North End penthouse is a colorful loft
Can you imagine living right in the middle of Hanover Street in Boston’s North End? Yes, that Hanover Street – the street of restaurant dreams and traffic jams.
At 287 Hanover St., you can be high above the fray in a terrific loft, and the street sounds of hustle and bustle are distant.
Karen Pica of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage has listed this condo, Unit 5-5 at 287 Hanover St., at $499,999.
The entrance to Unit 5-5 is a doorway between two Hanover Street businesses – Sovereign Bank and Nahas Shoes, near the corner of Richmond Street.
You enter the vintage building constructed at the turn of the 20th century that once was a synagogue and subsequently housed a lodging house that served mariners.
It was converted to condominiums in 1973 and is known as the Seaman’s Condominium Association.
Today, the building has 10 units, and two are being combined.
Unit 5-5 is at the top of the stairs and is at the top of the world when the loft bedroom and roof deck are taken into account.
The kitchen is a stunner of stainless appliances, black lacquer cabinets, granite counters and a butcher block island.
Go into the glossy, pet-friendly, 816-square-foot loft, and the first thing catching your eye is the stylishness of the kitchen. The space glitters with stainless steel, granite and pendant lights.
There is also an unusual six-sided butcher block island, for preparing a meal or dining. The stainless steel appliances are all made by GE Profile. And the stovetop is gas.
The dark granite counter extends all the way from the kitchen to the living area, providing valuable desk, work and storage space.
Many of the black lacquered cabinets have opaque glass-fronts with stainless pulls. The overall effect is industrial chic but very serviceable. The area was designed in 2005 to be very practical.
White plantation shutters dominate the living room, which has a shiny wood floor.
The bedroom loft as seen from the perspective of looking over the living area. The ladder stairway ascends to the roof deck.
The windows, in two bays, extend up by 10 feet and really rule the room because they let in the light and lord over the landscape of the great room.
There is also a skylight, a ceiling fan and built-in oak shelves with lantern lights fixed to the wall under the windows to reinforce the notion that this place is really designed to serve the convenience of the owner.
The room is painted an indigo that Pica calls “midnight blue,” which describes it perfectly. Against this midnight, other qualities of the room sparkle, such as the custom lighting and the granite-topped cabinetry.
The 42-inch plasma TV mounted on the living room wall is included in the sale.
And the generous, 5-foot-high Avanti wine cooler could be included too, if the buyer makes the right offer.
The spiral stairway is a dramatic outlet from the living room. The stairway swirls, with generous platforms for the feet.
The bedroom loft is spacious but cozy, painted spring green and midnight blue, with a bathroom adjoining.
At the top is a bedroom loft, carpeted in beige textured carpet, with walls the color of spring green, with space for a home office.
You can set up your bed to face the walls or overlook the living room windows. Up in the loft you also find the walk-in closets, washer and dryer and bath.
The closets are discreetly cordoned behind cloth panels that slide or waft out. There is a stackable Maytag washer and dryer.
The custom closets as well as custom drawers and a dresser space are set down a narrow hallway. This dressing area is more than ample for someone with a large wardrobe and a need for privacy.
If you can’t get everything into the closets, this unit has a 200-square-foot basement storage area
The built-ins are especially convenient because it might be difficult to move a bulky piece of furniture up the spiral stairs. The bathroom, which opens off the loft hallway, is commodious with a glass vessel sink, wooden cabinets, tile floor and tiled bathtub.
But wait, there’s more. Another stairway prominently beckons in the loft area. Yes, you can go up on the roof, as the Drifters sang. Here, accessible by a bubble-top entry that doubles as a skylight, is a private rooftop terrace with weathered teak furniture.
The views of downtown Boston are those that only a privileged few can enjoy regularly, and delicious garlicky aromas waft to the roof, a reminder that Hanover Street is the destination for many a tourist clutching a guidebook or local gourmets seeking a fine Italian meal.
Truly, these are great perks of living in the heart of the North End.
DETAILS
Address: 287 Hanover St., Unit 5-5, North End
Price: $499,999
BR/BA: One bedroom, one bath
Size: 816 square feet
Age: Circa 1900; 1973; 2005
Taxes: $2,637 (with residential exemption)
Condo fee: $384 per month
Disclosure: $15,000 assessment to be paid by seller for re-pointing masonry and gutters.
Features of home: Penthouse loft; sleek kitchen with stainless steel G.E. Profile appliances, long granite counter, black lacquered cabinets, some with glass fronts and butcher block island; living area with 10-foot windows covered by plantation shutters; storage cupboards with smoky glass fronts, skylight and ceiling fan; custom closet in loft includes built-in shelves and dresser and full-size stackable washer and dryer; private roof deck with sought-after city views; large storage space in basement; pet friendly building.
Close by: Restaurants and shops of the North End, Waterfront, downtown and Financial District. TD Garden and Faneuil Hall Marketplace; grocery shopping at the Charles River Plaza; convenient access to Massachusetts General Hospital; easy access to MBTA Green and Orange Lines at Haymarket and Blue Line at Aquarium, Sumner Tunnell, Routes 93 and 90.
Contact: Karen Pica, Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, 633 Tremont St., Boston, MA 02118. Phones: 617-816-0026 (cell) or 617-424-6244 (office).
Website: www.newenglandmoves.com.
An open house at this property will be held Sunday, March 7, from 1 to 2:30 p.m.
