40 East 61st Street
40 East 61st Street · Lenox Hill, Upper East Side
40 East 61st Street is a prewar Art Deco condominium between Park and Madison Avenues, built in 1928 as the LeRoy Hospital and converted to 36 residential condominiums in 1983, with medical offices still occupying its lower five floors.
At a glance
- Type
- Condominium (mixed-use)
- Built
- 1928 as LeRoy Hospital; converted 1983
- Height
- 21 stories
- Residences
- 36 apartments (upper floors)
- Architect
- Kenneth Franzheim (1928); Paul Segal (1983 conversion)
- Service
- Full-time doorman, live-in superintendent
- Amenities
- Terraces on some units, central laundry
- Pets
- Allowed
From a private hospital to Art Deco condominiums
The building at 40 East 61st Street opened in 1928 as the LeRoy Sanitarium, later the LeRoy Hospital, a private hospital and maternity facility founded by Alice Fuller LeRoy and designed by Kenneth Franzheim. It served a well-off clientele: Christina Onassis was born here in 1950 and the actor Peter Fonda in 1940. New mothers reportedly had their meals sent over from the fashionable Colony restaurant on the same block.
The LeRoy Hospital closed in 1980. In 1983, developer Rose-Dorcar 61 Associates converted the building to residential condominiums, hiring architect Paul Segal along with the firm Rothzeid, Kaiserman & Thomson. The conversion added four floors to the original structure and widened it by roughly a third, bringing it to its current height while keeping the ground and lower floors as medical office space, a mixed-use arrangement that continues today.
The building keeps its Art Deco character, with a fluted limestone base and bronze entrance doors, one block from Central Park.
Josh's view of 40 East 61st Street
What you won't find on a listing portal, in Josh's own words.
Who it suits
Those who want one of the best locations in Manhattan. The building is at 61st Street and Madison Avenue, one block from Central Park and the best of both Madison and Fifth Avenue. It's a rockstar location!
Buying here
If you can buy at the right price point, this is a no-brainer. While the building has a commercial feel with limited amenities, the units have a lot of charm and large, expansive layouts.
The best lines
The C line is incredibly efficient because it can be converted to a three-bedroom.
Mistakes buyers make
The block does have a commercial feel, but the units in this building are stunning.
What a listing won't tell you
The location has to be seen to be believed! Serafina, Sant Ambroeus, and other top-tier places are directly across the street. The location is just superb.
Inside 40 East 61st Street
Residence 6C, marketed by Garay Real Estate.
Living at 40 East 61st Street
The building sits on the Lenox Hill blocks of the Upper East Side between Park and Madison Avenues, a block from Central Park and within easy walking distance of Fifth Avenue's luxury shopping corridor.
- Subway: N/Q/R/4/5/6 trains at Lexington Avenue and 59th/60th Street, about 0.16 miles away; F train at Lexington Avenue and 63rd Street, about 0.20 miles
- One block from Central Park
- Fifth Avenue and Madison Avenue shopping a block or two west
- The Plaza Hotel and the Central Park Zoo within a short walk
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Open the tool →Sources: CityRealty building page: 40 East 61st Street · Wikipedia: LeRoy Sanitarium · Wikipedia: Christina Onassis (confirms birth at LeRoy Sanitarium in Lenox Hill) · Garay Real Estate listing: 40 East 61st Street, 6C
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