The Alfred 161 West 61st st. (Jonathan Baskin)
New Knick Amar’e Stoudemire is back from a spiritual trip to Israel and on the hunt for an apartment that’s in line with his wingspan and bank account.
The 6-foot-10 superstar, who signed a five-year, $99.7 million contract this summer, recently visited a three-bedroom, 3½-bathroom unit with 12-foot ceilings at 40 Mercer St.
Stoudemire is looking to rent, and we hear this 2,370-square-foot apartment is available in the $30,000 to $40,000 range. It’s also for sale at $5.65 million. The unit has floor-to-ceiling windows facing south and east and a built-in, remote-controlled wall bed.
The glassy, 14-story condo building, a collaboration between Andre Balazs and Jean Nouvel, includes a pool, sauna, gym, landscaped courtyard, rooftop terrace and underground parking.
Renters at 40 Mercer have included Marc Jacobs in a $30,000-a-month three-bedroom.
‘Puck’ building
Many 20-year-olds find themselves crammed into dorm rooms or tiny apartments. But 20-year-old Rangers defenseman Michael Del Zotto isn’t exactly typical, so he’s found himself a big luxury rental at 161 W. 61st St.
He just rented a spacious one-bedroom with a wraparound terrace at the Alfred building for around $5,000. If Del Zotto feels like working out at home, the building has a 75-foot lap pool, a racquetball court and a gym.
Listing brokers Bruce Cohen and Jamie Mitchell of Gumley Haft Kleier could not be reached for comment.
O, my! O, wow!
Is OWN queen Oprah Winfrey ready to own in New York City? Ever since Winfrey announced OWN, her new cable channel, earlier this year, there’s been speculation that she might move here.
Now Winfrey’s bestie, Gayle King pictured below right with Winfrey), has been spotted on a grand apartment prowl. We hear that King seems to be happily ensconced at her 207 E. 57th St. penthouse and could be touring pads for her gal pal Winfrey. King recently saw an $8.95 million, 3,246-square-foot, four-bedroom triplex co-op with a huge terrace at 1055 Park Ave. She also saw the $6.1 million, 2,164-square-foot, two-bedroom penthouse duplex above it. The two units could be combined into a fab five-floor home with an option for part of the roof.
Prudential Douglas Elliman brokers Melanie Lazenby and Dina Lewis, who just took over sales for the building, would not comment.
Going, going Von . . .
Douglas Von Allmen — a venture capitalist who lost a bundle to Ponzi scammer Scott Rothstein — and his wife, Linda, have sold their 74th-and-75th-floor duplex at the Time Warner Center to an unnamed Russian tycoon for around $15.7 million. That’s close to the most recent, $15.95 million asking price, but the 3,491-square-foot, three-bedroom, 5½-bathroom condo was previously listed for $18.45 million before multiple price reductions.
Brown Harris Stevens brokers Elizabeth Lee Sample and Brenda Powers declined to comment on the deal.