Author: Linda G. Miller - Contributing Editor

In this issue:
· Queens Plaza Becomes a Garden Gateway
· New School Breaks Ground in One of the Bronx’s Neediest Neighborhoods
· Bushwick Builds Low-Impact Architecture
· From Clustered to Spinal: The Parrish is Re-Conceptualized
· Classic Ames Building Becomes Modern Ames Hotel

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Queens Plaza Becomes a Garden Gateway

Construction has begun on infrastructure improvements, designed by Wallace Roberts & Todd, transforming Queens Plaza in Long Island City from a tangle of urban infrastructure into an immersive green landscape. Spanning one mile from 1.5 acres of landscaped open space to the water’s edge below the Queensboro Bridge, the project aims to restore the connection among communities and with the East River. Phase I of the Queens Plaza Streetscape Improvement Project extends from Queens Plaza North to Queens Plaza South, and from Northern Boulevard/Queens Plaza East to 21st Street. It will realign and rationalize the traffic network, enhance the environment for pedestrians and bicyclists, and improve the streetscape with new sidewalks, native and non-invasive plantings, widened and landscaped medians, and improved lighting. Artist-designed benches and pavers, and a continuous protected bikeway and pedestrian walkway will line the open space. Phase II will continue improvements from 21st Street to the East River at Vernon Boulevard.

The Queens Plaza and the adjacent Jackson Avenue projects, with landscapes designed by Stantec Consulting Service, started construction last fall. They are being funded with $23.7 million in City capital, $19.7 million in Federal money, and $33 million in Federal stimulus-related funds. The improvements are part of the city’s Five Borough Economic Opportunity Plan and are overseen by the NYC Economic Development Corporation. The Queens Plaza project received an AIANY Project Merit Award in 2008.

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New School Breaks Ground in One of the Bronx’s Neediest Neighborhoods

The NYC School Construction Authority and Department of Education has begun construction on the New Settlement Community Campus, a 172,000-square-foot, pre-K-12th grade public school and community center in the Mount Eden section of the Bronx. Designed by Dattner Architects and Edelman Sultan Knox Wood Architects (ESKW Architects), the four-story building will be composed of two volumes — a primary school and an intermediate/high school. The project’s key architectural element is the interplay of the volumes and expression of the two wings set at a roughly 90-degree angle. Although predominantly brick, zinc panels, and a curtain wall are used to express special functions and provide visual interest and scale. The library, auditorium, and gymnasium (with an indoor pool) will serve the entire school as well as the community. The project is the culmination of two decades of commitment to the rehabilitation of Mount Eden by the Settlement Housing Fund and its subsidiary, New Settlement Apartments.

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Bushwick Builds Low-Impact Architecture

Andre Kikoski Architect has designed a new 10,000-square-foot space in Bushwick, Brooklyn. Designed for Cayuga Capital Management, which has some 40 other properties in this industrial area in transition, the project includes two buildings with a courtyard — one planned for a gourmet grocery and wine shop, and the other for a performance space and/or restaurant. When folded up, the industrial security gates become awnings for the shops. The main design feature is the approximately 100-foot-long wall made of raw concrete columns with steel panels that are laser-cut with a dotted gradient pattern. The wall has an outer layer of Cor-Ten steel and an inner layer of stainless steel with a strip of white LEDs sandwiched between. The metal metal layers are punctured with holes that vary in diameter; when they align, the building becomes translucent. The architect sees this project as a prototype for adaptively re-using buildings through low-impact architecture.

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From Clustered to Spinal: The Parrish is Re-Conceptualized

The Parrish Art Museum in Water Mill, Long Island, recently unveiled a re-conceptualized design for a new museum designed by Herzog & de Meuron on a 14-acre site. The new design will be a horizontal structure nestled in the landscape. Two parallel wings are joined by a central circulation spine that runs the length of the building. The museum is sited in a north-south orientation to take advantage of natural northern light. The poured-in-place concrete walls will be deeply recessed under a white corrugated metal roof, and will incorporate large sections of glass that permit views through the museum and into the surrounding landscape — a meadow of native grasses and wildflowers. A shaded porch surrounding the building will provide public gathering areas. With more than 37,300 square feet of space, and 12,000 square feet of unencumbered flexible galleries, the design more than doubles the museum’s current exhibition space.

