NYC compound with a secret tunnel hitting the auction block

Real Estate

An Upper East Side compound connected by an underground, skylit tunnel is heading to the auction block.

The minimum bid is $10.25 million.

The property features a four-story townhouse, at 251 E. 61st St., with the tunnel leading to an attached two-story rear carriage house. Bidding ends May 31, says Paramount Realty USA’s Misha Haghani, who’s auctioning it with Compass listing broker Jaime Richichi.

Built in 1919 and gut-renovated in 2015 by TRA Studio Architecture, the brick townhouse with a limestone facade has gone on and off the market.

It asked $14.25 million in 2016, and $13.99 million last year. 

For its part, the tunnel comes with some sweet perks. It has a 150-bottle wine room, elevator access, custom cork floors, closets, 10-foot-high ceilings and skylights looking up to a courtyard.


More than mere functionality, the tunnel also houses plenty of space for wine storage.
More than mere functionality, the tunnel also houses plenty of space for wine storage.
DD Reps / TRA Studios

The tunnel also has custom cork floors.
The tunnel also has custom cork floors.
DD Reps / TRA Studios

The property exterior.
The property exterior.
DD Reps / TRA Studios

Outdoor space up for grabs.
Outdoor space up for grabs.
Barion Design

Beyond the tunnel, the offering also features great design.
Beyond the tunnel, the offering also features great design.
Barion Design

A chic seating area.
A chic seating area.
Barion Design

A bedroom.
A bedroom.
Barion Design

“The tunnel was excavated by hand and sits on 5-gallon pails of soil,” Haghani said. “It runs the length of the outdoor courtyard.”

At 6,047 square feet, the five-bedroom, 6½-bath townhouse stands in the Treadwell Historic District.

It boasts floor-to-ceiling and large casement windows in the front and back — along with a home theater, multiple fireplaces, hardwood floors and a landscaped roof terrace with city views. 

The 1,200-square-foot carriage house features a skylit and double-height great room, a woodburning fireplace, a kitchen and dining area that opens to a courtyard, and a bedroom with a spa-like bath. 

The property also comes with 10,000 square feet of available air rights, a video security system, a sound system and a back-up generator.

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