By Thornton McEnry
Special to DNAinfo
123 Third Ave., Penthouse 18A
3-bedroom, 3.5 bath
$4,525,000
Est. Common Charges: $3,211
EAST VILLAGE — The sodden Sunday afternoon didn’t stop The Insider from visiting the penthouse at 123 Third Ave. — with 2,334 square feet of interior space plus two outdoor spaces.
But it did seem to prevent most others as the crowds was "sparse," at best to this new building located on 14th Street and Third Avenue — at the corner of a few neighborhoods without really being in any of them.
That was a shame since the 18th floor three bedroom, three-and-a-half bath penthouse, listed by Corcoran, boasted some unique features.
Most intriguing to The Insider was the second bedroom, in which three large, southern-facing windows and a narrow balcony offered a "three bridge view" from which a lucky buyer could lie in bed at night and bask in the lights of the Williamsburg, Manhattan and Brooklyn Bridges.
"It is very cool," broker Cecilia Choe told us, as we gazed southward through the wet fog at all three East River crossings. "I've never seen anything like it."
The luxury condo's master suite was nearly outdone by its junior partner, but the northward-facing windows of the master bedroom and the gilded tableau of The New York Life Building’s gold roof shining against the gray day, could not compete with the downtown view. That was true despite the enormous en suite bathroom.
"It's all top of the line," Choe assured us of the huge, yet oddly narrow, master bath.
Also unique was the size of the modern living/dining/kitchen area with copious amounts of windows overlooking the East Village, Lower East Side, Bowery, Gramercy and Flatiron. The 270-degree views from this one room made one feel as if they were straddling all three neighborhoods at once.
The only "complaint" voiced was from a middle-aged woman with tightly shorn and bleached blonde hair who felt strongly the space was "much too big to be a three bedroom."
But despite that peculiar criticism, it felt disingenuous to not be overwhelmed by the upper balcony space. Up a short flight of stairs from the living room was a 400-square-foot indoor "solarium” — which could be used as guest room — and 250-square-feet of dark slated outdoor terrace. Even on a rainy day, the possibilities inherent in this area boggled the mind.
"This is some guest room," marveled a prospective buyer as she experimented with the sliding door that can be used to separate the solarium from the terrace.
But, apparently, that was not everyone's cup of tea. One peruser asked Choe, "Do you have anything that is on just one floor?"