The new museum will include educational and multi-purpose spaces, a café and kitchen, administrative offices, and onsite storage. The design team includes Reed Hilderbrand Associates as landscape architect, ARUP London as lighting designer, and Nelson, Pope & Voorhis for civil and environmental engineering, with East Hampton-based architect Douglas Moyer serving as executive architect.

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Classic Ames Building Becomes Modern Ames Hotel

When the Ames Building, designed by Shelpley, Rutan and Coolidge, was completed in 1889, it was the tallest building in Boston and considered to be the city’s first skyscraper — it remains one of the tallest masonry buildings on the East Coast. Located on the edge of the Financial District, the Romanesque-Byzantine-inspired, 14-story structure will re-open this fall as the Ames Hotel operated by The Morgan Hotel Group. The historic restoration is by Cambridge Seven Associates, and NY-based The Rockwell Group is designing the interiors (this is the firm’s first project in Boston). The boutique hotel has 113 guest rooms, including one apartment and six deluxe one-bedroom suites, with a bar and dining area on each floor. The design provides a modern framework for the lobby, with its mosaic, barrel-vaulted ceiling, and marble-and-brass staircase, and the renovated guest rooms. Woodward, a two-story restaurant and bar, is Victorian-inspired, and features a curated “cabinet of curiosities” that mixes with the room’s modern accents.

Event: 18th Annual MAS Summer Boat Tour: Along the Historic Hudson
Location: Circle Line Boat, 07.29.09
Speakers: Francis Morrone — Historian, Journalist, Author, Lecturer, Teacher; Firth Haring Fabend — Author
Organizer: Municipal Art Society

Thunder, lightning, torrential rain didn’t stop a Circle Line boatload of architectural enthusiasts from enjoying the Municipal Art Society’s (MAS) 18th annual boat tour and celebration of the Hudson River’s 400th anniversary. “The river and the waterfront are never finished, they are a work in progress,” said Vin Cipolla, MAS president. The boat tour also gave a platform for Roland Lewis, president of the Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance (spawned by the MAS), to talk about continuing efforts to make the waterfront more user-friendly for all New Yorkers.

Architectural historian Francis Morrone took the mic once the tour was underway, noting some of the buildings and infrastructure the city has gained and lost. “I have a thing for power plants,” Morrone said as we passed the Hudson River Powerhouse, designed by McKim, Mead & White to provide current for the IRT, NYC’s first subway line. The Beaux-Arts structure is a symbol of the City Beautiful era. The fledgling MAS was a proponent of that movement then, and is ardently part of the campaign to preserve the powerhouse. Morrone expressed shock that the building wasn’t already a designated landmark, and considers it to be one of the 10 greatest buildings in the city. (See “Con Ed Puts Wrench in Powerhouse Landmark Efforts,” by Matt Frassica, in this issue for more on the efforts to landmark this building).

It was news to most in the audience that John D. Rockefeller bought significant portions of the New Jersey Palisades to preserve the unspoiled views seen from the Cloisters, which he also owned. Passing under the George Washington Bridge with lightning flashing was quite magnificent and perfect time to give homage to bridge engineer Othmar Ammann, who also built the Bayonne, Triborough/RFK, Bronx Whitestone, Throgs Neck, and Verrazano-Narrows Bridges — the latter four built under Robert Moses’s Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority. Speaking of Moses, Morrone told a story about Moses, who while on the water in 1914, declared that the shoreline of Manhattan could be one of the most beautiful places in the world. He had his chance to do just that in the 1930 with his “Westside Improvement Project” that included the construction of the Henry Hudson Parkway.

