111 Fulton St

District

The push to turn disused office and commercial buildings into much-needed residential space is a hot topic these days. When the prolific yet sometimes controversial Canadian architect Karl Fischer was tasked with the 2005 conversion of a 1940s Art Deco low-rise commercial building into a luxury condo, it was a novelty. Deeply involved in the transformation and, in part, gentrification of Williamsburg, the late talent was able to put his well-honed adaptive reuse approach to good use here. Officially opened in 2007, 111 Fulton Street — otherwise known as District — became one of the first projects of its kind in the Financial District, aka FiDi. Enlarged to 10 stories, the condominium now incorporates 168 competitively-priced units with tech-forward capabilities and top-line finishes — a sleek, era-appropriate scheme envisioned by sought-after interior designer Andres Escobar. “Though District isn’t massive, it has all the amenities of a larger property,” says Johanna Beiter, a broker with Corcoran who has multiple listings in the building. Like with most condos that have already been resold a few times, condition and style vary greatly between District units as they periodically come on the market. Regardless, Escobar’s baseline outfit imbued the 12- to 14-foot-high residences with clean lines and a polished look, accentuating floor-to-ceiling windows with wood doors, satin-etched glass cabinet kitchens and frameless glass showers. A prerequisite suite of Miele, Liebherr, and Gaggenau appliances anchor in floating Caeserstone countertops. In some units, this emphatically early aughts yet still relevant style carries through to minimalist shelving with semi-gloss paneling. The latest technological innovations of touch-control lighting, security systems, and HVAC–were also introduced and still offer a high level of convenience. The half-rental, half-owned property incorporates everything from generously sized 700-square-foot, alcove bedroom studios hovering around $720,000 to an 1,800-square-foot penthouse priced at $2.2 million. The unit has a private balcony and a generously sized en suite principal. One bedrooms sell for $800,000 to $1.1 million, depending on size. Two and three bedrooms, slightly smaller than the penthouse, cost $1.5 million. Most units include double vanity bathrooms. Pets are allowed, and units can be utilized as pieds-a-terre or held as investments. Residents enter the District through a 22-foot-high lobby outfitted with the many sleek, somewhat iridescent yet subdued finishes found in the original style of the units. “Residents come off the energic street outside and enter this serene environment before going up to their residents,” Beiter explains, “They don’t have to make immediate eye contact with the 24/7 door attendants if they don’t want to.” The basement-level wellness complex has a fully equipped gym, private yoga room, lap pool, cool plunge bath, jacuzzi, sauna and steam rooms. On the second floor, there’s a space with a billiards table that leads into the screening room. An adjoining library incorporates multiple sofas and long wooden tables perfect for remote working during the day. It’s also a great space to host parties. The 12,000-square-foot wraparound roof deck has ample cabanas and frames dense skyline views that are, surprisingly, not obstructed by the tall office tower in the condo’s immediate vicinity. “Unlike other Lower Manhattan buildings, District’s massive rooftop is not broken up by its mechanicals. Residents can use all of the space,” Beiter describes. “There are plans in place to renovate most of the common areas over the next three to four years with a specially allocated assessment of $3 million for which homeowners need to contribute a nominal fee each year. The updates will be done slowly and in phases as not to inconvenience any of the residents.” FiDi and nearby Tribeca are increasingly seen as New York City's center. As nearby Brooklyn neighborhoods have become their own hives of action in recent decades, the geographic orientation of city-wide activity has shifted downtown. Not just a major international financial hub, FiDi is also home to the Westfield World Trade Center Oculus shopping mall which doubles as a major regional transit hub with New Jersey Transit links. The semi-translucent marble-clad Perelman Performing Arts Center is an equally impressive feat of architecture. Just a few blocks north, Tribeca has re-emerged as the city’s main art and design gallery area. Just down the street from the District is the Fulton Center Mall, served by most major Subway lines including the 2, 3, 4, 5, A, C, E, J and Z. Resident can reach almost any part of the town within the hour. Top-billed restaurants abound throughout the area, but a concentration of prestigious haunts are located in the South Street Seaport complex. Younger crowds tend to congregate around Lower East Side micro-neighborhood Dime Square, a 10 to 15-minute walk northeast. The Battery Park Esplanade links into the large Manhattan Greenway that is close to encircling the entire island.