- Year built
- 1889
- Type
- Condominium
- Landmark
- No
- Pets
- Pet-friendly; no documented weight or breed limit
136 West 23rd Street carries one of central Chelsea's more interesting histories. In 1888, three buildings on this stretch were demolished by John Ward Stimson — director of art education at the Metropolitan Museum of Art — who built the Artist-Artisan Institute here in 1889 to teach art as a means of improving American industrial and decorative design. The original red terra-cotta façade survives, and the building was converted to residential lofts circa 1990, when a one-story pedimented addition was added atop the original five stories.
The result today is a boutique loft condominium of 20 residences in a building with genuine architectural provenance and a distinctive, highly articulated terra-cotta front that stands out on the block. The appeal is loft character — high ceilings, big windows, and original detail — combined with condominium flexibility in a corridor where much of the comparable prewar stock is co-op.
For buyers, 136 West 23rd offers condominium ownership — flexible financing, a right-of-first-refusal closing rather than a board interview, and latitude on subletting, pieds-à-terre, and trust or entity purchases — in a self-secured boutique loft building steps from the 1, F and M lines and the heart of Chelsea.
Architecture and unit composition
The building is six stories: the original five-story 1889 Artist-Artisan structure, articulated in red terra cotta, with a plainer one-story addition crowned by a center pediment that was added during the circa-1990 conversion. The 20 residences are loft-style, including larger floor-through lofts and a penthouse. Apartments carry in-unit washer/dryers, and some units have private terraces or balconies. The terra-cotta façade is the building's architectural signature and a meaningful part of its identity.
Building operations
136 West 23rd Street operates as a self-secured boutique loft condominium. There is no doorman or concierge; entry is controlled by a video-intercom and double-door entry system, and the superintendent is based in the neighboring building rather than living on-site. The building provides an elevator, basement storage, and shared outdoor entertainment space, with private terraces or balconies on some residences. There is no shared gym, common roof deck or on-site parking. The building is pet-friendly with no documented weight or breed limit. As at any boutique self-managed loft building, financing terms and any sublet specifics should be confirmed against current building rules at offer stage.
Recent sales
With 20 residences, 136 West 23rd Street turns over lightly, which keeps inventory thin and quickly absorbed. Pricing tracks the central-Chelsea loft-condominium market and scales with floor, ceiling height, light, outdoor access, and renovation level — the penthouse and any unit with private terrace sit at the top of the range. Recent resales have averaged roughly $1,540–$1,630 per square foot, with the penthouse offered in the low-$2-million range. The building's live sales record is the right reference for a unit-level read, and we are glad to walk through it.
Recent closings at this building, curated by The Roebling Team research desk. Apartment-level facts are independently verified before publishing; sale prices reflect the recorded transfer amount at the NYC Department of Finance.
| Date | Unit | Apartment | Price | PPSF |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 29, 2005 | C5 | 1,296 sf | $1,275,000 | $984/sf |
| Jul 1, 2005 | B3 | 1,283 sf | $1,295,000 | $1,009/sf |
Market read. Most recent trades (2005) cleared a median $1,009/sf across 2 sales.
Sales sourced from NYC Department of Finance recorded transfers (BBL 1-00798-7503) and verified listing data. Apartment-level facts (line, condition, asking-price context) curated and cross-verified by The Roebling Team research desk. Not all transactions cross-verify with ACRIS records — sponsor and LLC purchases sometimes record at stipulated values rather than market price; square footage from recorded condo declarations and offering plans.
What to know if you’re buying
The buying case is loft architecture, provenance, and condominium structure: a converted 1889 building with a distinctive terra-cotta façade, loft-scale residences, and the flexibility of condo ownership — flexible financing, a right-of-first-refusal closing, and freedom to sublet, hold as a pied-à-terre, or purchase through a trust or entity. The trade-off is amenities: this is a self-secured building with no doorman and an off-site superintendent, which keeps carrying costs lean but means a hands-on operating profile.
Diligence should focus on the realities of a small, self-managed converted loft building: the reserve fund and recent capital projects, the façade maintenance history (particularly given the historic terra cotta and the 1990 addition), the elevator's service record, and the specifics of any unit's private outdoor space. Confirm the current financing policy and any sublet terms in writing before you commit.
What to know if you’re selling
Sellers lead with the building's distinctive history and architecture — the Artist-Artisan Institute provenance and the red terra-cotta façade — alongside loft character and condominium flexibility, all on a central Chelsea block steps from the 1, F and M lines. In a corridor where buyers prefer condominium ownership for its financing and resale freedom, that positioning is an advantage over the co-op competition.
Pricing should be benchmarked against the other boutique Chelsea loft condominiums rather than the larger full-service towers, with adjustments for floor, light, outdoor space, and renovation. Because resale supply is naturally limited by the 20-unit count, a well-prepared, accurately priced listing tends to find its buyer when it is shown to capture the loft-and-provenance story that defines the address.
Comparable buildings
If you're weighing 136 West 23rd Street, these nearby Chelsea loft and boutique condominium buildings make a useful comparison set:
- 124 West 23rd Street — full-service new-construction condominium on the same block
- 148 West 23rd Street — Chelsea loft-style conversion nearby
- 126 West 22nd Street — boutique prewar loft conversion
- 125 West 22nd Street — full-service boutique condominium with garden
- 315 West 23rd Street — condominium further west on the same street
- 113 West 17th Street — comparable prewar loft conversion nearby
The Roebling Team at 136 West 23rd Street
The Roebling Team at Compass specializes in Chelsea, the Flatiron District, the West Village, and the broader downtown loft and condominium market. We publish this profile because buyers and sellers evaluating a boutique Chelsea loft deserve building-specific intelligence — the architecture, the history, the ownership structure, and where pricing sits against the surrounding inventory.
If you're considering a purchase or sale at 136 West 23rd Street, a 30-minute consultation is the right starting point — we'll walk the floor plans, the comparable set, and the building's operating profile with you.
The neighborhood
For the full corridor — architecture, schools, transit, and pricing across Chelsea — read The Roebling Team Guide to Chelsea.
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