In this issue:
· Bowling Green in Brooklyn
· Pier 57 Gets New Life as a Cultural Hub
· Green Rooftop Oasis Expands on Randall’s Island
· Prototype Museum for Aging Visitors
· Cleveland Art Museum Addition Reaches Halfway Point
· Turkish Luxury Goes Green

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Bowling Green in Brooklyn

A sign on the Williamsburg exit ramp says, “Welcome to Brooklyn: Name It…We Got It.” Brooklyn can now claim the world’s first bowling alley registered to be LEED-certifiied. Brooklyn Bowl recently opened in the renovated 23,000-square-foot former Hecla Iron Works building (circa 1882) a block from the Williamsburg waterfront. The 600-person capacity performance venue with 16 bowling lanes is the brainchild of Peter Shapiro and Charley Ryan, former owner and operator, respectively, of Wetlands Preserve. Designed by New York Design Associates (NYDA), interior designer Tristam Steinberg, and sustainability and energy innovation consultant GreenOrder, green features include: 100% wind-powered electricity; HVAC with carbon dioxide sensors, variable frequency drive motors, and air-side economizers; Forest Stewardship Council-certified wood; and reclaimed glass from the Brooklyn Navy Yard. The stage floor is composed of 100% recycled truck tires, the floors in the lounge are 100% reclaimed cork, and reclaimed 200-year-old floor boards face both bars. Promoting a no bottles/no cans rule, all soft drinks and locally brewed beers are on tap.

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Pier 57 Gets New Life as a Cultural Hub

The Hudson River Park Trust (HRPT) has selected Youngwoo & Associates (YMA) to redevelop Pier 57 at the end of West 15th Street. The firm will transform a National Historic Registry structure containing approximately 375,000 square feet of buildable waterfront space into a hub of cultural, recreational, and public market activities. A 170,000-square-foot covered, open-air public market — to be housed in part by LOT-EK’s recycled and refitted shipping containers — will become NYC’s first large-scale concentration of year-round work/sell space for artisans and other small businesses. The Tribeca Film Festival will establish a permanent outdoor venue on the pier’s roof. A new 90,000-square-foot home for the Phillips de Pury & Co. auction house is envisioned as a mix of auction, exhibition, gallery, and entertainment spaces featuring contemporary art. Seasonal docks will be provided for kayaks, canoes, and other small crafts. Other features include a two-acre rooftop park, restaurants, and an “Underwater Discovery Center” in one of the pier’s caissons. The estimated total cost for the project is $210 million.

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Green Rooftop Oasis Expands on Randall’s Island

As part of PlaNYC, the green roofs at the Park Department’s 5-Boro Administrative Building on Randall’s Island are continually being transformed into a green oasis. Recently, two new green roof systems and one green wall system have been installed. With these new additions, the building now has a total of 16 different green roof systems that can be viewed side-by-side. The smallest features a wildflower seed mix native to the northeast. GreenGrid™, a pre-grown system cultivated in a nursery before it is shipped in modular containers to the roof site was also installed. Each container is a self-sufficient green roof with plants, growing medium, drainage system, and a root barrier. The green wall is also modular, planted with three varieties of sedum at the Van Cortland Park Green House over the winter before being installed on an exterior rooftop stairwell wall this June. Although only 33 square feet, it is the first green wall system undertaken by the NYC Parks Department.

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Prototype Museum for Aging Visitors

The Hebrew Home for the Aged in Riverdale, the Bronx, possesses a world-class collection of 5,000 art works. The 5,000-square-foot Derfner Judaica Museum, within the home’s Reingold Pavilion, hosts educational and exhibition programming for residents and visitors. Louise Braverman Architect’s new design for the museum establishes a prototype for other cultural institutions gearing up for an urbane, aging population (spaces are more-than-ADA-compliant), yet one that can be enjoyed by everyone. Architectural moves such as a prominent entry ramp and spare cantilevered display cases, along with a hands-free radio frequency audio system help visitors engage with art. Large display walls and art environments are placed perpendicular to the windows facing the Hudson River creating view corridors throughout the museum. Where it was impossible to create clear sightlines, the firm designed translucent channel glass display walls that are spatially layered and light-filled. There are approximately 250 objects on view in the inaugural exhibition, “Tradition and Remembrance: Treasures of the Derfner Judaica Museum,” which explores the intersections of Jewish history and memory.

