# Boston's Rowhouses



## hkskyline (Sep 13, 2002)




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## MikeTheGreek (Jan 9, 2007)

Is it expensive to live in one of them?How much does a flat in those houses cost?


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## hkskyline (Sep 13, 2002)

MikeTheGreek said:


> Is it expensive to live in one of them?How much does a flat in those houses cost?


I took these photos in Back Bay and Beacon Hill, which are Boston's prestigious districts.


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## getontrac (Jun 3, 2006)

I think many of those are more properly refered to as townhouses. Rowhouses are constructed together as single project, ususally at least 3 or 4 minimum.

Nate


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## Stefan88 (May 25, 2006)

Some of those houses look similar to ones you see in England but more upmarket. Victorian houses really do look alot better than the sort of buildings you see being built today for domestic use.


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## Techno-Architect (Apr 9, 2005)

COOL PIX!
ANY MORE?


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## Sbz2ifc (Apr 16, 2006)

I like these:



hkskyline said:


>


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## prelude91 (Oct 30, 2006)

MikeTheGreek said:


> Is it expensive to live in one of them?How much does a flat in those houses cost?


Ive seen some go for as much as 3million +


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## DarkLite (Dec 31, 2004)

Great photography, the northeast has some of the best residential-historic architecture I have ever seen. Thank you for reinforcing my observations:cheers:


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## MCarr (Oct 4, 2003)

they can be expensive but with no parking underground or private parking is definetly too much.


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## Nouvellecosse (Jun 4, 2005)

Some very impressive houses there. I saw a few that were 4 stories + attic AND basement! I wish more cities had inner city homs on a similiar scale. If there were, it might reduce that demand for suburban housing based on people's desire for space.


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## lionchild (Dec 10, 2006)

*sigh* hno:

I wish that today, houses and insitutions are built more to this standard, today, even millionaires houses are made out of plastic and staples. Even the poor in days of old had better choice of architecture of even todays most expensive houses.

When i see and stand by places like these, i feel in awe of them, something to be proud about. I never get that from todays, "modern" styles. Perhaps its just my opinion..

I'm sure that one day, we will build like this, though a different style.


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## hkskyline (Sep 13, 2002)

I think Back Bay is a bit cheaper than Beacon Hill.

Source : http://www.forbes.com/2003/07/10/cx_bs_0711homez.html

02114 BEACON HILL 
2002 Median Home Price - $1,135,000


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## João Paulo (May 19, 2005)

I Love Boston!!!!


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## AJphx (Sep 13, 2002)

these really are wonderful rowhouses/townhouses.


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## hkskyline (Sep 13, 2002)

Source : http://www.pbase.com/dellybean/back_bay


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## Conrad (Dec 28, 2006)

america's finest.. the north-east.


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## hkskyline (Sep 13, 2002)

*High-style units. Unheard-of price. * 
By Kimberly Blanton, The Boston Globe 
23 May 2007

These Commonwealth Avenue sisters stand out like Parisian ladies at a tea party of Boston Brahmins. 

The adjacent Back Bay town houses are rare examples of ornate Beaux-Arts architecture in Boston and, by coincidence, are both for sale. One of them, priced at nearly $15 million, could easily set a record as the city's most expensive single-family home. 

"They're like that unique waterfront property that comes on the market on Cape Cod that's been in someone's family forever, and it's exquisite," said Back Bay real estate agent Ken Tutunjian. 

The twin sales offer a peek into the rarified world of the ultra-high-end housing market. Neither is having an open house; potential buyers for one house must present certification of their wealth from a financial planner just to tour the home, and then, to weed out all but serious bidders, must produce a $500,000 deposit to be able to bid. 

Located at 128 and 130 Commonwealth Ave., on the south side of the street, between Clarendon and Dartmouth, they are examples of an architectural style that flourished from 1885 to 1920 in Paris and Manhattan -- but is uncommon in tradition-bound Back Bay where understated red brick and brownstone town houses are the typical style. 

A showy style that was rich in detail but sometimes given to frothy ornamentation, Beaux-Arts was favored by the rich in America at a time when wealth was displayed ostentatiously. The Vanderbilt Breakers mansion in Newport is perhaps the most famous Beaux-Arts residence in the United States. 

Both Commonwealth Avenue town houses are made of white limestone, with garlands sculpted into their facades, Juliet balconies, and top-floor dormers trimmed in ribbons of copper turned green. Architectural historian Bainbridge Bunting once wrote the Beaux-Arts homes seemed to Bostonians to be unnatural imports from New York City. 

"They seem rather out of place," he said in his 1968 book, "Houses of Boston's Back Bay," and "their presence serves to remind us of Boston's resistance to Knickerbocker fashions and of her overwhelming allegiance to her native traditions." 

