A stunning Beaux Arts mansion on Manhattan’s Upper West Side has just listed for the first time in 30 years
A 25-foot-wide Gilded Age home located just off famed Riverside Drive is asking $29.75 million, marking a prime chance to own a rare piece of property.
The seven-story townhouse — with its bowed limestone facade, wrought iron details, French doors and large terraces — is hard to miss. Its listing, first reported by Mansion Global, is held by Douglas Elliman’s Lydia Sussek.
The home last sold in the late 1990s, and unsuccessfully aimed for a sale in 2013 for a much higher $50 million.
The 11,500-square-foot residence includes seven bedrooms and 14 bathrooms, Mansion Global reported, with views of the Hudson River and Riverside Park to the west.
In addition to an excess of outdoor space, its amenities include seven woodburning fireplaces, a wine cellar, a library, a cinema and a gym.
The distinctive townhouse has been featured in photo shoots and TV shows like “Law & Order,” “The Good Wife,” and “Madame Secretary,” according to Mansion Global.
The Beaux Arts-style dwelling was built between 1900 and 1901 by developer Joseph A. Farley with architects Janes & Leo. The exiled Russian prince Sergei Belosselsky-Belozersky purchased the property in the 1940s and turned it into the headquarters of a nonprofit for Russian immigrants. The Russian Aid Society’s 50-year tenure there earned 349 W. 86th St. the nickname “House of Free Russia.”
Randall Rackson, founder of the derivatives business for insurance and financial services giant AIG, bought the home in 1999 on the heels of a major dispute between the Russian Aid Society and its neighbors. Randall left AIG in the ’90s, before the company played a significant role in the onset of the Great Recession in the following decade.
Rackson told Mansion Global that the roof was gone when he nabbed the home in 1999, with rats and pigeons already in residence. Rackson paid $1.4 million, according to StreetEasy. He then set about restoring the facade and interiors to their Gilded Age glory.
“There were no stairs, the only way to get into the upper floors of the building was with scaffolding,” Rackson told The Post.
Rackson said his family is parting with the home in an effort to downsize, as they’re spending a majority of their time at other properties.
“It’s a very flexible space,” Rackson said. “You can have 50 people there, or you can have four people there for an intimate dinner.”
