Construction is now complete on Beckford House and Beckford Tower, a pair of completed residential buildings in the Yorkville section of Manhattan’s Upper East Side. The 21-story, 215-foot-tall Beckford House at 301 East 81st Street (also addressed as 1562 Second Avenue) and the 31-story Beckford Tower at 301 East 80th Street are designed by Studio Sofield and SLCE Architects and developed by Icon Realty Management, with CM & Associates in charge of construction. The site is located along Second Avenue between East 80th and 81st Streets.
New photographs show the completed look of the Brynne Brownstone and Indiana Limestone façades diffusing the light between the grid of windows, some of which feature ornate dark-colored railings. Several of the windows on the final floors are arched. A cornerstone at the southwestern edge of Beckford House bears the names of Icon Realty Management, Studio Sofield, and SLCE in capital letters. Even the back side of the building that faces to the north is well crafted rather than being left as a blank concrete wall. Next to the cornerstone shows available retail space for rent, measuring 2,227 square feet on the ground floor and 1,614 square feet in the cellar level.
Beckford House. Photo by Michael Young
Beckford House. Photo by Michael Young
Beckford House and Tower. Photo by Michael Young
Beckford House. Photo by Michael Young
Beckford Tower has a series of curved metal canopies for each of the ground-floor windows. The deep cornice around the multi-story setback has a number of circular motifs etched into the stone and metal railings, adding an extra depth to the quality of the work. Overall the architecture and design of each building contextually fits within the local neighborhood, evoking the classic and traditional New York residential style thanks to its setbacks, regard for detail, and choice of materials.
Beckford Tower. Photo by Michael Young
Beckford Tower. Photo by Michael Young
Beckford Tower. Photo by Michael Young
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Simply beautiful. You have to wonder why so many other new “luxury” buildings are finished in just cheap glass walls.
Lovely buildings, ‘The House’ more so than ‘The Tower,’ albeit in a head-scratching location,
but the same was surely said of The Dakota, and River House; so, plus ça change…
They look out of place in those locations among 100+ year old walk-ups (completely out of scale) but they’re a lot better than those other “modern” but bleak mid-20th century monoliths. Perhaps that’s the point.
Huh? The upper east side has similar towers at nearly every other corner lot; especially along 2nd Avenue. The remainder are in some process of being developed.
I think you are confused with the Upper West Side where rampant NIMBYism vehemently opposes any development over six stories.
They’ll fit in better after a little weathering.
Bravo!
I do agree that the location of these new buildings are out of scale, but they do reflect classic NY apartments of the past, unlike the “Catacombs on 88th” in yesterday’s post!
Good design. Question: would the owners of the penthouse and the apartments with balconies in Beckford House lose their northern view if the adjacent brownstones are developed? Perhaps the developer has acquired some of these buildings.
It’s what I remember as a little boy in the early ’50s about some of the “skyscrapers” in the City, what I’d later call “serene elegance.” During a public school trip in fifth grade 1958, our teacher took us to the brand new Seagram’s building. Although I didn’t appreciate it then, to me the Seagrams’s building is the perfect embodiment of “modern serene elegance.”
Great detail and style. Curious, on 4th photo, looking at beckford house wall facade, it appears perhaps another building is planned of the same height with a set back. Note corner return brick pattern and transition to non windowed area of entire wall.
Elegant, proportioned buildings. Too bad the folks up on 88th Street don’t get this quality.
Wow these are superlative.
These two are just breathtakingly beautiful. I’m truly out of words.
One touch that I find to be very interesting is the touch of the inscribment of the wonderful team behind the project on the corner of the Beckford House. ☺
The Beckford House amd Tower are truly fantastic, and I hope other architects will learn from the beautiful work of art that has risen from this site.
A need a application my num
9173495195
Yorkville is a delightful neighborhood. Real people who don’t need to be o$tentatiou$.
Need affordable studio apartment for rent. Thanks
Beautiful homes sadly not affordale for the average New Yorker.
This building is so New York!
These buildings*