Truffles Tribeca, a unique residential building along the West Side of Manhattan, has opened its doors. Developed by the Jack Parker Corporation, Truffles Tribeca is a waterfront rental apartment building occupying a full city block at 34 Desbrosses St. The site, bound by Desbrosses, West, Washington, and Watts Sts., is in the heart of Tribeca and positioned directly across from the new Hudson River Park. This newly constructed 285,000 s/f apartment building was designed by Handel Architects, a firm well known for residential, hotel, and mixed-use projects throughout the five boroughs and beyond. Just north of Truffles Tribeca, the firm recently completed two award-winning residential projects at 505 Greenwich St. and 255 Hudson St., and is currently overseeing the construction of the Trump SoHo Hotel. Truffles Tribeca, which was completed this month, features two towers - one 11 stories and one 15 stories - connected by a dramatic 11-story sky bridge. The sky bridge consists of a single seven-foot-wide walkway which is enclosed by a frameless glass curtainwall and features a luminous stretched fabric ceiling. Due to the towers' thoughtful massing, nearly every unit has a view - a very unusual feature in a rental building. Depending on the location of the apartment, residents enjoy vistas of the Hudson River, the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, the Empire State Building and Lower Manhattan out of floor-to-ceiling windows. The two towers are anchored on the site by six-story residential bases. 6,000 s/f of retail space fronts Washington St., activating the most commercial street on the site. The perceived scale of the wall along Washington St. is reduced by the rhythmic use of extended metal fins that craft texture along the surface. The result is a unique building composition that reinforces the street and relates to the contextual scale of the surrounding neighborhood Fronting onto Desbrosses St. and situated between the towers is a private landscaped courtyard for residents. Subtly concealed behind by an ornamental, full-height, metal louvered street wall with secured keyed access, the cobble-stoned courtyard and entry area extends under the bridge fronting onto Watt St. Seven loft-like ground floor units open onto the courtyard.  Once inside the courtyard, a double-height glass lobby defines the formal entry into the west tower with an elevator bank that joins the west tower to the sky bridge leading to the east tower. To the left of the main entrance off of Desbrosses St., an entrance ramp leads to a 34,000 s/f underground parking garage for 175 cars. On the same level as the parking garage are 90 private storage units available for tenants. Crafted in charcoal grey, textured pre-cast concrete panels and glass curtain and window wall, the building boasts 291 rent-stabilized apartments. Apartments include studios, one, two and three-bedroom units with a wide range of layouts. Apartments on the north and south facades of the west tower feature dramatic 10-foot-deep balconies with stunning views. All apartments are outfitted with dark wood flooring, granite counters, space-saving wall-flush heating and air conditioning units, and a stainless steel GE profile appliance package. The bathrooms include rain splash glass showers, black tiled floors, and oversized triple-paneled medicine cabinets. Some apartments have windowed kitchens and bathrooms. To outfit two of the model units, the Jack Parker Corp. worked with Parsons the New School for Design to hold a competition among senior interior design students. Five design teams competed and two were selected to realize their designs for the launch party in January.  The remaining model units are designed by David Cafiero and Jefferey Povero. To renters, the building's most unique feature may be Truffles Prive, a members-only club on the ground floor. Furnished in design classics (Barcelona chairs, Persian rugs, and Paul McCobb chairs), the residents' club consists of a dramatic library of vintage books, a private screening room that seats over 40, a fitness center, yoga studio, lounge, and game room outfitted with foosball, billiards, two large flat-screen TVs and Wii gaming station. The focal point of the lounge is a striking wood bar with private lockers available to members to store liquor for entertaining. The space is meant to be used as a sort of private neighborhood watering hole. "There will always be a staff member present to unlock their cabinet and provide glassware, mixers and any additional necessities for use," said Kevin Coughlin, manager of Truffles Tribeca. The location of the amenity space was planned by Handel Architects to give residents views over the West Side Highway to the Hudson River and promenade. In addition to Truffles Prive, the building also includes a roofdeck on top of the east tower with magnificent 360-degree city and water views. A glass parapet was introduced by Handel Architects to maximize views to the river from the sundeck. The deck includes bathrooms, showers, lounge chairs, seating areas, hammocks, barbeque areas, and three private cabanas. The sundeck is reached by a glassed hallway at the top of the sky bridge. Glass parapets frame amazing downtown and uptown views as residents reach the sun deck.