A ground-breaking co-op packed with amenities and room to spare
Rivercross, a building of firsts, set a high bar for middle-income living in 1975 when it was completed. Not only is the 20-story co-op filled with amenities, but unit footprints are unusually large for a New York City residential building. “It's a wonderful place to live,” says Kaja Meade, a Corcoran real estate agent who is both a resident and facilitates sales within the building. Designed by John Johansen and Ashok M. Bhavnani, the 376-unit modernist structure was one of the first buildings to be completed from the 1960s master plan for Roosevelt Island, dreamed up by master architects Philip Johnson and John Burgee. Rivercross was also the island’s first co-op and one of the first buildings to be occupied once the plan began to take form. Although Rivercross started off as Mitchell-Lama-funded, the board left the program in 2014 and residences are now sold at market rate. That doesn’t mean that prices are completely out of reach, however. A 932-square-foot two-bedroom, two-bath was on offer for under $800,000 in the fall of 2024.
Over the years, the building has garnered a reputation. “It has a history of being sort of established as one of the premier buildings on the island,” says Meade. “It's really well managed and has a really good financial structure.” The building’s location on Roosevelt Island (only 800 feet wide at its broadest) also means that residents live with unobstructed views of the water and the Manhattan skyline in an almost bucolic setting. “Water is a way of life here,” says Meade. “Here, you take the ferry. You see people fishing. You see the river almost all day, every day, from every perspective. There's boats…it's living on the water for sure.” Most residents have held onto their units or passed them down to family, which means prospective buyers most likely will need to do a complete design overhaul. But those yearning for roomy digs and tranquil living within a big city may enjoy what Rivercross is offering.
Wide hallways designed with children in mind
Even though Rivercross is referred to as one building, it’s more like a series of conjoined buildings molded into an uneven u-shape facing the East River. And Rivercross itself is roomy. That’s one of the things new residents noticed when they moved into the building. Belonging to the first family to occupy the building, Chris Enock told Curbed in 2023 that as a 12-year-old moving from their Upper East Side apartment, the hallways seemed colossal. That’s because they are. According to Bhavnani, the wide, double-height corridors on almost every floor were intended as spaces for children to play. Duplexes, built during construction, are found throughout the building and units originally with two bedrooms and up all have terraces. Picture windows are found in every room feeding apartments with natural light and framing views of the Manhattan skyline, the East River or Main Street.
Prospective buyers should be warned that they will find outdated finishes when touring apartments. Having only exited Mitchell-Lama in 2014 in addition to having been kept within families, many units are coming onto the open market for the first or second time since being built and have not had gut renovations. “A lot of the purchases in the building will require some level of upgrade or renovation,” says Meade. “If you want to buy, you always have to factor in a renovation budget that you're comfortable with.” That said, those who value space, views, light and the non-chaotic lifestyle Roosevelt Islanders claim, will treasure these units.
Most prices are still relatively accessible
Apartments at Rivercross consist of studios to four-bedrooms. There are very few studios but those average around 720 square feet, the size of many one-bedroom apartments in New York City. A Queens-facing studio with a renovated kitchen on the 14th floor sold for $480,000 in the fall of 2024. One- and two-bedroom units make up the majority of floorplans. One-bedrooms average around 988 square feet and two-bedrooms can go up to 1,371 square feet. A one-bedroom that’s seen at least one renovation, went for $675,000 in the summer of 2024 and two-bedrooms can still be had for under a million with a recent price range from $810,000 to $998,000. Three-bedroom units come with two-and-a-half bathrooms. Those average 1,777 square feet and range from $1.175 million to $1.8 million. Four-bedrooms, the rarest sized units, clock in between 1,777 and 2,200 square feet. In January of 2024, the first four-bedroom to appear on the market in almost 10 years sold for $2 million. Buyers will have to work with approved lenders because the building sits on leased land. All utilities, except for cable and storage, are included in the maintenance fee.
Full-time staff and a cogen plant are part of the amenities
Amenities at Rivercross are plentiful. Residents are always greeted by a full-time doorman and concierge at the front desk of the bright, double-height lobby with polished stone floors. A 60-foot, heated, underground pool receives immense amounts of sunlight from several large skylights. Pool facilities include separate saunas for men and women, showers, changing rooms, a ping-pong table and a punching bag. A two-story gym is provided as are a large children’s playroom, a community room, and a laundry room. The building is also very energy efficient. The HVAC system and the windows were all replaced about 13 years ago and a cogen plant was installed that keeps the building’s energy cost low. Now, energy used to cool the building in the summer is reused to heat it in the winter. Pets are allowed, except for dogs which have to be classified as support animals.
