Eldorado Apartments ARCHITECT: Margon & Holder; Emery Roth DATE: 1929-31 STYLE: Art Deco The Eldorado, extending along the entire blockfront of Central Park West between 90th and 9lst Streets, is the northernmost of the four twin-towered apartment houses that give Central Park West its distinctive skyline silhouette. The Eldorado was designed in 1929 by the architectural firm of Margon & Holder with the renowned early 20th-century New York City architect Emery Roth as a consultant. These architects created one of the finest and most dramatically massed Art Deco style residential buildings in New York City.

El Dorado Apartments, ca. 1920. The history of the El Dorado Apartments is similar to that of its nearby neighbor The Ardsley. The original El Dorado (seen in this photograph) was an eight-story speculative apartment house completed in 1902. Somewhat similar in design to the original Ardsley, the CPW front of the building had large rounded corners to allow for sweeping views of the park and good cross ventilation. In the 1920s the real estate market on Central Park West boomed and a number of the older apartment houses were demolished and replaced. In 1929 investor Frederick Brown bought the first El Dorado and resold the site to Louis Klosk, a Bronx-based developer. The financial crisis that followed would eventually stall the construction and force Klosk to foreclose. The eventual building, finished late in 1931 under new ownership, was a 30-story, twin tower Art Deco building. Designed by Margon & Holder, and their associate architect Emery Roth (who designed the second Ardsley) the large building has terraced setbacks on the towers topped by abstract geometric spires.

Take a walk in the beautiful Upper West Side. Start at Columbus Circle and discover the cultural and religious landmarks and the extravagant apartment buildings of this affluent neighborhood.