A circa 1913 brick mixed-use set of adjoining buildings, located at the corner of Whitney and Virginia, sold this past February for $350K. Since that time, the new owner has been putting a lot of work into the assets, which feature a combined 7 bedrooms and two commercial spaces.
This is a big deal for the neighborhood – it’s one of those corner buildings (there are still a number of these types of real estate scenarios at hand) with so much potential, which has been squandered until this point in time.
Thankfully these structures have survived long enough to add an increase in momentum per the lower West Side renaissance. There are a number of other real estate projects bubbling up around this corner, while plenty of opportunities are still lying in wait for the adventurous investor/homeowner. The cherry picking is over – now the more practiced hands are doing their thing.
This particular building has undergone an incredible transformation on the outside. It was once the home of Whitney Hardware. Now the gates on the windows are gone, and the brick has been painted gray. New storefront windows have been added as well.
If this project doesn’t do a fantastic job of showing the potential in a building, I don’t know what else could. It’s a project like this that makes one’s brain swim with the possibilities, and the potential, not just for the lower West Side, but for the East Side, which will soon be the recipient of more of these types of investments (crossing fingers). Take a look at the Google image from 2007 below – this could be considered a ubiquitous East Side parcel.
It will be exciting to see where the new owner of 221 Virginia Place takes this project in the future. There was commercial on this corner back in the day. The verdict is out as to what sort of commercial will occupy these walls down the road. One thing is for sure – we will be watching this beauty closely, as it enters the next chapter of its life as an integral cornerstone stronghold within a coveted, historic neighborhood.