Nearly a year into working from home, we still seem to be adjusting to this new normal, with longer work hours and no separation from the office. What better way to relax after a long day than in a quiet, beautifully-designed great room that is free from the outside world – with no TV or media distractions. In today’s world where we spend so much time at home still, residents value their space and alone time more than ever. The great room creates the ultimate indoor retreat for stay-at-home days or nights. An element of design and utility, this expansive focal point beautifully ties the rest of the residence together and acts as a central place for friend or family time. Take a look at residences with the best great rooms that offer a serene sanctuary for relaxation after a long day.
30 Park Place Four Season Private Residences
30 Park Place Four Season Private Residences – Downtown’s tallest condo tower, which has been known to be home to Larry Silverstein, Yolanda Hadid, Priyanka Chopra and Matthew Perry – boasts the highest-terraced penthouse in all of New York City.
Soaring 870 feet above the streets of Manhattan, perched on the 82nd floor above Downtown’s first Four Seasons Hotel and sprawling 4,538 square feet across an entire floor, the $25 million penthouse features a stunning great room with panoramic views of Midtown Manhattan, flanked by two terraces on the east and west side that have the Hudson and East Rivers present. With plenty of room for seating and relaxing, the home features floor-to-ceiling windows throughout that allow in plenty of natural light or reflections from the vibrant city streets below.
555 West End Avenue
Nestled in the heart of Manhattan’s Upper West Side neighborhood, 555 West End Avenue offers 13 breathtaking, one-of-a-kind residences with unmatched architectural magnificence from the building’s origin as a historic Beaux-Arts Catholic school. Borne from the school’s former rooftop gymnasium, the stunning Solarium Penthouse features a jaw-dropping great room perfect for relaxing and unwinding, with a soaring barrel-vaulted ceiling that rises 20 feet, a massive skylight that bathes the home in light and a floor-to-ceiling wall of windows that opens onto a private south-facing terrace.
Spanning 3,420 square feet with three bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms, the Solarium Penthouse is stunning in its scale and luminosity. The spectacular home pairs the volume of a Downtown loft with the elegance of a classic Uptown residence, highlighted by exquisite craftsmanship and details such as custom Christopher Peacock cabinetry in the kitchen, hand-selected Calacatta gold marble slabs in the bathrooms, and a private elevator landing.
Lantern House
Nearing completion along the High Line in West Chelsea, Lantern House is Related Companies newest condominium project designed by Thomas Heatherwick. Heatherwick’s first residential project in North America, Lantern House includes a 22-story west building and a 10-story east building, joined by a dramatic glass lobby pavilion below the High Line. Named for its interpretation of the modern bay window, Lantern House is a response to the neighborhood’s maritime warehouses and pairs hand-laid antiqued grey brickwork with industrial metal detailing and a dramatic reinvention of the bay window lining the textured grid exteriors of Lantern House’s two buildings.
The stunning 4 bedroom/4.5 bathroom home at Lantern House, is listed for $12,975,000 million and features a great room with a large fireplace and multiple large double height bay windows, perfect for relaxing and taking in the stunning NYC views.
One Prospect Park West
Perched on the northwest corner of Prospect Park, One Prospect Park West offers true park living, with six hundred acres of green space just outside its doors. Originally built in 1925 by the Knights of Columbus as their grandest social club, the historic building is being carefully renovated and converted by developer Sugar Hill Capital Partners into a rare residential condominium located directly on Prospect Park.
Listed for $5,975,000, Residence 8A is a gorgeous 3,186-square foot, four-bedroom, three-and-a-half-bathroom home with exposures in all directions and a 216-square-foot terrace. The first residential building designed by WORKSTEAD, One Prospect Park West features interiors that create the perfect balance between pre-war and modern design. The picturesque great room features a graceful curved arch entryway, hand-laid reclaimed heart pinewood flooring, custom-designed trim and wall moldings, as well as an adjacent wet bar with a custom Sub-Zero wine refrigerator. The home was furnished by ASH Staging, a division of the AD100-ranked lifestyle design and development firm ASH NYC.
