By U.S. standards New York is a pretty old city, and over the years New Yorkers have been pretty diligent about preserving its historic architecture. As we head into the future, we’re seeing more and more old industrial buildings being transformed into beautiful homes. A great example is this Upper East Side penthouse in a water tower that is not only awesome in concept, but is also stunning to look at. Lili and Lee Siegelson, the couple who own the immaculate home, worked with Olson Kundig Architects, and together they transformed two floors of the building into an apartment big enough for their happy family.

When Olson Kundig Architects began an overhaul of the apartment five years ago, Lee had been living there for a half-decade, having purchased the eccentric tower space — effectively the building’s 18th floor, and tall enough to have its own small mezzanine — as a bachelor in 2004. After he married Lili and they had two kids, the couple added the (much more conventional) 17th floor, and now they had to figure out how to put it all together. “At some point,” says Tom Kundig, principal of Olson Kundig, “you just go, ‘At what point are we grown up? When do we start to make a true home?’ They might not agree with that,” he adds, starting to laugh, “but I see it all the time.”

Making a true home entailed completely gutting the 18th floor and cutting a stairwell through from below. The architects custom-designed many of the interior fittings, including a banquette-bench-table dining nook in the corner of the living room. Their polished refinements of utilitarian materials can be seen in details like the exposed-pulley handle that opens the upper windows. The Siegelsons “came to us because of our industrial sensibility,” Kundig says. “What I think of as industrial is authentic; it embraces the function of the place, the materials, and it’s an expression of how it all works together, and that is what they really liked.” To that end, they left the exposed brick walls alone and used steel-chain mesh to cover the huge arched windows in the living room, which extend nearly to the 19-foot ceiling. “It’s really tough and filters the light, and it’s never going to deteriorate in the sun.” They also added a fireplace and chimney — which, if you think about it, is a little funny with all that water overhead. “Thousands of gallons, just right up there above the apartment!” says one of Kundig’s colleagues when I mention it. No wonder the surrounding rooftop garden is so green.

Built around 1861, the property and was fully renovated in 1998. The works took two years and now the tower provides extensive accommodation. The attention to detail is simply breath taking, from the ground floor entrance hall to the original door. The reception room in the belfry has 40ft ceilings and there is a roof terrace with some of the most far reaching views of any property in London. It also benefits from an internal lift, rear terrace and parking for two cars. All in all the property offers approximately 3337 square feet of wonderful space.

Other features include 3ft thick walls, a fire alarm and security system as well as a working original church clock. Being 300ft above sea level, provides extraordinary views from the mid to upper levels.

Gipsy Hill train station which connects to London Bridge is a few minutes’ walk away and there are many bus routes also close by as are the excellent shopping, restaurant and leisure facilities of Crystal Palace all on the door step.

This loft in a tower is now for sale for about 2 million GBP

The project was documented on the 100th episode of the TV show Grand Designs. The show spends far too much time focusing on Osborne, a real estate developer spending beyond his means, as he tries to raise the nearly £2 million ($3.4 million) to complete the project in a short eight months. Still, the documentation of conserving such a large building is fascinating at times. The completed project, which cost an additional £380,000 ($638,000) for the tower purchase, is pretty faithful to the original when seen from this vantage, though we can see the modern apartment buildings encroaching on the Victorian relic.

But the project isn’t just a conversion of the nine-story tower into a seven-story dwelling. A gym, five bedrooms and a living room occupying the water tank atop the building are squeezed into the tower, but the bathrooms are housed in a new vertical appendage that also includes an elevator. The garage, kitchen, another living room and a terrace occupy a 90-square-meter (980-square-foot), four-story cube in front of the tower. Here we see the cube and its 6-meter-high (nearly 20 feet) sliding glass walls opening to the kitchen below and living room above.

The kitchen in the cube is very modern and indicative of the level of detail the couple put into the project. Osborne could have spared expense on the finishes and the fixtures, but not surprisingly (given his developer mind-set and knowing what sells), he opted for high-end and modern choices in the addition and the old tower.

The lift tower also acts as a service tower, where the bathrooms and their plumbing are stacked. The master bath includes a custom tub that was too large to snake up the tower’s stairs. As shown in the Grand Designs episode, the tub was hoisted up the elevator shaft before the cab was installed.

The only stair in the whole project is the original stone stair within the tower. Therefore, moving from the kitchen to the living room in the cube means using the stair within the tower, a circuitous route but one that leaves each floor of the cube open.