Their interiors are drenched in original mahogany paneling and feature enormous, arched windows overlooking the boulevard, floral wall and ceiling carvings, and 13 fireplaces between them. Outdoor parking spaces at the rear of both buildings have heated pavement. 

Auto dealer Herb Chambers is selling 128 Commonwealth. Ave. for $14.95 million. His neighbor, businessman Deepak Kulkarni, elected to have Chicago auctioneer Sheldon Good & Co. troll among an international set of potential buyers to get the highest possible price. The auction is set for June 21. 

The homes may appeal only to an exclusive set of ultrawealthy buyers who collect houses the way others collect rare wines or vintage baseball cards. They are far too expensive for developers to buy and chop into condos for quick profits, said agents and developers. 

The Commonwealth Avenue mansions are among five houses currently listed for sale at $10 million or more in Back Bay and Beacon Hill, according to the Listing Information Network, or Link. The current sales record is $9.12 million for 51 Commonwealth. Ave. in 2003. "Three years ago, $10 million was the ceiling, and now we're seeing a higher ceiling," said Link's president, Debra Taylor Blair. 

Finding one eligible buyer -- much less two -- will be a challenge. The simultaneous listings may affect the price each gets, though agents said it is difficult to predict when talking about such expensive properties and prospective buyers with millions to spend on real estate. 

"They're competing with each other," said Boston real estate agent John Neale. "It's certainly not going to make them more valuable." 

The Beaux-Arts homes may also not be to everyone's taste. Competitors include the contemporary luxury condominium towers sprouting all over downtown Boston, such as One Charles , the Residences at the InterContinental, and the Residences at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. These properties are rapidly filling up with corporate executives, entrepreneurs, and wealthy suburbanites, drawn by the sturdy construction, modern materials, and amenities such as dog walking or fresh steaks delivered to roof-top decks for grilling. 

"People want places that are less noisy with modern interiors," said David Epstein, president of Abbey Group in Boston, which is developing 45 Province, a glass and terra cotta condo high-rise near Boston Common and King's Chapel. 

Indeed, Chambers is planning to move to the Mandarin, where he committed to a buy a $7.5 million condo at the same time he bought the Commonwealth Avenue town house on a whim in June 2004 for $8.65 million. "It's a great entertaining house, but I don't do a lot of entertaining," said Chambers. 

There are about a dozen Beaux-Arts residences in Back Bay, including another pair at 426 and 428 Beacon St., said William Young, senior preservation planner for the city's Back Bay Architectural Commission. The two Commonwealth Avenue homes did not start out in the Beaux-Arts style; rather they were built as brownstones in 1882. In 1909, the owners redid the facades of the buildings in Beaux-Arts style, according to Young. 

"They're like Austrian pastries," he said. 

The current owners also revamped the interiors to suit their different tastes. 

When Chambers purchased 128 Commonwealth Ave. in 2004, it had previously been converted to three condominiums. In 2005, he began restoring it to a single residence, at a cost that was estimated at $750,000 in city records but, he said, was "much more than that." 

He installed a two-car underground garage, with an elevator to the fourth floor, where a terrace offers close-up views of the towering John Hancock and Prudential buildings. 

Plaster ceiling decorations are trimmed with gilt paint. Elaborately carved new features include a mahogany mantel and ornate balustrades, and the master bathroom has floors and walls made of onyx, a more luxurious stone than the marble found in garden-variety upscale homes. The rarely used kitchen stove is by La Cornue, handmade in France. 

Kulkarni's renovation hewed meticulously to the period. The uninhabited house was in a "dilapidated state" and lacked running water when he bought it in 1992, a low period in local real estate markets. 

He hired New York architect Alan Wanzenberg to undertake a restoration, which added modern features such as an elevator. 

The enormous foyer gives way to a five-foot-wide staircase with wide, open landings on each floor that give the residence an airy feel. Wanzenberg hired an artisan to hand polish the original walnut paneling, which was "book matched" in the 1800s so that the wood grains align -- a rare feature today. He also had door hinges machined in Germany that work so smoothly he can move heavy doors with one finger, he said. 

The real estate community is watching the sales closely. Chambers put his on the market the old-fashioned way, retaining Back Bay agent Beth Dickerson in March. Kulkarni, meanwhile, has created a buzz in Boston's real estate community by hiring outside auctioneer Sheldon Good, which sold the Miramar waterfront estate in Newport last year for $17.15 million. 

"High-quality art gets sold in auction. High-quality companies get sold in auction," Kulkarni said. "A lot of things that are valued are sold in auction, and this building is a piece of art."


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## hkskyline (Sep 13, 2002)

*HOME SHOWCASE ; Back Bay condo made to order *
13 March 2010
Boston Herald

Here's your chance to live at the former home of the L'Espalier restaurant in the heart of Back Bay.

A new three-bedroom duplex at L'Espalier's former 30 Gloucester St. location is available for $1.5 million.

