61 Rivington Street (The Library)

The building occupies a 39-by-100-foot lot zoned C4-4A, and the conversion used a little under its permitted residential floor area — 3.86 FAR built against 4.00 permitted. The alteration application records existing zoning floor area of 8,480 square feet increasing to 13,887, with a total construction floor area of 18,195 square feet across the job.

The street elevation is the original library: limestone-toned masonry, two square Corinthian columns, an entablature and a parapet at the old cornice line. Above it sits the contemporary addition, glazed and set back in the reading, which is where the two penthouses live. The plan yields eleven residences — the 1A and 1B units at grade, three residences on the second floor, two each on the third and fourth, and PHA and PHB above.

Interiors were designed by Brittany Marom Interior Design: wide-plank light oak floors, custom built-out closets, keyless entry, heated bathroom floors, natural stone counters and backsplashes, walnut lower cabinetry under matte-lacquer uppers, and Sub-Zero, Wolf and Asko appliances with Bosch laundry in each residence. Several residences retain exposed brick from the original structure and many carry private outdoor space. Ceiling heights vary meaningfully between the original floors and the new construction above, which is one of the specific things worth walking rather than reading from a floor plan.

The Library runs as a small condominium with no underlying mortgage and no full-time staff. Access is handled by a virtual doorman system; the gym, bike room and roof terrace are the whole of the common program.

The practical consequence of eleven units is concentration — a single significant capital item is spread across eleven owners rather than fifty. Adaptive-reuse buildings also tend to surface envelope questions at the junction between old and new construction, and this one is now roughly five years past completion, which is when those questions typically appear. We have not seen the condominium's financial statements. A buyer should ask for the current budget, the reserve balance, the last two years of board minutes, and specifically for any history at the masonry-to-glass junction and the roof assembly.

Ownership form: Condominium. Purchases close through a board right of first refusal rather than an interview, with the faster and more predictable timeline typical of the form.

Pied-à-terre, LLC, trust and foreign ownership: Permitted under the standard condominium framework.

Subletting: Permitted under the standard condominium framework; minimum lease terms should be confirmed with the managing agent.

Financing: No building-imposed ceiling.

Pets: Not documented in the records available to us. Confirm the current house rules with the managing agent.

Flip tax: Not documented. Confirm any resale capital contribution with the managing agent.

Real estate taxes: No exemption on any residential unit lot in FY2023 through FY2027. Underwrite full unabated taxes.

Recent sales

Recent closings at this building, curated by The Roebling Team research desk. Prices are the transfer amounts recorded with the NYC Department of Finance; apartment-level detail is checked against the building’s own file in The Roebling Research Library before publishing.

Market read. Most recent trades (2022) cleared a median $2,376/sf across 2 sales. Median listing discount 0.7% from the last ask — a recurring negotiation gap worth pricing into any offer or listing strategy.

Sales sourced from NYC Department of Finance recorded transfers (BBL 1-00415-7503) 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.

The building is not landmarked. The 1905 elevation is preserved by choice, not by designation, and neither the building nor its immediate neighbors carry historic-district protection.

There is no abatement, and eleven units is a small denominator. Full unabated taxes apply to every unit lot. Ask for the budget, the reserve balance and the board minutes before contract; capital items in a building this size arrive as assessments.

Direct diligence at the old-to-new junction. This is a 1905 masonry structure carrying a glass addition completed around 2021. The roof, the terrace assembly and the interface between the two are the questions to ask.

Walk the ceiling heights, and understand the staffing. Heights differ between the original floors and the addition in a way no floor plan shows, and there is no on-site staff — deliveries, access and building services work differently here than in a doorman building.

If you're considering The Library, also evaluate:

• 21 Ludlow Street — a 1901 loft building converted to 23 condominium residences; the closest Lower East Side analogue for adaptive reuse
• 240 East Houston Street — circa-1920 buildings combined and converted in 1988, 18 residences; the older conversion at similar scale
• 148 Attorney Street — six residences by Isaac & Stern Architects; the smallest-denominator boutique alternative nearby
• 50 Clinton Street — Isaac & Stern Architects, 2016; the same conversion architect's ground-up work in the neighborhood
• 199 Chrystie Street — 14 residences delivered 2021; the closest peer by unit count and vintage, one block west
• 100 Norfolk Street — Eran Chen / ODA, 2016, 38 residences; the design-led alternative with a larger operating base
• 287 East Houston Street — 287/LES, 27 residences, 2019; the ground-up new-construction alternative six blocks northeast