To give you an idea of the tower’s scale, the stair takes up about a third of the footprint of each floor. This means that each of the seven floors is relatively small (about 12 by 11 feet).

Not surprisingly, the raison d’etre of the project is the top-floor living room and the view through the openings made in the cast iron water tank. The 360-degree views are what kept Osborne and Voce going through the financial and other troubles during construction.

Originally designed to protect the entrance to Portsmouth Harbour, the brief was to convert the fort into a luxury retreat and function venue. The project was approached with a deliberate intention of ensuring any proposals would not only stand alone as examples of architectural merit and efficient space management, but more importantly co-exist with the strong, utilitarian aesthetic without confusing the historic origins of the building. A successful scheme would form a distinctive and constructive imprint on the life of a building which has been continuously modified and added to for more than a century.

The property consists of three distinct levels: the basement-like munitions store, the spacious gun deck and external courtyard, and the rooftop lighthouse and former gun emplacements.

The unique floor plan and inflexibility of the original structure required an innovative strategy in forming a coherent layout, with the limited number of external windows and the need for a simple means of circulation causing further concern. The exposed nature of the internal structure proved both a blessing and a hindrance, with eight of the fifteen gun locations forming the focus for each of the new bedrooms; however, creative approaches were needed to address the distribution of modern mechanical and electrical services throughout a solid nineteenth-century building. Understanding that face-fixed cables and pipework would cause an unsightly disruption to the historic context, considerable efforts were made to contain services within a newly created floor void wherever possible.

A strong sense of functionality pervades the interior of the Fort. Exposed structural elements visibly disclose the simple yet strong construction processes of the period; rows of vaulted red-brick arches curve away from the viewer, contrasting with the iron panels and riveted beams that radiate from the centre of the building, transferring the colossal weight of the concrete roof through a perimeter of columns to the floor.

Stylistically, all this history is capable of speaking for itself; by adhering to the practical attitudes of the original creators, and consciously avoiding the easy mistake of placing desirable yet distracting features, the purpose of the proposals was always to direct attention towards the authentic and original rather than away from it. This deliberate use of unpretentious design was a crucial factor when considering artificial lighting; concealed LED uplighters would direct the eye towards the natural textures present, producing a twofold result of both illuminating a surface as if a work of art, and lighting a space practically without harsh glare or anachronistic light fittings. Additional benefits to this approach are minimal maintenance and energy consumption issues, and this was considered an essential methodology when specifying a range of features throughout the project. Colour schemes would be neutral and understated and, ideally, furniture would have a timeless, practical appeal that wouldn’t compete for attention with the historic aesthetic.

The original central passage to the gun deck, having been previously subdivided into separate uses, was reinstated, creating a natural path that leads the visitor round a gently curving brick-lined corridor providing access to all eight bedrooms, and affording quiet pockets of relaxation and contemplation with views of the courtyard. Frosted glass doors to male and female WCs allow borrowed light to fall upon areas otherwise difficult to illuminate, providing a diffuse natural glow to offset the electric lighting.

New designs for the rooftop areas were developed in a more contemporary style; once preservation of the existing features was assured, a more radical interpretation could be utilised for the accompanying structures. Concrete enclosures surrounding two former gun emplacements were re-contextualised as a fire pit and hot pool, simultaneously reflecting and contrasting each other in location and purpose.

The crumbling lighthouse and rangefinder station – itself a 20th century addition – serves as the highest point on the fort and is highly visible even from the Southsea seafront 1km away, and so plans to enhance this feature were fundamental in forming a rational approach to developing the rooftop. The additional function space, intended to be subservient to the existing form, eventually took on a character of its own, growing and evolving as the cost of years of exposure and neglect on the existing building was painstakingly revealed during renovation.

Upon completion, the lighthouse now serves as a signal both metaphorical and physical; it is the first concession to modern design visible on approach, and the renovated beacon with its navigation light has been returned to the roof, allowing the fort the dignity of retaining a small fragment of its functional origins. Seemingly precariously balanced on such an unforgiving and unrefined bulk, the faceted glazing of the lighthouse offers broken glimpses of both the clouds above and the comfort within, and provides an understated yet self-assured example of the successful regeneration of such an uncompromising and imposing structure.