Or, you can make an offer for the whole building and create an elegant single-family home.

A 130-year-old brick rowhouse, 30 Gloucester St. hosted L'Espalier from 1982 until 2008, when the exclusive restaurant moved to the nearby Mandarin Oriental Hotel.

One of Boston's first haute-cuisine eateries, L'Espalier featured a series of elegant, high-style dining areas outfitted with paneled woodwork, original wainscoting and marble fireplaces.

Plans call for eventually converting the restaurant's two lower floors into condos, but the current owner has already turned the top two floors into duplex Unit 4.

This posh 2,100-square-foot space includes a kitchen and master bathroom that the seller will complete to your specifications.

On the outside, 30 Gloucester St. features a brick exterior with stone coursings and projecting bay windows with fine detailing.

You'll enter the 4,800-square-foot building via a wrought-iron Art Nouveau entrance.

This leads to a marble-walled foyer and glass double doors that open into a sumptuous lobby area.

This space shows off the building's beautiful winding staircase, and also features full-wall paneled wainscoting and an inset suitable for hosting a piece of sculpture.

Go up to the third floor and you'll reach Unit 4, which opens into a foyer outfitted with restored-hardwood floors.

Straight ahead, a large open living/dining room features restored- hardwood floors, recessed lighting and new three-part crown molding.

The 20-by-17-foot living room boasts a floor-to-ceiling built-in outfitted with 10 shelves and two cabinets. There's also a fireplace with a new marble hearth and a refurbished dentil-molded mantel, as well as four oversized windows (including a three-pane bay window).

The adjacent 14-by-7-foot dining room includes a large double- door closet.

Unit 4's 21-by-12-foot kitchen features recessed lighting, crown molding, new hardwood floors, a dozen cherrywood cabinets and bi- level brown-granite counters.

There's also a fireplace with a restored-wood mantel and new stone hearth, as well as three oversized windows that provide Back Bay views.

Additionally, the current owner will add your choice of high-end stainless-steel appliances or provide a $7,000 credit.

Nearby, a 7-by-7-foot bathroom features beige ceramic-tile floors, a walk-in shower and a cherrywood vanity with brown-granite counters.

Unit 4 also has a laundry/utility alcove that hosts the condo's gas-fired forced-hot-water heating system. The seller will also add your choice of a washer and dryer.

An adjacent doorway leads out to the building's third-floor roof, which can accommodate a private terrace.

Back inside, a staircase with refurbished oak treads and exposed- brick walls takes you up to Unit 4's second floor.

You'll first come to a restored tile-and-wood hallway outfitted with several closets, including one that holds Unit 4's water heater.

Down the hall, the master-bedroom suite consists of an 18-by-11- foot bedroom, a 14-by-8-foot bathroom and a 7-by-6-foot walk-in closet.

The bedroom offers tile floors and three windows done in a bay arrangement, while the walk-in closet has built in wardrobes and storage shelves.

The bathroom (which previously served as a L'Espalier employee restroom) currently has white-tile flooring, a walk-in shower and a double-sink vanity. However, the seller will rebuild this space to your specifications.

Unit 4 also has a second smaller bedroom suite consisting of a 12- by-12-foot bedroom and 8-by-7-foot bathroom.

The bedroom boasts new hardwood floors and new floor-to-ceiling built-ins sandwiched in between two windows.

The en-suite bathroom features white-ceramic-tile floors, a Corian-topped vanity and a green-tile walk-in shower.

Further down the hall, the condo's 14-by-10-foot third bedroom offers restored hardwood floors and two windows.

As for location, 30 Gloucester St. is steps away from the extensive offerings of Newbury and Boylston streets. There's no off- street parking, but but on-street parking is legal with a residents' permit.

For more information or a chance to see this property, call Herion Karbunara of H & Co. Real Estate at 617-894-2793.[M]

BOX: Home checklist: Information about this week's profiled home:

** Address: Unit 4, 30 Gloucester St., Back Bay

** Bedrooms: Three

** Bathrooms: Three

** List price: $1.5 million

** Square feet: 2,100

** Price per square foot: $714

** Annual taxes: To be determined

** Monthly condo fee: $400

** Features: Newly renovated duplex condo located on the top two floors of the landmark L'Espalier restaurant's former home. The unit features bay windows, two fireplaces, two bedroom suites and a mix of new and restored crown molding and hardwood floors. The kitchen features hardwood floors, brown granite counters, recessed lighting and a restored fireplace.

** Location: A half-block from Newbury Street's shops and restaurants, as well as 1 1/2 blocks from Boylston Street's extensive offerings and T service.

** Built in: 1880, updated in 2009


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## Chadoh25 (Dec 28, 2007)

I wish we had stuff like this in Columbus! I mean we have Rowhouses, but they are very plain.


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