A Ridgefield residence created by the renowned architect Rafael Viñoly is back on the market at a discounted sales price.
The 191 Ridgebury Road home is among the relatively few private residences designed by Viñoly, who is world famous for his commercial property designs including Jazz at Lincoln Center and 432 Park Avenue in Manhattan and Jongno Tower in Seoul, South Korea.
The 10,561-square-foot, three-bedroom and three-bathroom home on a 5-acre property with indoor and outdoor pools was created as the home for Alice Lawrence, widow of New York real estate executive Sylvan Lawrence, who used the home to display her extensive art collection.
Built in 1990, the structure stood out from local residences for its bold use of concrete walls and steel fixtures ”“ its futurist exterior made it look more like a commercial building than a private home.
Lawrence lived there until her death in 2008, and her heirs could not find a buyer for their requested $10 million listing price. They later donated the residence to Fairfield University ”“ at the time, the property was priced at $5.4 million. However, the university never found a way to incorporate the property into its operations and had problems selling it: an initial listing of $3.2 million was cut in 2012 for $2.7 million to a limited liability company owned by Fraydun Manocherian, the owner of the New York Health & Racquet Club chain.
Over the past seven years, attempts to sell the home have been unsuccessful. It was first listed in December 2013 at $25 million, but within 18 months the price was down to $19.5 million. It is now listed at $9.75 million, and the price includes an adjacent 11.23-acre featuring a 3,500-square-foot farmhouse with a legal apartment and separate entrance.
