San Remo is one of the high points – literally and figuratively – of the Central Park West skyline, and of the career of architect Emery Roth. The NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) gushed that the building “…epitomizes Roth’s ability to combine the traditional with the modern, an urbane amalgam of luxury and convenience, decorum and drama.”
Following closely after his triple-towered Beresford (1928), San Remo became the first twin-towered apartment building on the avenue. But where the 22-story Beresford’s stubby “towers” were mainly to hide water tanks, 27-story San Remo’s towers had 14 floors of deluxe apartments. This was possible because a new (1929) building code raised the height limit for residential buildings.
Roth also designed the Oliver Cromwell (1928) on W 72nd Street, was a consultant on the twin-towered Eldorado (1931), and designed the Normandy Apartments (1938) on Riverside Drive.
The San Remo was praised by architectural critics for its height, for the classical Greek-styled “temples” atop the towers, and for the “foyer plan” that minimized hallways.
“Despite its popular success,” said the LPC, the property “…fell prey to the pervasive economic mayhem of the 1930s. A full year after it had officially opened, nearly a third of its apartments remained vacant, and the Bank of the United States which held its $5 million mortgage had collapsed, its officers charged with recklessly ‘gambling’ on the San Remo.”
The building bounced from one owner to another via bankruptcy until 1940, when San Remo and Beresford were sold in a package for $25,000 over the mortgage. Now, individual apartments cost tens of millions of dollars.
Gallery: Hover over photos for captions; click to view images in lightbox
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, 145 Central Park West, New York’s first twin-tower apartment building, designed by Emery Roth and completed in 1930.
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San Remo, reflected in The Lake at Central Park. Emery Roth’s 1930 design was the city’s first twin-towered apartment building.
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San Remo, reflected in The Lake at Central Park. Emery Roth’s 1930 design was the city’s first twin-towered apartment building.
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San Remo, reflected in The Lake at Central Park. Emery Roth’s 1930 design was the city’s first twin-towered apartment building.
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San Remo, reflected in The Lake at Central Park. Emery Roth’s 1930 design was the city’s first twin-towered apartment building.
All images copyright © Kenneth Grant / photos taken January 2014-November 2016
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