The tower has now been restored and turned into a residence. It sits in a very beautiful area, overlooking Siddington Village. The tower blends beautifully into the surroundings, especially since it also got an underground extension. The extension is currently used as a main living area and is connected to the central open sunken courtyard and a lateral ‘landscape scoop†concealing the new swimming pool and associated sun terraces.

The tower is definitely a very impressive and dominant structure. It has been turned into an unconventional but beautiful family house that features four lovely bedrooms. It also got a new roof terrace that provides panoramic views of the surrounding landscape. A detached building has also been included on the site and it serves as a guest studio.

Itâ€s situated adjacent to the entrance to the site and it also includes the garage. Even though itâ€s unusual, the Round Tower is a lovely family home. Itâ€s basically not that different from regular homes except that the circulation is vertical and not horizontal and it might take a little more effort to get to the bedroom than usually.

In a small terrain of 16m width by 20m long in the middle of a flat Belgian landscape, raises a 30m high water tower built between 1938 and 1941 for and by the village of Steenokkerzeel. It has been in service until the beginning of the nineties and was used by the Nazis during the 2nd world war as a “tour de guete”.

The exterior of the tower was fully renovated to its initial state. Damaged concrete columns were repaired and painted, brick joints were completely removed and replaced and the windows in the floor top were enlarged.

Moving vertically through the home involves shifting from entry and functional spaces to living and dining areas and terminating in bedroom, shower and private relaxation zones that culminate in an extra-wide, 360-degree zone for enjoying lofted views of the sky and surrounding landscapes.

The first story contains a main entrance and two-car garage, below a second-story equipment, storage and HVAC zone. The third and fourth levels house guest, meeting and work spaces – the fifth features a master bedroom, with a spiral staircase that leads up kitchen, living and dining room areas. Finally, on the very top floor, there is a wrap-around terrace cantilevered out beyond the main structure (in the water-storage core).

Bham Design Studio had to work with local preservation efforts, building codes and the needs of clients to maintain the integrity of the building while making it a useful dwelling. Somehow it still manages to look a good fit for the farmland-filled countryside around it.

Built to last, the original water tower was constructed nearly seven decades ago. The exterior was preserved as best it could be, with the limited introduction of well-scaled windows and respect for the existing concrete and brick on all sides. The interior, for better or worse, was made more modern in style – black and white dominate, but perhaps that works well after all since it provides such compelling contrast with the colorful window-framed environments outside.

Every visible concrete element inside was painted in dark grey in order to mark the old from the new. This choice works in both ways since it makes the contrast created makes both bright and dark stand out.

2 – Guest room & office

An envelope inside the envelope. The combination of vertical and horizontal wengé surfaces delineates the guestâ€s bedroom area with its own bathroom.

3 – Bathroom

A central 4.5 meter high shower was created in the bathroom in order to maximize the water flow experience. Black tainted glass walls surround the walk in shower increasing the sense of intimacy.

Textile as visual separation from the cupboards was introduced to create a balance with the other “hard” materials and enhance the roomâ€s acoustics.

4 – Bedroom

This circular room with a dome ceiling hosts a revolving stairs leading to the upper floor and a full monolithic mirror dressing witch reflects the surroundings and gradually disappears.

Wengé wood flooring contrasts with the cold nature of the mirror surfaces. Light reflection on the wood bounces providing warm reddish tones on the walls.

5 – Living room, kitchen and dining room

Impressive by its circular shape and large surface, the top floor affords some incredible vistas to the airplanes landing on the national airport just a quarter of a kilometer away.

The elevator block integrates a rest room, a library, the cat house and a cloak room. Above the sculptural kitchen furniture, a steel bridge takes you to the terrace.

6 – Panoramic terrace

The terrace provides a full panoramic view and is equipped with raised IPE wood flooring and a shower.

The main floor of the sleek modern apartment is dominated by four working clocks housed in four 14-foot-high round windows, which provide nearly unobstructed views (well, except for the clock faces) out to the four points of the compass.

The penthouse sits atop one of the tallest buildings in Dumbo, the cobblestoned neighborhood that sprang to life in the 1980s in a former industrial area between the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges.

The buyer of the apartment need not worry about the nightmare of having four giant clocks each showing a different time. The four clocks are electronically synchronized to show exactly the same time.

