The AIA Guide once dubbed the style of the lopsided Victorian at 111 Clarkson Avenue "berserk eclecticism." "Its roof planes are akimbo, like a Cubist avalanche," wrote the NYT's Christopher Gray about the 1902 mansion designed for German brewing mogul Herman Raub by a Viennese architect with Persian and Moorish influences. "The front portico lunges out from the complex massing, while an open balcony on the third floor bursts through the roof like a jack-in-the-box." Longtime owner, lawyer Raphael Berger, has wanted to doff his quirky property east of Prospect Park for years, and he finally got his wish. According to Brownstoner, who talked with the broker, 111 Clarkson recently sold to a small developer who will raze the kooky neighborhood mainstay to build a new 50-unit rental building, that will apparently be "green" and "high-end" with "amazing amenities." No permits have been filed yet. Public records put the sale at $2.8 million?though Berger was asking $3.15M in 2007?and the buyers are two mysterious LLCs. Despite its unusual architecture, the building isn't landmarked. And though the graffiti-tagged, dilapidated single-family home looks, well, the way it does, the interiors are surprisingly grand.
Next up: a rendering for that rental building. It's pretty safe to bet it won't look like the "crazy house."
· "Berserk Eclectic" House Sold for $2.675 Million, Will Be Razed for Luxury Rentals ['Stoner]
· Beyond Decay, a Fantastical Three-Story Concoction [NYT]
Loading comments...