Avonova

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150-foot, 13-story residential building completed in 1912. Designed by Gaetan Ajello, it is clad in beige brick above a 3-story rusticated limestone base. The main entrance is at the rear of a rather narrow but deep light court on 81st Street that divides the building into two main wings. The east wing is smaller, while the larger west wing has its own central light court.

The entrance is atop four granite steps (with granite ramps with stainless-steel railings lining both sides of the light court). It has glass-and-metal double-doors and a transom flanked by paneled pilasters supporting an entablature with a dentiled cornice. There is a small, suspended metal-and-glass canopy over the doors, and to either side of the entry is a tall, narrow, round-arched window. The side walls of the light court have wall sconces with globe light fixtures, with two bays of single-windows at the rear, followed by a tripartite window, a smaller single-window, and another single-window near the front, all with metal grilles at the ground floor. Within the light courts, the 2nd & 3rd floors are clad in brick, with stone quoins at the edges. Above the ground floor the rear wall has a central tripartite window bay and end bays with single-windows, with bracketed, projecting stone sills at every floor, as well as stone mullions dividing the tripartite windows, and eared stone lintels. A pair of shields flank the base of the center window at the 2nd floor. The side walls have simple stone sills, black iron mullions, and eared stone lintels only at the front bay at the 2nd & 3rd floors.

The south facade of the east wing has a projecting, paneled pier with a wall sconce near its west end, where it meets the light court; this is topped by a shield, scroll, and ribbons at the 2nd floor. To its right is a narrow secondary entrance with a metal door and a transom recessed atop four small steps. Continuing east there are two bays of tripartite windows and an end bay with a single-window. These openings all have splayed lintels, and a simple band course caps the ground floor. The same window pattern continues on the upper floors, with another single-window above the secondary door; these also have splayed lintels. Between the 2nd & 3rd floors at the tripartite windows there are projecting stone double-sills, the ends of which are carried on elaborate acanthus-leaf brackets. A stone band course caps the base.

The west wing has a matching pilaster, wall sconce, and shield next to the light court; to its left is another secondary entrance with a glass-and-metal door. Continuing west are six bays of plate-glass windows with steep-sloped red canvas canopies, alternating wider and shorter, also with splayed lintels. Above the ground floor the wider bays have tripartite windows, and the narrower ones have double-windows or single-windows (at the end bays), with the design matching that seen on the east wing.

The 4th floor is set off by projecting band courses on top and bottom, and has stone surrounds with rounded corners. The tripartite bays at the 5th floor also have stone surrounds, topped by eared lintels, while the others only have the lintels. The tripartite windows at the 5th floor also feature putti holding escutcheons between them. There are projecting sills (carried on paired, scrolled brackets at the tripartite bays) on all the floors above. The 12th floor is set off by a band course and has round-arched windows, with escutcheons above the tripartite bays. Another band course marks the main roof line at the 12th floor. There is 13th-floor penthouse level set back from the main roof line and wrapping around the deep light court.

The ground floor along the avenue is lined with three stone, metal, and glass storefronts. The upper floors have seven bays of alternating tripartite and double-windows, with a south end bay of single-windows. All of the ornament matches that seen on the south facade. The rear elevations are clad in plain beige brick. There are two shallow light wells on the north facade, both lined with double- and single-windows. The east elevation has a mix of single-, double-, and tripartite windows, and its own shallow light well near the center.

The building was renovated into condominiums in 2008, with 114 units. The ground floor along the avenue is occupied by a Bank of America branch, and Cedra Pharmacy.