1999-11-24

Commercial Real Estate; Landmark House Becomes an 18th-Century-Furniture Gallery

by MERVYN ROTHSTEIN

The two-story brick house at 311 East 58th Street, just 50 feet west of an approach to the Queensboro Bridge, is a true antique. A New York City landmark, the house, nestled as if in a time warp amid the neighboring high-rises, was built in the 1850's and is considered a splendid example of the simple dwellings that once dotted Midtown. So it seems appropriate that the house, a private residence for more than 140 years, is soon to be converted to a gallery selling antique furniture.

The Philip Colleck Gallery, which specializes in fine 18th-century English furniture, bought the house earlier this year and expects to open its new home in February.

''I had been walking by the house for 20 years,'' said Mark Jacoby, president of Philip Colleck, whose gallery is now at 830 Broadway, at 12th Street. ''I used to see an elderly couple who lived there reading the newspaper, or the gentleman playing the piano. And I thought how unbelievably wonderful this was. It reminded me of Alexandria, Va., outside Washington, where I used to go antiquing with my father. A lot of period homes there used to house antique shops. And then one day earlier this year I walked by the house and saw a 'for sale' sign.''

Mr. Jacoby's lease at 830 Broadway was coming to an end. ''It was time to look for space,'' he said, ''and my wife and I wanted to go back to Midtown, where we live and where our firm originated in the 1930's.''

Philip Colleck's gallery had been in a town house at 122 East 57th Street until 1983, when it moved to Broadway and 12th Street. ''A town house is a wonderful place to showcase antiques,'' he said, ''and we wanted to return to doing that. The house on 58th Street is a charming little brick house, a very warm environment where we can display things in period rooms on three floors, including the basement, and give our clientele privacy.''

Mr. Jacoby went to see the house the next morning and then spoke to his wife, Diana, who is also his business partner. ''I had always been in love with the exterior,'' he said. ''I had never seen the interior. When I did see it, I knew it had to be. Diana saw it later that day, and without prompting from me came to the same conclusion. I think we had a contract within a week.''

Richard W. Seeler, the vice chairman of Grubb & Ellis New York, who was the broker for the deal, said that ''the building was perfect for this kind of use.''

''And it's right in the interior design district, the decorators' district,'' he said. ''The area is filled with tenants who deal in the decorators' trade.'' The Decoration and Design Building (known as the D. & D. Building) is close by, at Third Avenue and 58th Street.

The house at No. 311 was designated a landmark by the Landmarks Preservation Commission more than 30 years ago, in May 1967. ''This charming two-story and basement house with painted brick walls and stone trim has a clean, scrubbed look that is refreshing to behold,'' the commission's designation report said. ''It has escaped the wrecking ball and is a handsome example of the many small, modest houses that once dotted the crosstown streets of New York. Historically anonymous but well maintained, it is today a reminder of the residential architecture of a bygone day.'' A similar house next door, at No. 313, is also a landmark.

City records trace the house at No. 311 back to the early 1850's. John B. Huse, a Hudson Street printer, occupied it in 1873. Huse was followed in 1877 by Mathias Down, a Prussian-born merchant, and later by Down's grandson, Herman Weiden, whose family sold the house in 1950. It was bought that year by Charles Jones, a composer who taught at the Juilliard School and the Mannes College of Music. Mr. Jones lived in the house with his family and died in June 1997.

Mr. Jacoby said he had hired an architect, Peter M. Bernholz, to design the gallery. ''Part of the charm of the building is that it has its original doors, mahogany banisters and wide pine floors, all of which we're keeping,'' Mr. Jacoby said. ''We're keeping the room configurations as well. There are seven different fireplaces on the three floors, and a large rear garden that we're going to beautify. We've just received permission from the landmarks commission to take off the old blueberry-yogurt paint to reveal the natural brick. And we're keeping its beautiful white picket fence.''

Mr. Bernholz said the idea was ''to restore the building to its previous glory.''

''The garden, for instance, was completely neglected,'' he said. ''It was just a backyard. We're going to turn it into a fine English garden and make the garden a vital part of the house. We'll open the rear of the building more than it is right now so we can proceed from the shop onto a terrace and out into the garden, maybe have some interesting garden furniture, host little parties. We're also going to scrape away some of the ill-advised things, like the plastic flowers that have been added.''

Mr. Jacoby said they were also upgrading the plumbing, electrical systems, air-conditioning and lighting.

''We're turning a private house into a gallery,'' he said. ''But basically we're putting the house back the way it was. So we're modernizing it for the 21st century, but it will look like a house from the 19th century, and it will hold English furniture from the 18th century.''