Ruby Two

By: Michael Young and Matt Pruznick 8:00 am on July 27, 2023

Construction is finishing up on Ruby, a pair of 22-story residential buildings at 243 West 28th Street in Chelsea. Designed by COOKFOX and developed by MAG Partners, Atalaya, Safanad, and Qualitas, the 400,000-square-foot project will yield 480 rental units with 144 reserved for low- and middle-income households, as well as 8,500 square feet of ground-floor retail space. Douglas Elliman Development Marketing is in charge of leasing and marketing and Urban Atelier Group is the general contractor for the property, which is located on a through-block parcel between Seventh and Eighth Avenues with frontage on both West 28th and 29th Streets.

Façade installation was still ongoing on portions of the upper levels and on the interior-facing walls at the time of our last update in February. This has all since concluded, and the sidewalk scaffolding has been disassembled from both sides of the property. Some fencing and barricades still remain while work wraps up on the main entrance, but should be removed in the coming weeks.

Photo by Michael Young

The canopy over the front doors is among the few outstanding finishing touches. The metal framing is in place and more of the paneling will soon clad the underside and edges.

Photo by Michael Young

The following close-up shots show the details in the red brick façade, which was installed by King Contracting Group and spans some 100,000 square feet. Belden Tri-State Building Materials and Taylor Clay Brick supplied the brickwork, which is arranged in various running bond patterns, and features chamfered edges leading to the grid of recessed windows with decorative custom metal railings supplied by Cladding Concepts.

Photo by Michael Young

New light fixtures have been installed across the ground floor as well.

Photo by Michael Young

Work has also concluded on the metal-paneled mechanical bulkheads and the rooftop landscaping.

Photo by Michael Young

Homes at Ruby come with in-unit washers and dryers, central AC, and name-brand kitchen appliances. Each unit has oversized windows and ceiling spans up to 15 feet, as well as contemporary fixtures such as smart home keyless entry, Nest thermostats, oak flooring, oversized closets, blackout and solar shades, and Energy Star-certified Bosch washers and dryers. Kitchens get a Bosch appliance package with custom cabinetry, satin chrome hardware, quartz countertops and full-height antique white herringbone tile backsplashes. The bathrooms are lined with polished chrome fixtures and mirrored cabinets with abundant storage, wall-hung oak vanity paired with a custom shelf, herringbone flooring, and walk-in showers with full-height herringbone tiled walls enveloped by seamless glass in select residences.

Amenities at Ruby include pet-friendly policies, a 24/7 attended lobby, a live-in superintendent, dog-washing station, media room, library, multiple indoor lounges, a two-story fitness center, children’s playroom, laundry room, bike storage, an outdoor second-floor courtyard, an outdoor rooftop swimming pool with an adjacent lounge, and an upper-level terrace on the southern building. The development is engineered to achieve LEED Silver certification.

The nearest subway from Ruby is the local 1 train at the 28th Street station to the east along Seventh Avenue. Also nearby is the 34th Street-Penn Station complex with access to the A, C, E, 1, 2, and 3 trains, Long Island Rail Road, New Jersey Transit, and Amtrak.

YIMBY expects the remaining work on the ground floor to be completed sometime later this summer.

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