Building: 120 East End Avenue

Designed by Charles A. Platt and built by Vincent Astor, 120 East End represents the best of the interwar era’s large scale residential designs. Platt’s design is “a preeminent example of his restrained, even dry approach,” according to Robert A. M. Stern, Gregory Gilmartin and Thomas Mellins, in their book, “New York 1930, Architecture and Urbanism Between The Two World Wars,” (Rizzoli, 1988). Since its completion in 1931, it has been one of the premier residential buildings around the park.

Original floor plans in the building were exceptionally well laid out, with grand entertaining rooms and well thought out circulation and service spaces—a majority of which have been preserved. 120 East End Avenue was originally conceived as an investment property thought to afford a good environment for families with many children, due in large part to its proximity to Carl Schultz Park.

Designed in an understated International Style, and clad entirely in limestone, this 17-story building contains large apartments of up to seven bedrooms and six maids’ room—and five duplex apartments. The entrance to 120 East End Avenue is located on 84th Street, while a large maisonette unit in the building has its own entrance on the avenue.

The façade is without decoration except for some fine projecting horizontal elements which add strong accents. It is also enlivened by balustrades at the 16th and 17th floors, in addition to a fenestration pattern for the lower 13 floors, which have broad windows at the 83rd Street corner and narrow windows in the central portions of the facade. The top four floors have a different pattern of mostly broad windows and the narrower avenue frontage. The building also has small corner setbacks.

The third and most luxurious of three large apartment houses developed by Mr. Astor in the area, he reserved the top floor of this building as his personal residence and occupied it for many years. Mr. Astor was also responsible for the construction of 520 and 530 East 86th Street. 530 East 86th Street, a 15-story Georgian-style structure, was also designed by Mr. Platt.

Description provided by The Young Group