The 3,000-square-foot main floor has a huge open living room, dining room and kitchen with 16-foot-high ceilings. The loft also includes a glass elevator and a staircase made of stainless steel, glass and oak. A glass-walled elevator and a three-story floating staircase at the center of the space lead to smaller floors that narrow toward the top of the tower. There are three bedrooms on the 2,300-square-foot second floor (watch your head as you walk along the exterior walls), and on the floor above that, a 988-square-foot open loft with a 15-foot ceiling. Finally, up a narrow staircase at the very top of the building is a tiny (well, compared to the loft, it’s actually 400-square-foot) windswept crowâ€s nest roof deck.

The windows provide nearly unobstructed views (except for the clock faces) out to the four points of the compass.

A glass-walled elevator and a three-story floating staircase at the center of the space lead to smaller floors that narrow toward the top of the tower.

The master bathroom.

There are three bedrooms on the 2,300-square-foot second floor (watch your head as you walk along the exterior walls).

Finally, up a narrow staircase at the very top of the building is a tiny windswept crow's nest.

The apartment was created by David Walentas, the creator of the Dumbo neighborhood itself, in an old industrial building built by a cardboard box manufacturer. Mr. Walentas renamed the factory the ClockTower Building and converted it first into offices for the New York State Labor Department, and then, in 1998, into 124 condominiums.

Mr. Walentas kept an apartment in the building, where he lives with his wife, Jane, as well as the apartment with the clocks on the 16th floor. He negotiated a deal with the condominium board a few years ago to incorporate the tower space into the 16th-floor apartment.

In an interview with the New York Times, Mr. Walentas shared a few insights about the apartment:

Mr. Walentas, 71, is the founder and principal of the Two Trees Management Company, which has developed and managed more than four million square feet of commercial and residential real estate, mostly in New York City. Mr. Walentas is also credited with establishing the Dumbo neighborhood in Brooklyn.

Q. Could you explain the genesis of the Dumbo name?

A. We were in SoHo almost 40 years ago, and then we did the Silk Building in NoHo. When I was in NoHo, I asked one of the artists, one of the kids, SoHo, NoHo, whatâ€s next? And somebody said, “Dumbo.” I said, Where the hell is Dumbo? He said, “Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass.” So I came over one day, walked around the neighborhood and said, Wow!

Q. And thatâ€s where the bulk of your development has been since — by the Manhattan Bridge.

A. We bought two million square feet 30 years ago for $12 million, about $6 a foot, which today seems incredibly cheap. But for 20 years everybody thought I was the dumb in Dumbo; now they think Iâ€m a genius.

Q. What are you getting per square foot now?

A. We routinely sell condos for $1,000 a foot. We have a 6,000-square-foot triplex at One Main for $25 million — the Clock Tower.

Q. Do you think someone will pay the $25 million asking price?

A. I donâ€t know. Itâ€s kind of an icon — somewhere between real estate and art. Itâ€s really a spectacular space, with the best views of Lower Manhattan, the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges, and New York Harbor. It has four 15-foot-diameter clock faces in each direction on the first level. It has a private elevator that goes up three levels in the center of the space, with a staircase around it. It has a private roof deck, which is half enclosed and half open.

Q. Did you and your wife, Jane, ever consider moving there?
A. Itâ€s just too big. Itâ€s really a showplace, a party place, a statement. We live right below the Clock Tower.

Q. Why do you have “No Guts No Glory” on your cuff?
A. Itâ€s on all my dress shirts. To succeed in life you have to take chances — no risk, no gain. People used to ask me what I do, and I said, I go to battle everyday.

The building was last renovated in the ’60s, and honestly, it shows. Full renovation would cost upwards of 3 million dollars, but these days its close surroundings are being completely remodeled, so there is hope.

Which is even better for the owners of this exceptional loft: it has the industrial look, the  bare beams, but when you step outside the building, you find yourself not in an industrial area, but in the middle of the city.

What makes it even more interesting is the tower. (yes, the apartment is in one of the big towers at the top!).

The view of the tower when you look up from the living room.

In a tower, you’ll see quite a lot of stairs.

It would have been difficult – and not too elegant either – to stack a wardrobe against the wall, so the owners opted for a freestanding one, also serving as a headboard on the other side.

The entire apartment is a single space, divided by sliding doors.

The licing room, in the middle of the tower is the heart of the house.

The circular layout warrants a similarly bold kitchen setup: the kitchen is also a one-off piece, created just for this space.

And of course, if nothing else matters, the view certainly does.

Oh, actually it’s currently available for rent, too.