A First Look at the Nearly Finished Arthaus

Imagine watching the sunset over University City from this stylish great room designed by Philadelphia celebrity designer Jimmy DeLaurentis. You can dream in person at Philly Mag’s Arthaus Penthouse Premiere, now through May 22. / Photograph by Chris Koontz via Jimmy DeLaurentis Design.

Of all the places I’ve lived over these 63 years, the one I remember most fondly is an apartment I lived in over a store just off Watertown Square in suburban Boston during my college years.

The apartment, located over one of those convenience store/soda fountain combos Bostonians call “spas,” wasn’t all that great shakes: its living room had no windows and its four bedrooms were all small.  But it did have a nice midcentury modern kitchen and dining area in the back, and behind it was a covered deck that faced due west.

And most summer evenings, after coming home from work in downtown Boston, I would head out to that deck, put on Kool and the Gang’s “Summer Madness,” light up a spliff and watch the sun set over a parking lot, a laundromat and the Watertown Free Public Library.

The only differences between that and the 43rd-floor penthouse terrace at Arthaus are: There’s no roof on the terrace, and the sun sets over University City rather than a laundromat.

Okay, okay, those aren’t the only differences. The 60-foot-long 43rd-floor terrace sits on the west end of what will ultimately be a fabulous, 5,460-square-foot, four-bedroom, five-and-a-half-bath, two-level penthouse condo with an internal elevator.

Most of that apartment right now is a vanilla shell, but that terrace, the kitchen and the east-facing balcony next to it were all ready for last night’s preview party for Philly Mag’s Penthouse Premiere at Arthaus.

And if you have your eyes set on making that penthouse yours — all it will cost you is $15,116,300 — you can get some design inspiration by touring the unit below it, on the west side of the 42nd floor, during the Penthouse Premiere, now underway through May 22nd.

The designers who put the Penthouse Premiere together: Jimmy DeLaurentis (left), Stella Ludwig (center) and Danica Satell (right) Photograph of DeLaurentis via Jimmy DeLaurentis Design; Photographs of Ludwig and Satell by Nell Hoving.

The 42nd-floor unit contains three bedrooms, four full and one half baths, 4,378 square feet of interior space, and two balconies — one at the northwest corner, the other at the northeast — with 292 square feet of space. Philadelphia-based interior designers Jimmy DeLaurentis, Stella Ludwig and Danica Satell have turned that unit into an opulent mix of the modern and the Moderne, drawing on their own immense talents and flair.

Primary bedroom / Photograph by Nell Hoving

Guest bedroom / Photograph by Nell Hoving

Bedroom / Photograph by Laura Swartz

DeLaurentis did the great room and primary bedroom suite, while Ludwig did the other two bedrooms.

Kitchen / Photograph by Nell Hoving

Powder room / Photograph by Nell Hoving

Satell made the kitchen pretty and also designed the butler’s pantry and powder room. She also chose the wallpaper for the vestibule.

The great room and primary bedroom feature items from DeLaurentis’ James by Jimmy DeLaurentis line of bespoke furniture, while the bedrooms, bathrooms and dressing rooms reflect Ludwig’s love of color.

Great room at night / Photograph by Chris Koontz

And as the great room takes up the entire west side of the 42nd floor, it too comes with beautiful sunsets over University City. And after the sun sets, the lights of the city make for enchanting sights from it.

In addition to the two penthouses, those taking the Penthouse Premier tour can also check out Arthaus’ many amenities on the sixth and seventh floors.

Greenhouse and reflecting pool / Photograph by Laura Swartz

One pair of amenities that set this luxury condo apart from all the other high-end condos in the city are the planter beds and greenhouse in the sixth-floor sky garden. Two other high-end condo towers come with private gardens — Dranoff’s One Riverside and Bock Development’s soon-to-open 2100 Hamilton — but no other luxury condo in the city offers residents the opportunity to grow their own food and ornamental plants.

Lap pool and hot tub / Photograph by Laura Swartz

They also get to enjoy a 75-foot indoor pool and hot tub, a rooftop dog run, a dog spa, a dining salon with demonstration kitchen, a beauty salon, a fitness center overlooking the Kimmel Center, a yoga studio, a sauna and steam room, and a kids’ playroom. (Yes, this condo is both pet- and family-friendly.)

Club room / Photograph by Laura Swartz

Private beauty salon / Photograph by Laura Swartz

It also has an outdoor terrace with seating and a reflecting pool, outdoor grills, a lawn for outdoor relaxation, a library lounge, a club room, a board room and a catering kitchen for private dinners as well as a laundry room for oversized items

And upon entry, they are greeted by a mosaic designed by Sicis of Italy and inspired by Claude Monet’s “Water Lilies” series of 250 oil paintings. Dranoff commissioned the mural precisely for its calming and relaxing qualities.

Arthaus will welcome its first residents in June, and a furnished model unit is open for inspection every day. But even if you aren’t planning to buy an Arthaus condominium on any floor, the Penthouse Premiere can still give you creative design and decor ideas for your own home or one you plan to buy.

Gorgeous sunsets not included.

Philadelphia magazine’s Penthouse Premiere at Arthaus begins today (Thursday, April 28th) and continues through May 22nd, with tours available from noon to 7 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday.  Tickets cost $20 to $25. A portion of the proceeds from each sale will benefit the Kimmel Center’s free music education programs for Title I schools. To purchase tickets, visit arthaus.eventbrite.com.