Behind this $9.9M Chelsea townhouse, a secret path leads to a backyard carriage house
![Behind this $9.9M Chelsea townhouse, a secret path leads to a backyard carriage house Behind this $9.9M Chelsea townhouse, a secret path leads to a backyard carriage house](https://thumbs.6sqft.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/14221814/331-West-20th-Street-overhead-view.jpg?w=1560&format=webp)
Photo credit: Brown Harris Stevens
If you love the idea of an 1848 brick townhouse restored to its original glory, with a back garden, a roof terrace, and a pretty carriage house down a hidden “horse walk,” the middle of Manhattan might not be the first place you’d look. This three-unit townhouse at 331 West 20th Street, asking $9,900,000, is like having a private country estate right in the heart of Chelsea. The 25-foot-wide, five-story Greek Revival home is large enough to contain three large private units. A two-story rear carriage house is an unexpected surprise.
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The 6,300-square-foot main townhouse is comprised of two four-bedroom duplexes and a finished garden-level flat. Up the stoop is the lower duplex, which begins on the parlor floor. The open, loft-like living room has ceilings of nearly 10 feet, a wood-burning fireplace, and tall townhouse windows overlooking the colorful Chelsea street. This downstairs duplex has retained many of its 19th-century architectural details, including floors of inlaid parquet and wide-plank pine, and decorative moldings.
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A sophisticated, well-equipped kitchen joins the living room and dining room. Also on this level is a powder room, a washer/dryer, and lots of storage space. A back entrance leads to the property’s lovely paved garden and matching brick carriage house beyond.
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On the third floor of this duplex are four bedrooms and two baths. The primary bedroom boasts a large dressing room and an en-suite bath.
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Above is a second duplex apartment. This “upside down” unit puts the open living area on the topmost floor, with a wood-burning fireplace framed by original wide-plank floorboards.
Three skylights fill the open, loft-like space with light, and north-facing windows offer an open view of Hudson Yards to help you fully appreciate the prime New York City location. Another bonus: access to a private roof deck with amazing city views. The lower floor of the upper duplex offers four spacious bedrooms (one with a wood-burning fireplace), three bathrooms, and a laundry room.
Back down on the garden level, accessed via a separate entrance under the front stoop or from the lower duplex, you’ll find a convenient flat with a south-facing living/dining room and a wood-burning fireplace. Past the tidy kitchen is a large bedroom and a full bath. This unit also gets a washer/dryer and direct access to the patio and garden.
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Just to the right of the home’s front stoop, a door leads to a garden pathway down a former horse walk to the carriage house. The two-story rear building is framed by a stylish navy blue center door and five windows, all overlooking the garden. On the first floor is a kitchenette and a full bath. Up a spiral staircase is a loft-like open space currently being used as an office.
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The 1846 home stands on a tree-lined townhouse block in a historic district. You won’t forget you’re in a vibrant Manhattan neighborhood, with the High Line park, The Whitney, Chelsea Piers and dozens of galleries just steps away.
[Listing details: 331 West 20th Street at CityRealty]
[At Brown Harris Stevens by Jennifer H. Cooke and John Daniel Tamasi]
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