On Calle de Sagasta, past the heavy trees of Chamberí, a grand old palace waits its turn for a second act. Palacio Torre-Almiranta, built for a viscount in 1893, spent its earliest decades hosting gossip, moonlit waltzes and maybe the odd scandal. Now, nearly 150 years later, it’s time for another curtain rise.
This June, Persepolis Investments brought the first shovels to the gravel—a moment that felt less like breaking ground and more like cracking open a storybook. “Construction marks a quiet turning point, a moment when the weight of history meets the intent to shape something lasting,” said Francisco Hernández Álvarez de Lugo, his voice echoing up through five-meter-high ceilings long accustomed to the sound of discreet whispers.
The plan: fifteen homes, each a snapshot in the life of this storied building. Original crown moldings? Still overhead. Checkerboard marble floors and grand, shuttered windows? Refreshed, not erased. A new chapter calls for some modern plot twists—underfloor heating, hidden appliances, and marble, oak and aged brass that catch the morning light. It’s an odd sort of time travel, part salon, part sanctuary.
Custom Elegance, Timeless Bones
Touza Arquitectos, a name whispered with respect in Madrid’s architectural circles, is given the honor of reshaping the structure. Lázaro Rosa-Violán gives the interiors their signature magic, all while Knight Frank orchestrates a matchmaking process for future residents. Persepolis keeps the reins, guiding the project to its 2027 finish.
Downstairs, a collection of amenities blossoms. Imagine this: an indoor heated pool where echoes of earlier eras drift along the surface, a rooftop terrace with uninterrupted city views, a tucked-away library and bar, a gym that manages to look elegant, landscaped courtyards dotted with sunlight, and a solarium for the days when Madrid feels like Seville in summer. Below, an underground car park meets the modern city’s demands. Private storage rooms and round-the-clock concierge service round out the list.
The homes themselves span a generous range—from a “modest” 118 square meters to a palatial 530, all as distinctive as their noble predecessor. Prices start just shy of €2 million, with a sales suite at Calle de Manuel Silvela 1 offering a first taste of the building’s new spirit. The experience isn’t about splashes of branding or developer ego. As Valeria Cimonetti of Knight Frank notes, “We are inviting discerning buyers not simply to purchase a home, but to join a story. Torre-Almiranta is unlike anything else on the market: no branding, no replication—just the weight of history, beautifully reinterpreted for a life well lived.”
Palacio Torre-Almiranta sits quietly between the embassy row and designer ateliers. Its setting in Chamberí says everything: elegant, cosmopolitan, discreet—no loud declarations needed. If walls could talk, these would speak in three languages and quote Goya at cocktail hour.
Those curious enough to step inside will discover a restoration not just of spaces but of atmospheres. Here, the past is not a relic but a host, inviting newcomers to add the next chapter. If every city has a heart, this project has found the beat—15 times over.
