235 West 137th Street, 1-F

The Striver s Row Condominium is a brand new Townhouse conversion and restoration of one of the original mansions in the historic Strivers Row neighborhood. Built in 1902. The Striver s Row Condominium embodies the best of prewar charm and modern convenience. Apt.1-F is a one bedroom duplex that faces south on to the handsome, tree lined block. Enter in to the living room with original mantle and mirror over the gas fireplace, and an open kitchen. The kitchen features Cherry wood cabinets, a granite counter, DeLonghi stainless steel stove with an LG over the range microwave, stainless steel counter depth LG refrigerator with bottom mount freezer, 18" GE stainless steel dishwasher, stainless steel under mount kitchen sink and pressed tin back splash. The full bath has an American Standard Renaissance Series whirlpool bathtub. The lower level duplex features the bedroom and half bath and there are hard wood floors and doors throughout. Building amenities include: Common complimentary laundry room with 2 sets of stacked washers/dryers by Frigidaire, video intercom system, and central alarm system. The neighborhood offers easy access to transportation, shopping, dining, St. Nicholas and Jackie Robinson Parks, Pathmark, and walking distance to City College, The Abyssinian Baptist Church, Harlem Hospital, Harlem YMCA, The Schomburg Center and IHOP! This is a fantastic investment opportunity in this 10 unit development one of only three units left! Apt 1-F is an investment unit with tenants occupying the property. The history behind Strivers Row. In 1891, David H. King Jr., a New York builder and key figure in the construction of The Statue of Liberty, The Washington Arch at Washington Square, Madison Square Garden and the Mills Building, acquired a tract of land in Harlem and commissioned three leading New York architectural concerns to design separate rows of houses for it. These small elegant houses, ranging in width from 17 to 22 feet, were the epitome of New York graciousness. They were also suited for life in a growing metropolis, as their survival has proved. The elegant unified facades give the impression of small mansions because the units blend one with the other. The speculative housing was underwritten by an insurance company, the Equitable Life Assurance Society, at a cost of $1,535,000, but the financial panic of 1893 doomed the development's immediate success, and by 1895 Equitable Life took title to the houses. It remained a white enclave for many years, but by 1920 black professionals began purchasing the elegant houses and so it is as a black community that the area resonates with the stylish urban life that Mr. King had intended. The neighborhood's popular name of ''Strivers' Row'' has persisted despite its more formal designation in 1967 as the St. Nicholas Historic District. Today's residents are generally professionals - doctors, lawyers and others involved in administrative careers. In an earlier era, great figures of the musical and theatrical worlds who lived on Strivers' Row included W.C. Handy, Scott Joplin, Bill (Bojangles) Robinson and Eubie Blake.