Upper East Side townhouse with roof garden, Astroturf playroom now a $70K rental

This sprawling Upper East Side mansion came on the market for the first time in decades last November, but with no interested buyers willing to scoop it up at its $35 million price tag, the owners of this palatial abode are now offering it up as a $70,000/month rental.

While this eight-level home may be steeped in history, the most eye-catching detail here is probably the astroturf-clad playroom—How many other Upper East Side townhouses can say they have one too?

Now back to the townhouse overall—comparing the floorplan for the rental unit with the overall home, it appears that a section of the garden level and first floor have been sectioned off from the rest of the home. In the sales listing, this section is listed as a guest suite. The only unfortunate part is that this particular section also comes with the townhouse’s lovely garden and patio.

Regardless, there are still a ton of outdoor spaces for the rental unit—terraces on the third, fifth, and sixth floors, and of course the roof garden. The home comes with seven bedrooms, 7.5 bathrooms, and four fireplaces spread throughout the house, including a marble-clad wood-burning fireplace for the living room.

The townhouse was built by architecture firm Charles Graham & Sons between 1885-86, and was one of five such townhouses built for real estate family B.A. and G.N. Williams. This townhouse is now the only one that remains among the five—though its original brownstone facade was replaced by red brick by new owners in 1917.

• Listing: 12 East 80th Street Apt #1 [BHS]
• Historic Upper East Side townhouse with Astroturf playroom wants $35M [Curbed]