Some residential conversions are gargantuan in size, most typified by the planned transformation of 219 and 235 East 42nd Street into a record 1,600 rental apartments.
But conversions come in many sizes and shapes. Development firm Adellco’s adaptive-reuse conversion of the former printing house at 114 East 25th St. into a mere 20 condo “loft” residences epitomizes the boutique-scale projects that are creating new options for buyers who don’t want their homes coming from impersonal, giant former office buildings.
The Armorie is Adellco’s name for the Beaux-Arts-style, 14-story building that opened in 1921 to serve the printing trade. It was most recently a WeWork-like shared office space before Adellco bought it vacant in January 2024.
The conversion, to be completed in early 2026, will yield 20 units priced from $1.475 million to $7.99 million, to be marketed by Corcoran Sunshine Market Group.
The design by Andre Kikoski Architecture (AKA) is to include a “jewel-box” lobby with a custom Lasvit glass chandelier.
Apartments will boast patterned stones including leather-finish Naica quartzite, translucent Cristallo white quartzite and exotic marble. The penthouse will have a private rooftop terrace, while a different rooftop terrace will be open to all residents.
There will also be what Adellco owner Matthew Adell called “a delightful wood-paneled gym in the cellar, known as the club level.”
Adellco specializes in adaptive reuse projects such as its recent successful conversion of the historic Wales Hotel on upper Madison Avenue into 21 luxury condos.
Adell said the Armorie met his requirements for “a specific asset on a particular block.”
Among them was a footprint needing no alteration at all, and a building core that was in the right position to allow for residential floor layouts.
“The building had the right character,” he said of its brick facade with Beaux Arts accents. “We want folks who live there to feel as if they belong there.”
“This is a very civilized street. this is a very civilized block. The 69th Regiment Armory is across the street. There isn’t a lot of traffic, so it’s quiet,” he added.
Adell wouldn’t address fine points of the conversion cost except to say its “hard costs” were $450 per square foot, which works out to about $23.4 million for the 52,000 square-foot building.
Sales have begun and the first move-ins should take place in January 2026.
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