By Kevin Korber of Village Confidential
In 2008, photographer Albert Watson sold his townhouse on 777 Washington Street to an English financier for $34,000,000. Within a year, the West Village townhouse was leveled, much to the ire of Watson and neighborhood preservationists who were looking to establish an historic district in the neighborhood.
At the time, the new owner vowed that, aside from a larger fourth floor and new windows, the West Village townhouse would be rebuilt exactly as it was. According to Curbed, that seems to be exactly what happened. The scaffolding has been removed from the work site, revealing that the exterior of the West Village townhouse appears to resemble its former self, aside from the announced changes to the windows.
The townhouse, which Watson originally purchased in 1985, is a live/work space that contains a 20,000 square foot interior, featured thirty-one rooms and an upper terrace. Some unspecified reports place the building’s construction sometime around the 1940s, thus making it a young building by the standards of the neighborhood. This did not calm fears of its destruction at the time, as the re-development of the Superior Ink factory was fresh in the mind of preservationists in 2009.
No photos of the interior of the West Village townhouse have been released, as the interior is not yet finished. As of now, though, it appears that the new owner of 777 Washington Street has kept his word.
To view other West Village townhouses that are currently available for purchase, please call (212) 400-4838 or e-mail yourkeytothecity@akerlyre.com.
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