Quay Tower
Located at Pier 6 in Brooklyn Bridge Park, Quay Tower offers a relaxing escape from the lively city with its incomparable waterfront experience and unique indoor/outdoor lifestyle.
Listed for $6.6M and designed by AD100 duo Marmol Radziner, Penthouse 3C features an amazing corner Great Room that provides immediate comfort upon entering. Floor-to-ceiling windows offer immense natural light and views of the New York Harbor, South Brooklyn and Downtown Brooklyn, while the room’s California modernist aesthetic creates a sense of relaxed luxury with natural materials and a warm color palette. After a busy day at work, this grand room combines living and dining for the perfect space to enjoy a deserving moment of relaxation with the whole family.
77 Greenwich
With architecture by FXCollaborative and interiors by the famed Deborah Berke Partners, 77 Greenwich is a 42-story tower that soars above New York Harbor and Battery Park in the heart of Manhattan’s Financial District. Topping out at 500 feet, the elegant building features a pleated glass curtain wall façade that provides sprawling water views from each of the 90 condominium residences – which begin on the 15th floor located nearly 150 feet above street level.
With white oak flooring throughout and ceiling heights in excess of 10 feet, Residence 15B features a living room with expansive windows that provide stunning water and skyline views from the expanse of pleated crystalline glass, creating a soothing sanctuary far above the action of the city below. The 1-bedroom, 1.5-bath home is currently on the market for $1.295 million.
Brooklyn Point
Brooklyn Point – the tallest residential tower in the borough – features homes that are an urban oasis above the clouds and Residence 56E is no exception, offering a living room that is the perfect space to unwind and relax in.
The eclectic furnishings portray comfort, casualness, and family living – all set against a city perspective. Furnishings by Charlie Ferrer of New York-based FERRER complement the exquisite skyline views and interior design by Katherine Newman Design, which exemplify a sophisticated aesthetic combining art and utility, resulting in a modernist sensibility that embraces and reinterprets the past. Directly adjacent to the kitchen, the living area showcases neutral coloring including grays and whites that allow for a soothing atmosphere, while two orange lounge chairs give the space a pop of color. The room also features a white dinner table that can also be used as a work-from-home space. Plants and artwork in the room also offer a sense of calmness.
212 West 72nd Street
The building at the intersection of Broadway and 72nd Street – one of the very first ultra-modern projects to ever come to the Upper West Side – is undergoing a transformation into a stunning condominium now called 212 West 72nd Street. A full decade after its debut as a rental in the neighborhood, CetraRuddy has been brought on to upgrade the interiors and create luxurious private condominium residences that accentuate the architecture’s unique curved glass facade, ample natural light and free-flowing layouts. In select homes, the great room is situated at the very point where the building wraps the corner of this iconic intersection, giving residents unique views of the romantic prewar buildings and park. The floor-to-ceiling windows featuring this dramatic curvature create the perfect setting for taking in the morning daylight or relaxing after work.
Those interested in achieving this look and feel can purchase a listing on the same line. Currently available is 4H, a four-bedroom home priced at $5,750,000.
561 Pacific
561 Pacific is a ground-up Brooklyn condominium with designs inspired by Japanese aesthetics. Created to transport residents out of the bustle of the city, and into the warmth of a calm, welcoming home, the development rises 12 stories along the tranquil, tree-lined Pacific Street, and is the first NYC project to channel Japan’s wabi-sabi concept, an ideology that was important to the lead architect, Japan-born Ryoko Okada of ODA New York. The private residences at 561 Pacific take wabi-sabi – described as the celebration of nature’s impermanence – to a new level with oversized windows that flood each space with plentiful natural light. The finishes are warm and organic and honor the clean lines that are synonymous with Japanese design. The great room is the perfect representation of the serenity that 561Pacific brings to its owners.
Prospective buyers wanting a similar residence can take a look at Unit 505, a two-bedroom home priced at $1,995,000