Trump Place to get next rental

Real Estate Weekly, March 17, 1999 by Lois Weiss

Within the next two months, a new rental building will be rising along Riverside Boulevard, joining two other residential towers that are currently nearing completion.

Developer Donald J. Trump and his Hong Kong partners have created apartment buildings that have Hudson River sunset views, a modern, upscale feel and lots of light and air.

"It's a beautiful job," Trump said, proud of the visible signs that he has succeeded despite a dozen years of neighborhood opposition. In fact, he joined with several previously opposed groups to create a planning board that helped draft the final project.

But one of the more distinguishing characteristics of the marketing program for the new residences is that these true West Sider-friendly buildings allow dogs. And not only are the furry friends allowed, but the may 20-plus acres of parkland now being constructed at the water's edge will also feature a very neighborly dog run.

"If you walk down any street on the West Side, you see as many four-foot creatures as those with two legs" said Nancy Packes, who heads the Feathered Nest rental team working on 180 Riverside Boulevard, a 516-unit building with 40-stories. "We felt it would be a disservice to provide the apartment where they wanted it, and not allow pets."

So far, she says, about a third of the tenants have dogs.

"New Yorkers love their animals," agreed Joanne Kennedy, a partner with Coldwell Banker Hunt Kennedy, whose agents are bringing clients on tours of the buildings.

Despite whinings by neighborhood foes and nay-sayers, 180 Riverside Boulevard is over 82 percent rented at prices ranging from just under $2,000 to nearly $7,000 a month.

"We are getting rents far above what was projected when they first put the package together," said Packes.

To the north, across 69th Street, about 120 of the 377 condominiums at 200 Riverside Boulevard are spoken for. In fact, according to Trump Vice President Abraham Wallach, future residents are dropping sales deposits at a clip of 20 per week.

"It's phenomenal," said Adrienne Alpert, president of the Marketing Directors, who is in charge of the sales for the 46-story condominium. "There is very little new construction; it offers Hudson River views that are really guaranteed; and the prices are competitive."

A glance at the completed sales shows many units selling in the $400,000 to $600,000 range, with the lowest starling at $325,000 and the highest sales coming in at just under $2 million for huge, tower floor units.

So why aren't there lights on in the condominium apartments? Simply because no one will move in until April, as the building is still under construction.

A walk-through last week found the newly installed polished dark rosewood and marble lobby concierge counter being hand polished, anti numerous security guards directing visitors to the sales office being manned by Alpert and her Marketing Directors staff.

There's only one model apartment, but Alpert has several doll-house like displays on hand to provide countertop views of different miniature furnished apartments. This is a marketing technique she has used for pre-sales since 1980, Alpert said.

Upstairs, the actual apartments have herringboned oak floors, marble baths, Kohler fixtures, Gamma Pink granite kitchen countertops and the top line of GE Profile appliances with gas stoves. A curve of windows - stopped for child safety at the 4.5 inch mark - provides a spacious nook for a dining table, and the kitchen has views of Central Park.

Below, the Circle Line tour heads up the Hudson River towards the George Washington Bridge, while the New Jersey shore appears quite different than that experienced while driving down the West Side Highway. From above, the Jersey shore has hundreds of new apartments being constructed, while inland there are miles of barren and green areas.

There are views to the south of the Statute of Liberty, the World Trade Center and the Empire State Building. While more buildings are expected to fill in, the curved site and staggered setbacks will maintain many of the view corridors.

"You are swept away by the beauty and elegance of the apartments," said Packes. "And the views are breathtaking."

The highway is of course what area legislators focused on as a way to stop the new neighborhood. Instead, since Rep. Jerrold Nadler has blocked Federal funding to have the highway torn down and rebuilt under the new Riverside Boulevard, the new resident voter park users are more likely to curse at the afternoon shadows and highway columns and send him packing home from Washington.

Since Rep. Nadler has also prevented low interest rate, government insured financing from helping Trump, the slightly higher conventional financing meant the prices and rents are higher, even for the 20 percent of the rentals that were set aside and hotly coveted by low income families.

There is a tunnel under Freedom Place, the parallel north-south street that backs onto Lincoln Towers and allows the Amtrack trains to continue to make their New England runs underground.