Essex Crossing's first condo, 242 Broome, now has its full facade

The facade is up at 242 Broome Street, one of the first few buildings of the Lower East Side megaproject Essex Crossing. Construction was moving right along this spring, and it's expected to wrap up completely by next year.

Once open, this SHoP-designed building will hold a lot over its 14 stories. Four of the first five floors will hold retail and commercial space, with 15,000 square feet set aside for a cultural facility located in a separate building, adjoined to the main structure by what SHoP calls the “Soho Stairs.” The feature will be a long, vertical, continuous flight of stairs that can be used to access the different floors of the institution. And 17,000 square feet of the basement will go to the bowling and entertainment venue Splitsville.

The luxury apartments then start on the fifth floor, with each floor holding between three and six units. Sales kicked off for the one-, two- and three-bedroom units a year ago, with pricing ranging from $1.275 million to more than $7 million. Amenities include a fitness center, children’s playroom, entertainment lounge and a landscaped rooftop. There will also be 11 affordable units.

The anodized aluminum facade—which has a champagne-like color when sunlight hits it—was designed as a modern interpretation of tenement buildings in the surrounding area. It's supposed serve as a transition between older LES buildings and the shiny new developments of the $1 billion Essex Crossing project, which covers nine sites spread out over six acres.

Four total buildings are expected to wrap construction next year, including 242 Broome. The others include a 195-unit rental, designed by Handel and SHoP, a rental designed by Beyer Blinder Belle on site 5, where half the units will be affordable, and a fully-affordable senior building on site 6 by Dattner Architects.

• Essex Crossing’s 242 Broome Street gives shape to a new Lower East Side enclave [Curbed]
• Essex Crossing’s first condos are officially up for grabs [Curbed]
• Essex Crossing Archives [Curbed]