Quaker Ridge Apartments (New York City, New York)

USA / New Jersey / West New York / New York City, New York / East 21st Street, 201
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180-foopt, 19-story mid-century modern cooperative-apartment building completed in 1963. Designed by Philip Birnbaum & Associates, it is clad in white brick. At the middle of the south facade the ground floor has four bays of polished grey granite. Three of them have recessed plate-glass windows behind landscaping beds, while the western one has the main entrance, with recessed glass double-doors below a flat black canvas canopy extending out over the sidewalk. To the west the ground floor has a single-window, a tripartite window, and another single-window, while to the east there is a single-window, tripartite window, and double-window.

The upper floors on the south facade have two tripartite window bays in the middle, and to each side is a wider bay of two double-windows linked by a wider center pane, another tripartite window bay, and single-window end bays. They all have aluminum framing, and small slit vents below the windows. The east bay sets back above the 12th floor, most of the middle above the 14th floor, and the west two bays above the 16th floor. There is another setback, except for one bay, above the 16th floor at the remainder of the facade. A water tank enclosure is placed near the south end of the roof.

The west facade on the avenue has a wide recessed area in the middle. Projecting out at the ground floor at the northern half of this area is a 1-story storefront section of grey-green stone and glass that extends across the north wing as well (it is divided into two separate storefronts). The middle of the recessed center area has two bays of tripartite windows flanked by two single-window bays. To either side are two bays of double-windows that are more recessed. The north wing has a tripartite window with a double-window on either side, while the south wing has three double-windows, two single-windows, and a double-window end bay. The full south wing sets back above the 16th floor, and the north wing above the 14th, although its south bay has only a very shallow setback before matching the rest of the setback above the 16th floor. Both of the side walls facing inward at the recessed center area have a single-window bay.

The north facade overlooking the 3-story building next door has four bays of single-windows grouped at the center. At the 13th & 14th floors the east bay is deleted and the next one is narrower, and at the 15th-16th floors there are instead two bays of triple-windows with a single-window to either side, and then a setback to the top floors.

The rear, east-facing elevation has many various bays of all sizes, with multiple set backs at various levels. The building was converted to a co-op in 1982, with 264 apartments. The ground floor along the avenue is occupied by Elman's Wines and Liquors, Eden Gourmet Marketplace, JAG Physical Therapy, and Smile Out Loud pediatric dentistry.
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Coordinates:   40°44'15"N   73°59'1"W
This article was last modified 9 months ago