen inside Woolworth Tower residence. (Source)
In select residences, you’ll also find features like eat-in kitchens that connect to the living spaces, and some of these homes even include jaw-dropping private terraces. Surrounded by the Woolworth Building’s gorgeous gothic architecture, and framed by sublimely detailed terracotta accents, these terraces are among the most impressive outdoor living spaces in all of Manhattan.
Even among all this luxury, nothing compares to the building’s incredible penthouse, which took more than five years to renovate and complete. The penthouse, which costs $110 million, covers nearly 10,000 square feet and occupies the top five floors of this 90-story building. This ultra-luxury condominium includes a 408 square-foot observatory, 24-foot ceilings, and its own private elevator, in addition to the amenities found in the building’s other 32 residences.
Main bedroom inside residence at Woolworth Tower. (Source)
Part of the appeal of living in Woolworth Tower Residences is the Woolworth Building’s status as a living, breathing piece of NYC’s rich history, and over the last few years, the building has added another footnote to its legend, as it became a popular filming location for Hollywood films and television shows. The 2007 Disney smash-hit “Enchanted” set its climactic scenes starring Amy Adams and Susan Sarandon on the roof of the Woolworth Building, and the 2013 remake of “The Great Gatsby” used the building as the office location where Toby McGuire’s character was employed. In addition, the popular ABC comedy “Ugly Betty” filmed in and around the Woolworth Building during its third and fourth seasons.
Despite the unrivaled opulence of the Woolworth Tower Residences, there are still quite a few condominiums available in the building, including the penthouse. This is likely due to New York City’s recent boom of luxury housing pre-COVID, along with Woolworth Tower management’s recent reduction on the prices of these homes. Still, considering that the renovated residence portion of the building was just completed in early 2019, it seems likely that the condos will fill up sooner rather than later. Currently, the building has availability for one-bedroom condos starting at $2.8 million (used to be $3.6 million), all the way up to the five-bedroom Pavilion A residence for $29 million (used to be $33 million), and of course the penthouse itself. If you want one for yourself, now is the time to pull the trigger! ■