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Cleveland Art Museum Addition Reaches Halfway Point

The new East Wing at the Cleveland Art Museum, designed by Rafael Viñoly Architects (RVA), recently opened to the public, marking the halfway point in an eight-year expansion and renovation. The 132,000-square-foot wing unites the museum’s original 1916 Beaux-Arts building by Cleveland architects Hubbell & Benes, and the 1971 Marcel Breuer-designed Education Wing. Double-height special exhibitions galleries and an entrance lobby located on the lower level serve as the centerpiece of the two-story wing. New galleries for the museum’s collection of 19th- and 20th-century European, Modern, and Contemporary art, as well as an extensive photography collection, are located on the upper level. RVA intended to restore focus to the original building, conceiving it as a jewel set within a continuous ring of expansion space that includes the renovated Breuer building. Other earlier additions are being demolished to make way for an indoor piazza topped with a curving glass-and-steel canopy around which the entire museum will be organized. The naturally lit piazza, a central meeting place and a large event space, aims to draw visitors to the center of the museum complex.

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Turkish Luxury Goes Green

The NY office of RMJM has designed a luxury 24-story J.W. Marriott Hotel on a 14,000-square-meter site in Ankara, Turkey. The hotel will bring sustainable design to Ankara, including vertical stone fins that will act as solar shading devices on the east and west façades. The glass curtain wall uses high-performance, low-e coating and tinting. Bamboo trees and vegetation will be included in the landscape to offer additional shading. The first four floors are dedicated to ballrooms, meeting facilities, restaurants, and shops in a sky-lit galleria, while 400 guest rooms begin on the fifth floor. Other hotel features include an upscale bistro and three specialty restaurants, an executive lounge at the top of the hotel tower, a health center and spa, and an outdoor wedding venue. The hotel project is slated for completion in October 2010, by which time the firm’s recently-opened Istanbul office should be well established.

In this issue:
· The Y Gets East Village and Middle Eastern Flair
· Designed With Collaboration in Mind
· A Legend Gets a Make-Over for All Seasons
· New Hope for New Community Center
· New Pool References the Past
· West 8 Heads South
· Red Crosses to the Rescue
· Mixed-Use Master Plan for Rawabi, Palestine Begins

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The Y Gets East Village and Middle Eastern Flair

ST Architects and Z-A Studio are in the process of renovating and creating a new identity for the 14th Street Y. The scheme conceptualizes the building as a series of parallel bands of multiple programs — lobby, fitness center, locker rooms, showers, and pool. As Y members move through the different bands, they experience what is happening elsewhere in the building. To capitalize on the multi-generational and multi-ethnic user base, the new design eschews institutional uniformity by giving each programmatic space is own distinct look through the use of different patterns, colors, and materials. For the entrance lobby, the design team selected what they call an “east meets west” palette, drawing on both the grunge of the East Village and the Y’s link to Israel and the Middle East. Colorful blue and yellow Moroccan cement floor tiles accompany bright yellow 100% recycled plastic lobby furniture, and a field of different-sized circular fluorescent lights animates the space. Construction is expected to finish by the end of August.

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Designed With Collaboration in Mind

The Rockefeller Brothers Fund (RBF) has selected FXFOWLE Architects for the build-out of its new 28,000-square-foot offices. Located at 475 Riverside Drive in Morningside Heights and known as the Interchurch Center, the design evokes the history and classic modern design of the Rockefeller Family, and is expected to achieve a LEED-CI rating. The interior is comprised of a natural palette with vintage, mid-century furniture, custom millwork, and recyclable materials. The office’s layout blurs the boundaries between public and private with a flexible, open-office plan to encourage better communication and collaboration among the RBF staff, trustees, and grantees. Document control efficiency and team collaboration were very important, and to meet this need, FXFOWLE created a grant hub that serves as a gathering space to review grants. Having the grants in one space at all times reduces the risk of lost documents while promoting collaboration in a communal setting. John Gallin & Son is the construction manager, and Levien & Company is the project manager.

