740 Park Avenue

Building: 740 Park Avenue in Lenox Hill

Referred to as one of Manhattan’s “Towers of Power,” in a New York Magazine article not only for its ultra-luxe apartment homes, but for the wealthy who reside and have resided there, 740 Park Avenue is so grand that an entire book, “740 Park: The Story of the World’s Richest Apartment Building” by Michael Gross was devoted to it.

James T. Lee, grandfather of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis (740 was her childhood home), was the developer. According to a New York Times article in 1995, the paper reported Mr. Lee as having developed $35M worth of buildings in the early 1920s.

The famed Italian-American architect Rosario Candela, legendary for designing some of New York’s most expensive and elaborate homes on Park and Fifth Avenue, along with Arthur Loomis Harmon (one of the architects responsible for the Empire State Building) collaborated to design the 19-story limestone building at the corner of 71st Street. Some residents prefer to use the “more discreet” entry on 71st Street than the one located on Park Avenue, unmistakeable (yet understated and elegant) with its polished granite entry, flanked by columns and a gated doorway.

740 Park Avenue’s history of housing the immensely rich, including John D. Rockefeller, Jr., royalty, major worldwide players in entertainment, finance, politics and more, also has a colorful past of the goings-on at the luxury building since it opened its doors to the uber-rich in 1931.

These aren’t just luxury apartment homes; rather, urban mansions, one having 20,000 square feet! There are only 31 units (duplexes, triplexes and penthouses) within 740 Park Avenue and each has spectacular features — colossal galleries, walnut-paneled rooms, sweeping views, wood-burning fireplaces, curvaceous staircases and windows, windows, windows everywhere.

Long regarded as one of Manhattan’s most glamorous residences, 740 Park Avenue has a distinct lineage — one of power, wealth and a long-standing tradition of catering to the wealthiest people in the world — and a reputation of exclusivity to the nth degree.

Amenities at and features of 740 Park Avenue:

• 24-hour doorman/concierge
• Landmark residential building on Manhattan’s “Gold Coast”
• Fitness Center
• 24-hour staff
• Secure, private entrances
• High ceilings, hardwood floors
• Formal dining rooms
• Multi-room palatial-like homes with one-of-a-kind prewar detail and finishings; superb renovations
• Fireplaces
• Terraces
• Located in prime location in Upper East Side, steps away from Central Park, upscale dining/shopping/cultural venues

Developer: James T. Lee
Architects: Rosario Candela and Arthur Loomis Harmon

Building description provided by Ilan Bracha