172 Fifth Avenue

 Romanesque (architecture), apartment building, 1930_construction

6-story Romanesque-revival residential building completed in 1930. Designed by Aaronson & Heidrich, it is faced in reddish-brown brick. The ground floor has modernized storefronts set into cast stone on both facades. At the corner the shop entrance is recessed behind a corner pier. A dentiled cast-stone belt course is visible above the storefronts.

On Fifth Avenue, above the ground floor, the facade is organized into two bays between slightly projecting brick corner piers; each bay has one window per floor. The 2nd floor windows have masonry lintels and wrought-iron balconies. Over the 3rd floor is a small arcade set on white impost blocks. The 4th floor is unembellished. The 5th floor is similar to the 3rd floor, and is surmounted by a dentiled cast-stone belt course, with straps descending at the corners piers. Over the 6th floor is an arcaded and corbelled brick band, with white cast-stone blocks at the corner piers, under a brick parapet.

The 22nd Street facade is faced in red brick with brick corner piers and a similar arrangement of cast-stone detailing as on the Fifth Avenue facade. This facade, however, has a complex pattern of narrow, smaller bathroom windows among the building's common main windows. There are also two black metal fire escapes at this facade. The entrance to the apartments is through an arched entrance in the 1-story cast-stone western end bay. The entrance has a decorated molding, a transom with a fanlight, and multi-pane door with sidelight. A small service entrance is adjacent to the east. The 6th floor is unembellished and has over it the arcaded and corbelled brick band as found at the Fifth Avenue side.

The rear wall is visible from West 22nd Street and is in the same reddish-bown brick as the main facades. It has a fire escape and one bay of windows. The ground floor is occupied by Hoka footwear.