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A Legend Gets a Make-Over for All Seasons

The Four Seasons, a legendary restaurant designed by Philip Johnson in the Seagram Building, is celebrating its 50th anniversary. Belmont Freeman Architects was engaged to design the restoration of the Modernist masterpiece. Phyllis Lambert, FRAIC, who represents the Bronfman family, partial owners of the restaurant, selected the firm on aesthetic matters. The carefully researched renovations will focus on the restoration of original finishes, fixtures, and furnishings, as well as upgrades to mechanical systems and lighting. The restaurant has been a designated NYC landmark since 1989, so there can be no overt changes. Construction is being executed in staged phases to allow the restaurant to stay in operation, with phase one being completed by the end of the month.

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New Hope for New Community Center

Deputy Mayor for Economic Development Robert C. Lieber and New York Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) President Seth W. Pinsky announced the grand opening of the first phase of the Mount Hope Community Center in the Bronx. The $16 million, four-story project, designed by Croxton Collaborative Architects, includes a learning center consisting of six classrooms and two computer labs that can serve more than 750 community members a day. The building features two green roofs and outdoor open space for active and passive recreational activities. It was designed to maximize natural light and incorporate low- and non-toxic, recycled materials where possible. Phase II of the project will be a multi-use gymnasium. The Mount Hope Community Center was the first project where NYCEDC was able to use financing from the New Markets Tax Credit — which provides federal income tax credits for taxpayers making qualified investments in community development entities — for a project receiving city capital funding.

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New Pool References the Past

Butler Rogers Baskett Architects has designed the new Higgins Aquatic Center at the Canterbury School, a college prep boarding and day school in Milford, CT. Built in the English Collegiate Gothic style, the new facility resembles other buildings on campus, including an athletic center and old gym built in 1924 by Raphael Hume. The new building is faced with Roxbury granite, has slate roofs with copper gutters and leaders, and limestone trim similar to the older structures. The upper-level mezzanine overlooks the pool and connects to the main floor of the adjacent alumni gym. The eight-lane, 25-yard pool was designed to host swimming, diving, and water polo competitions.

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West 8 Heads South

West 8 has been selected by the New World Symphony and the City of Miami Beach to design Lincoln Park, a new 2.5-acre urban park in the cultural and civic heart of downtown Miami Beach. West 8 replaces Frank Gehry, FAIA, who withdrew from the park project in April. The park is the final component of the Gehry-designed New World Symphony complex now under construction. The firm’s initial idea calls for an undulating green carpet with raised edges that enclose the space and harmonize with the Gehry building. Work will begin August 1 to meet the goal of opening by September 2011, with sections of the park, including a projection screen to view concerts, ready in time for the concert hall’s January 2011 opening. The New York office of the Rotterdam-based firm is heading the $10 million project.

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Red Crosses to the Rescue

OBRA Architect’s RED+HOUSING, a full-scale emergency housing prototype, will travel to London as part of the 2009 AA|FAB Awards exhibition in September. The FAB Research Cluster at London’s Architectural Association “Designing Fabrication” as this year’s theme, and the winning projects were ones that contributed to an international discourse on the use of emerging design and fabrication technologies. OBRA’s project, which was first displayed in May as part of the National Art Museum of China’s exhibition “Crossing: Dialogues for Emergency Architecture,” designed to be deployed in areas of natural or man-made disasters.

The project addresses extreme conditions in an emergency situation, and proposes combining the advantages of fast-response solutions, such as the deployment of military tents, with those of slower and more considered responses, such as neighborhood reconstruction efforts. By enlisting the structural strength of post-tensions, the project makes economical use of materials. Bamboo plywood strips of the dome support the enclosure. All connections are a simple friction bond of male/female parts, which are then secured with a minimum of fasteners. Parts are collapsible so they can be easily packed and transported. If a single house is erected, the exterior of the cruciform creates spaces that mediate between interior and exterior, providing a context for people to spend time outside; and when deployed together in groups, in-between spaces can suggest an “urban” context. When seen from above, clusters look like a field of red crosses.

