Inside 455 West 20th, A Chelsea Condo With an Older Feel

Dating from 1836, the building at 455 West 20th Street?in the middle of its Brodsky Organization-directed transformation from General Theological Seminary offices to condos?will be one of the oldest condos in Manhattan (if not the oldest). But some of the building's more medieval-feeling elements, including the interior stone, are vanishing as construction crews add insulation to comply with city code. So we swung by the building with photographer Will Femia to catch a glimpse of the inside as it is now?take a look in the gallery above. Not all original elements are disappearing: the developer had to have the original tracery around the windows restored (and document it for the Landmarks Preservation Commission), studs that were in decent shape were kept and sistered to new ones, and many of the fireplaces remain. In fact, in some cases, they dictated room sizes, giving the rooms what the sales team calls "a beautiful dimension."

The conversion of the seminary's former West Building is connected by a three-story glass lobby to a completely new building where the seminary's tennis court used to stand. Across the two buildings, eleven of the listings are in contract and 10 still available, according to StreetEasy. But the sales team has seen "serious interest" in most of the apartments?including some potential combos?to the point where they probably won't need to create a model unit.

One reason for the serious interest, perhaps: amenities! All building residents get keys to the seminary's gated Close next door, and there's also access through the building lobby from dawn to dusk. Four duplexes at the base of the West Building have a little extra green space, with front yards that are between 10 and 18 feet deep. The building also has a gym and storage units that come with the apartments, but if we were in the newer condos, we'd still have serious yard envy.
· Official site: 455 West 20th [455w20.com]
· 455 West 20th Street coverage [Curbed]