200 E 62nd St

200 E 62nd

Arriving at 200 E 62, it’s nearly impossible to gather that the 30-story tower was built in the 1960s. The building still has its original orange-brick facade, but the first two levels are wrapped in a more modern ensemble of gray brick and honed black stone. Otherwise, any semblance of decades past has been scrubbed away, a massive undertaking led by developer O’Connor Capital Partners and architecture firm Messana O’Rorke when the building was converted from rentals to condos in 2016. Take the example of long-time tenant Edith Shapiro, who lived in the building since 1967. Before her passing in 2022, she told the New York Times that rent costs for her four-bedroom duplex started at $725 per month when she first moved in. It started going up and it kept going up. Then, after a while, it zoomed up," Shapiro told reporter Joanne Kaufman. By 2015, when tenants were notified of the conversion, Shapiro’s monthly rent was $18,000. To halt the meteoric increases, Shapiro purchased her unit for over $5 million. The building’s other duplexes, of which there are only a few, have sold for a similar price. Today, one-bedrooms routinely sell for nearly $2 million, while two-bedrooms are closer to $3 million. Three-bedrooms rarely go on the market, but they’ve sold for as much as $4.7 million. Clearly, the redesign was valuable to both tenants and the developer. The partial-facade facelift and new entrance (a streamlined take on the traditional porte-cochère) were just a small part of the upgrades given to the building. As if to rebuke its past, the building’s lobby is aesthetically futuristic, doused in a crisp white paint with angular furniture and touches of reflective, polished stainless steel throughout. Through the metallic doorway, the elevator bank is the main lobby’s polar opposite, clad in textural, mahogany panels with warm cove lighting and an artsy gallery wall. From there, two elevators whisk owners to their elegantly remodeled condos. Messana O’Rorke applied their signature breezy style to each of the 113 condos. The spaces feel loft-like, with plenty of windows and spacious floor plans to match: almost every one-bedroom apartment is over 1,100 square feet compared to Lenox Hill’s one-bedroom average of 796 square feet. The design firm embraced the airy feel by selecting bright yet soft-spoken finishes. In the kitchen, floor-to-ceiling white lacquered cabinetry features stainless steel pulls and lightly veined Danby marble counters and backsplashes. Bathrooms have similar finishes, subbing a warm wood for the vanity cabinets. Thanks to their size, the open floor plans accommodate dining tables and, in some instances, space for a home office. Seeing as 200 E 62 has so many multi-bedroom apartments (over 60 percent of the building’s condo units have two or three bedrooms), it’s no surprise that the building offers a children’s playroom for families. Messana O’Rorke completely transformed the space, turning its challenges (uneven ceiling heights, exposed pipes) into design features. Fire truck-red pipes run the length of the ceiling, interpolated by spherical, technicolor light fixtures. Kids can pick from the room-length bookshelf, play with toys at the mini tables or put on a show with the backlit puppet stage. Primary colored animal decals, custom-designed by the Messana O’Rorke team, stretch across the wall. The firm also designed custom graphics for the fitness center, this time in hues of neon yellow and gray, to motivate residents during their workout routines. The rooftop terrace, perched on the 30th floor, is a more relaxing space with outdoor furniture sets, lush landscaping and 360-degree views. Just off the terrace, the club room has a neutral color palette, rich textures and low-slung furniture. Residents come and go from the building’s exit along East 62nd Street, a tree-lined, residential stretch, but bustling Third Avenue is right around the corner. A large selection of designer boutiques is housed in the Bloomingdales just two blocks south, and highly rated global eateries (including Japanese, Indian, Chinese and Italian) are available within a few blocks. The condo is roughly equidistant to both Central Park and the East Midtown Greenway along the East River. Transit options are convenient, as well: the F, N, Q, R, W, 4, 5 and 6 trains are all available from separate entrances within one block of the building, not to mention the multiple buses and Citi Bike stations along Third Avenue.