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Mixed-Use Master Plan for Rawabi, Palestine Begins

The Palestinian Authority has approved the country’s first master planned city, with ground breaking is scheduled for September. Located just over five miles from the capital of Ramallah, Rawabi (“the hills” in Arabic) has been designed by AECOM with Raphael Samach, AIA, the NY-based principal-in-charge of the team, as a prototype for a mixed-use development based on a live-work-grow mindset in Palestine. The new city is designed for 40,000 residents and will accommodate an additional 50,000 from surrounding towns. Infrastructure will have the capacity to generate future growth, as well. Rawabi will offer commercial, civic, and entertainment facilities, a state-of-the-art business and technology incubator complex, and more than 5,000 units of affordable housing. Given the scarcity of available building sites, Rawabi is being developed on a very steep site. Clad in local stone, the design incorporates elements of traditional Palestinian architecture.

The development will be compact and urban, concentrating larger structures at the top of the ridge with smaller buildings on the sides of the hill. For the first time on this scale, home ownership will be within the reach of teachers, health care and social service professionals, government employees, and those employed by Rawabi’s targeted IT and creative sector businesses. The project is being developed by Bayti Real Estate Investment Company, a joint venture between Ramallah-based Massar International and Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Company (Doha). Bayti and the Palestinian Authority signed a Public-Private Partnership Agreement (PPPA) through which the Authority has committed to facilitate the creation of the critical off-site infrastructure needed for the new town, and to support the construction of public facilities. When the master plan has been fully implemented, Rawabi will cover an area of 6,300,000 square meters.

In this issue:
· Live/Work Townhouse Designed for Artists
· Tommy Hilfiger Global Flagship Parks at Fifth Avenue
· Mediameshing Times Square
· Harvard Divinity School
· Light, Sculpture Featured at Hyatt Regency Montreal
· Steven Holl Architects HEARTs Herning

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Live/Work Townhouse Designed for Artists

Nicole Migeon Architects has converted a multi-family residential building into a single-family live and work space for two visual artists in the East Village. The 2,000-square-foot, four-story building features flexible spaces and an open staircase that incorporates rows of wide, operable windows giving the space access to air and sunlight. A private painting studio with climate-controlled storage on the first floor, and a film studio on the second floor cater to the users’ crafts. The top floor is a new addition containing the master bedroom and a terrace. Adjacent to a community garden, the firm integrated the building with the landscape by creating a green roof with slate stepping stones. The skylight above the master bed allows for views of the roof’s vine-covered patterned steel trellis as well as of the Empire State Building beyond.

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Tommy Hilfiger Global Flagship Parks at Fifth Avenue

This September, the Tommy Hilfiger Group will open its global flagship store in the Fifth Avenue shopping district (between East 53rd and 54th Streets). Designed by the company’s creative team in collaboration with Callison Architects, the four-story, 22,000-square-foot store will be the largest Tommy Hilfiger retail store in the world and carry all of the brand’s product lines. The façade will be restored to its original Indiana limestone, while the interior will feature a modern centralized staircase that doubles as a viewing platform for revolving art installations. Each floor will have its own personality. The first floor, offering men’s sportswear, will be reminiscent of a men’s club; Hilfiger Denim will feature a bar-inspired wrap desk with a lounge area; women’s sportswear will be characterized by the company’s trademark 1960s Venini chandeliers and a Brazilian cherry herringbone floor; the runway collection will have glass doors that open onto a balcony overlooking Fifth Avenue.

