How A $32 Million Modern Luxury Pad Emerged From A 175-Year Old Brick Townhouse

• Share to facebook
• Share to twitter
• Share to linkedin

<div innerhtml="

When in doubt, keep the exposed brick.

But when the&nbsp;house is 175 years old and has the historical footnote of being&nbsp;the former home of American composer John Philip Sousa then you definitely need to&nbsp;do more than just keep the brick intact. This six-bedroom, nine-bathroom house across seven floors has had a complete renovation on the inside and has just hit the market for $31.95 million in New York’s Greenwich Village. Designers came up with several creative ways to preserve the historic nature of the property and have many of the rooms meet modern needs, including a few rooms that have a complete contemporary feel without them feeling like they’re in a different house. The secret sauce was to rely on having at least one large structural piece come from the rustic corner of the design world so it acts as a transition between the vintage bones and more modern finishes.

Rustic, it turns out, is the bridge between old and new.

This close up of the back of the dining room on the first floor shows the choice for the stairwell. It is just industrial enough to feel like it fits in well with the old stones but when you climb up to the next level where it starts to get more modern it doesn’t stand out (there is also an&nbsp;elevator so you don’t have to climb all seven stories). You can also see how&nbsp;they kept the&nbsp;nooks in the wall and turned them into light wells to bring in more sunshine to the lower level.

A&nbsp;similar solution shows up again in one of the landings that has been turned into a small living room. Clear glass barriers don’t commit to a specific style but the subtle touch of a metallic hand bar along the top is another transition trick—it adds a sleek and modern touch&nbsp;to the room without becoming futuristic.&nbsp;All that glass also helps to reflect light around the space so it feels larger. Authentic wood floors and a sight line to the brick walls still keep it old school.

This larger living room is more contemporary, but textured paint on the walls and heavy duty windows once again allow for a&nbsp;visual transition between old and new.

The bar and&nbsp;media room&nbsp;are where things get decidedly more modern with a space-age wine storage vault, recessed lighting and bright white walls. This level also has another of the home’s four kitchens, this one designed by restaurant impresario&nbsp;Silvano Marchetto

There is a contemporary homage to&nbsp;John Philip Sousa in the graffiti wall in this home office that is currently used for extra clothes storage. Look closely to see the shape of the S in his last name.&nbsp;

The main bedroom takes up an entire level with several bathrooms, a fireplace and a large separate dressing room. All the full bathrooms in the house have&nbsp;Toto finishings.&nbsp;

Then there’s the sauna on the upper level.

And one of the outdoor decks with teak wood and a tropical flair.

The listing agents are&nbsp;Christopher L Riccio and&nbsp;Matthew Pravda with Leslie Garfield and Co. For more info go here.

” readability=”53.406230910202″>

When in doubt, keep the exposed brick.

But when the house is 175 years old and has the historical footnote of being the former home of American composer John Philip Sousa then you definitely need to do more than just keep the brick intact. This six-bedroom, nine-bathroom house across seven floors has had a complete renovation on the inside and has just hit the market for $31.95 million in New York’s Greenwich Village. Designers came up with several creative ways to preserve the historic nature of the property and have many of the rooms meet modern needs, including a few rooms that have a complete contemporary feel without them feeling like they’re in a different house. The secret sauce was to rely on having at least one large structural piece come from the rustic corner of the design world so it acts as a transition between the vintage bones and more modern finishes.

Rustic, it turns out, is the bridge between old and new.

This close up of the back of the dining room on the first floor shows the choice for the stairwell. It is just industrial enough to feel like it fits in well with the old stones but when you climb up to the next level where it starts to get more modern it doesn’t stand out (there is also an elevator so you don’t have to climb all seven stories). You can also see how they kept the nooks in the wall and turned them into light wells to bring in more sunshine to the lower level.

A similar solution shows up again in one of the landings that has been turned into a small living room. Clear glass barriers don’t commit to a specific style but the subtle touch of a metallic hand bar along the top is another transition trick—it adds a sleek and modern touch to the room without becoming futuristic. All that glass also helps to reflect light around the space so it feels larger. Authentic wood floors and a sight line to the brick walls still keep it old school.

This larger living room is more contemporary, but textured paint on the walls and heavy duty windows once again allow for a visual transition between old and new.

The bar and media room are where things get decidedly more modern with a space-age wine storage vault, recessed lighting and bright white walls. This level also has another of the home’s four kitchens, this one designed by restaurant impresario Silvano Marchetto

There is a contemporary homage to John Philip Sousa in the graffiti wall in this home office that is currently used for extra clothes storage. Look closely to see the shape of the S in his last name. 

The main bedroom takes up an entire level with several bathrooms, a fireplace and a large separate dressing room. All the full bathrooms in the house have Toto finishings. 

Then there’s the sauna on the upper level.

And one of the outdoor decks with teak wood and a tropical flair.

The listing agents are Christopher L Riccio and Matthew Pravda with Leslie Garfield and Co. For more info go here.