Real Estate
The Village: Proud and charming
BY MARTHA WILKIE
The Village was bursting with
Pride this past week for the 50th
anniversary of the Stonewall uprising.
Is there a link between the architectural
charm of the Village and
its role as a center of L.G.B.T.Q. life?
In “A Passion to Preserve: Gay Men
as Keepers of Culture,” Will Fellows
argues there is. He quotes a gay man
as saying, “It’s an aesthetic capacity, an
appreciation of beauty in old things.”
Ken Lustbader is co-director of the
nonprofi t NYC LGBT Historic Sites
Project. NYCLGBTsites.org offers
some fascinating facts. For example,
did you know that the 1860 “Angel of
the Waters” sculpture in Central Park’s
Bethesda Fountain was designed by a
lesbian?
“As we celebrate Stonewall 50, it’s
important to recognize the diversity of
L.G.B.T.Q. historic and cultural sites
in the Village,” Lustbader said. “We’re
fortunate that many of these buildings
survive, providing residents and tourists
with a cultural landscape.”
He wrote what may be one of the
earliest academic papers on the subject.
“Over 25 years ago, in the Columbia
University Historic Preservation Program,
my thesis focused on the intersection
of preservation and L.G.B.T.Q.
history,” he said. “I used the Village as
case study, looking at bars, restaurants
and residences embedded with historical
narratives.
“Today we’re working to make an
invisible history visible,” he said. “Recognition
provides a visceral, tangible
connection to place, as well as the
intangible benefi ts of pride, memory,
identity and community.”
Here are four gorgeously preserved
A private rooftop terrace comes with this penthouse, now on the market at One Sheridan Square.
homes in the Village:
A three-bedroom, four-bath co-op
in an 1848 Federal-style townhouse
on Horatio St. has four wood-burning
fi replaces and Farrow & Ball wallpaper,
making it extra-fabulous. $2.75
million.
(Brownstoner.com/listing/URBANCOMPASS
185433363300002593
/53-horatio-st-west-village-ny-10014/)
One Sheridan Square is a 1920 New
York City landmark building. A penthouse
home there (two bedrooms, one
bath) features a working fi replace and
elegant French doors that open from
each room onto a private roof terrace.
$2.5 million.
(Brownstoner.com/listing/URBANCOMPASS
271737475704097809/1-
sheridan-sq-west-village-ny-10014/)
Built in 1822, the oldest wood-frame
house in the Village has charming shutters,
original interior woodwork, wide
pine fl oorboards, and wood-burning
fi replaces. There’s even a secret subterranean
passage that used to go to
Chumley’s, back in the speakeasy days.
Six and a half baths, four bedrooms.
$12 million.
(Brownstoner.com/listing/CORCORAN
5674022/17-grove-st-west-village
ny-10014/)
On tree-lined historic Grove St., a
one-bath loft rental with high ceilings
is available at $3,290 a month.
(https://www.brownstoner.com/
listing/ELLIMAN-3726368/35-grovest
apt-5a-west-village-ny-10014/)
Wood you be mine? Enjoy original interior woodwork in the Village’s
Made in the shade: A rental on Grove St. sports high ceilings. oldest wood-frame building.
26 July 4, 2019 TVG Schneps Media
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