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Mediameshing Times Square

The Crowne Plaza Hotel Times Square now sports a 30-foot-wide by 36-foot-high Mediamesh® façade, designed by Gensler with Hoffman Architects as the structural engineer. Mediamesh® , designed by Cologne-based ag4/GKD, is a stainless steel mesh fabric with interwoven LEDs and connected media controls. The LEDs render images onto the façade, providing the ability to display a wide spectrum of graphics, animated text, and video. When the screen is off, the glass curtain wall entry is visible, and when illuminated, guests inside the lobby can view Times Square through the back side of the mesh.

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Kliment Halsband Plans for Ivy Leagues

Harvard Divinity School has selected Kliment Halsband Architects to develop a comprehensive master plan for its campus. The study will provide a long-range framework for current and future facility needs, with the goal of creating a distinct community and campus identity for the school. Also nearing completion are numerous planning studies at Yale University that encompass expansion strategies for several academic departments. The firm has also begun work on an area study within the Jewelry District in Providence, Rhode Island, where Brown University has plans to expand its urban campus and develop a shared vision of the revitalization for the entire area.

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Light, Sculpture Featured at Hyatt Regency Montreal

NYC-based hospitality firm Therese Virserius Design recently unveiled its design for the first phase of the renovation of two ballrooms and pre-function areas for the Hyatt Regency Montreal. The pre-function area for the main ballroom will be transformed into an art gallery featuring an interactive wall with “fireflies” that congregate into pre-programmed shapes before dispersing again. Featured on the opposite wall are metallic gold interiors with egg-shaped sculptures and inset niches. The ballroom features sculptured silver disks that resemble water ripples. Instead of traditional chandeliers, designers employed clusters of peanut-shaped, indigo pendants. Additional elements include black lacquered beams and a wall that can change hues based on the event. This project is the first to include the firm’s new exclusive line of furniture — Therese Virserius Design by AOM. This phase of the renovation is expected to be completed in Fall 2009.

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Steven Holl Architects HEARTs Herning

The HEART Herning Museum of Contemporary Art, designed by Steven Holl Architects, is scheduled to open on September 9. The new center combineds both visual arts and music, uniting three distinct cultural institutions — the Herning Center of the Arts, the MidWest Ensemble, and the Socle du Monde. A fusion of landscape and architecture, grass mounds and reflecting pools align with curved roof sections in a new building that houses permanent and temporary exhibition galleries, a 150-seat auditorium, music rehearsal rooms, a restaurant, a media library, and administrative offices. Herning’s longstanding relationship with the textile industry, as well as the museum’s large collection of original works by Piero Manzoni, inspired the building’s design concept. The museum is sited near Herning’s original Angli shirt factory, and the shirt collar-shaped plan of the 1960s building influenced the shape of the new museum building. Viewed from above, HEART’s roof geometry resembles a collection of shirt sleeves laid over the gallery spaces. The galleries are orthogonal in plan, while overhead curved roof sections bring natural light into the spaces.

In this issue:
· Rhythm Comes Alive in Midtown
· “Project of the Year” Transforms SoHa
· Mini Golfers Take On Rocket Science
· Court of Appeals Rules D.C.’s Judiciary Square
· Library is a Learning Landscape in Baltimore
· Exoskeleton Cools Dubai

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Rhythm Comes Alive in Midtown

TEN Arquitectos celebrated both the firm’s 25th anniversary and the unveiling of a new project, Cassa, a Midtown Manhattan hotel condominium designed in collaboration with Cetra/Ruddy. The building will rise 48 stories and contain 57 residences and 166 hotel rooms. The building’s windows have a punctured rhythm that are the façade’s only ornament, intending to bring the activities of residents and guests to life. Assa Properties and Desires Hotel are developing Cassa, which will include a world-class restaurant, spa, private terrace, and lounge. Construction has already begun and the project is fully funded for completion by mid-2010.

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“Project of the Year” Transforms SoHa

SoHa 118, a 14-story building in South Harlem designed by GF55 Partners and developed by Artimus Construction, has been named “Project of the Year” by the New York State Association for Affordable Housing (NYSAFAH). The 185,000-square-foot, mixed-use project consists of 93 one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments offered at both market and affordable rates. SoHa 118 marks the completion of a block on Frederick Douglass Boulevard between 118th and 119th Streets. Artimus and GF55 Partners have worked together to transform this formerly neglected district into a vibrant community, with large-scale urban development on two adjacent blocks, containing five sites and seven residential buildings, with a sixth site containing a newly renovated church.