Food shopping is nearby and athletic activities dominate leisure time
Roosevelt Island’s shopping consists of the essentials: there is a Foodtown only a six-minute walk from Rivercross, and Wholesome Factory, a smaller deli-style grocery sits across the street. A few bodegas are scattered around the island plus a farmer’s market sets up shop every Saturday. There is a Costco about a 10-minute walk away on Vernon Boulevard in Queens and a Trader Joe’s on 59th Street, one block from the tram stop. A few casual eateries dot the landscape like the ramen restaurant Zhongzhong Noodles and Piccolo Trattoria Ristorante Pizzeria in Northtown. There’s only one restaurant in Southtown at Graduate by Hilton New York — the island’s only hotel — serving breakfast through dinner. The hotel has a nightclub and lounge on the 18th floor which also serves dinner and offers a raw bar.
But Roosevelt Island isn’t exactly a sleepy little rock in the East River. “We don't have endless restaurants,” says Meade, but “it's a very active living environment.” The neighborhood is only two miles long but so much of its 147 acres seem to be taken up by athletic facilities, which islanders love. “We have Advantage Tennis, one of the best tennis clubs in the city,” Meade says. There’s also Sportspark, a recreational facility with a renovated gym, swimming pool, basketball court that can also be used as a soccer pitch, stretch studio, and a rec room for rent. Membership here is open to all New Yorkers and not just islanders. Elsewhere, there are outdoor soccer pitches, three baseball fields, three City Bike stations, five playgrounds, Lighthouse Park on the north end and Four Freedoms Park on the south end which are wrapped in running trails on the rivers’ edges. There’s also a black box theater, two art galleries, and fishing is allowed. Cornell Tech — the Ivy League university’s innovation campus — opens co-working spaces at their cafeteria to non-students.
A variety of interesting and hassle-free transportation options
As one would imagine, an atypical location like Roosevelt Island, requires atypical transportation options. The island is served by the city’s one and only tram which runs over the western half of the East River from 59th Street and Second Avenue in Manhattan to Tramway Plaza on Roosevelt Island, every 10 to 20 minutes. The island’s ferry goes to East 34th Street and Wall Street but first stops at Astoria and Long Island City before getting into Manhattan. “My kids sometimes commute from the ferry to school,” says Meade. The Q102 bus and cars enter the island via the Roosevelt Island Bridge in Queens, the only route for vehicular traffic to enter and exit the island. The F train is the only subway line that serves residents and the Main Street stop is only a minute’s walk from Rivercross. All residents have access to the Red Bus, a free bus that loops the island, making getting around easy.
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Current List Price
Sold Price
Area Factors
Low Crime
Crime Score®
2/ 10
Very Bikeable
Bike Score®
76/ 100
Very Walkable
Walk Score®
82/ 100
Rider's Paradise
Transit Score®
100/ 100
Sources: WhatIsMyCrimeRisk.com, Walk Score
Sources: WhatIsMyCrimeRisk.com, Walk Score
WhatIsMyCrimeRisk.com, Powered by CAP Index provides objective, accurate, and consistent data to help measure, compare, and mitigate crime risks. Walk Score® measures the walkability of any address. Transit Score® measures access to public transit. Bike Score® measures the bikeability of any address.
Sound Score® measures the noise level of any address. Environmental risk data is provided by First Street Foundation® and is designed to approximate risk and not intended to include all possible scenarios.
Parks in this Area
Blackwell Park
3 min walk
Basketball
Picnic Area
Playground
Capobianco Field
3 min walk
Baseball/Softball
Basketball
Tennis
Southtown Dog Run
5 min walk
Dog Park
Firefighter's Field
5 min walk
Manhattan Park
5 min walk
Trails
Jack McManus Field
10 min walk
Soccer
Trails
Multi-Purpose Field
Cherry Tree Walk
10 min walk
Queensbridge Park
4 min drive
Baseball/Softball
Bike Trails
Tennis
Andrew Haswell Green Park
10 min drive
Bike Trails
Dog Park
Picnic Area
Schools
Source:
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