Jennifer Gould

Jennifer Gould

Real Estate

‘Koch’ director Neil Barsky buys Upper West Side penthouse

While the late Mayor Ed Koch lived his life from a rent-controlled Rudin family apartment, his documentary filmmaker clearly has loftier real estate ideas.

Ace reporter, hedgefund manager and “Koch” director Neil Barsky just bought the penthouse at 40 W. 77th St. for $13 million. The six-bedroom, five-bathroom residence is in a 16-story co-op built in 1928 and is across the street from the Museum of Natural History.

The home includes a living room overlooking Central Park and the museum, and a master bedroom that comes with a private terrace with views of the park and the skyline. There’s also a windowed chef’s kitchen and an adjacent eat-in breakfast room with access to the 47-foot wraparound terrace fronting Central Park and the Reservoir. The terrace’s garden includes multi-level planting areas of roses, rhododendrons and hydrangeas.

The big East

For those with a cool $85,000 a month to spare, a 25-foot townhouse is available as of next month on the Upper East Side. The massive 7,200-square-footer on East 83rd Street includes Bond-like amenities such as an oak-planked floor in the chef’s kitchen that slides open to reveal a swimming pool.

It’s a far cry from when the property was built as a carriage house for JP Morgan’s cars and chauffeurs back in the early 1900s. In 1995, buyers Karan and Anita Trehan turned it into an “Anglo-Raj family home” — until the couple divorced. Karan, CEO of Alliance Capital, then re-renovated the home to give it a hip, downtown-meets-uptown vibe, with lots space for entertaining and cooking.

The four-story, five-bedroom, four-bathroom residence is a “smart” home, meaning that everything — from the lighting to music — can be regulated by touch pad. It is furnished with Ligne Roset and B&B Italia furniture.

The ground-floor foyer opens into a gallery and then a great room with marble floors, Venetian plaster walls, double seating areas and a fireplace. Works by Indian artist BAHMAN decorate the home and are available for purchase.

The listing broker is Barbara Evans-Butler, of Stribling & Associates.