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Mini Golfers Take On Rocket Science

The New York Hall of Science in Queens, the city’s hands-on science and technology center, has added a new permanent exhibition called Rocket Park Mini Golf. Designed by Lee H. Skolnick Architecture + Design Partnership, the park uses space-age colors and graphics reminiscent of the 1960s. The exhibition features two authentic NASA rockets and a nine-hole course that was designed to allow mini-golfers to encounter scientific concepts such as propulsion, thrust, gravity, escape velocity, launch window, gravitational assist, and more. For example, the hole called “launch window” forces players to pick the right time to launch their “rocket” through turning, intersecting elliptical orbit with planets and other celestial matter that will hinder its trajectory and hamper their trip to Saturn.

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Court of Appeals Rules D.C.’s Judiciary Square

Following a four-year restoration and renovation program developed by Beyer Blinder Belle Architects and Planners, the Historic Courthouse of Judiciary Square in the nation’s capital will become the new home for the District’s highest court, the D.C. Court of Appeals. Originally designed by George Hadfield in 1820 to serve as the D.C. City Hall, the Historic Courthouse is a National Historic Landmark and one of the oldest public buildings in the district. Vacant since 1999, the courthouse was in need of a comprehensive overhaul to be restored to its original grandeur, while also in need of being transformed into a fully functioning modern courthouse. Beyer Blinder Belle integrated the expanded facilities and modern systems with minimal disruption to the historic structure.

The most significant challenge was the excavation of the new ceremonial courtroom beneath the grand south-side portico, where the original stone and brick support structure below needed to be entirely removed — with the portico in place — and replaced with a complex, steel structural framework. The new facilities, including a grand ceremonial courtroom, reception and exhibition space, and administrative facilities, were built below-grade, thereby maintaining the integrity of the historic façade. This configuration also allowed mechanical equipment to be located in the residual space between the existing foundation wall and the foundation of the new parking garage, further minimizing impact on the historic structure.

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Library is a Learning Landscape in Baltimore

To meet the Bentalou Elementary School’s goal of improving literacy through independent study that incorporates adventure and discovery, NYC-based W Architecture and Landscape Architecture re-imagined the Baltimore school’s library as a “learning landscape.” The 2,016-square-foot flexible space was created from three smaller spaces, and includes an oversized “park bench” doubles as a casual reading area on one side, with a docking area for computers on the other. A green circular carpet provides a more casual reading area. Nine wall clocks installed over the bookshelves tell the time in Baltimore and eight sister cities around the world. Behind the librarian’s desk, a former door to the corridor is now a window allowing visibility into the space as well as displaying special reading material. Storage space was hidden behind a wall of doors, and most of the existing shelving and furniture was adapted for re-use, while new lighting, solar shading, and a more efficient HVAC system all help save energy.

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Exoskeleton Cools Dubai

The exterior shell of O-14, the 22-story commercial tower perched on a two-story podium in Dubai, recently topped out, revealing a full-height concrete exoskeleton. Designed by NY-based Reiser+Umemoto in collaboration with the Creek Side Development Company of Dubai, the project is located along the extension of Dubai Creek on a waterfront esplanade. High-strength self-consolidating concrete was cast around a basket weave of steel reinforcement resulting in a perforated exterior shell. The concrete shell provides an efficient structure that frees the core from the lateral forces and creates highly efficient, column-free open spaces in the building interior. In addition, the shell acts as a sunscreen open to light, air, and views. A space nearly one meter deep between the shell and the glazing creates a chimney effect; this passive solar technique contributes naturally to the cooling system, thus reducing energy consumption by 30%. O-14 is expected to be completed in the Spring of 2010.

In this issue:
· Geochemistry Building Supports Climate Change
· A Studio Refines Corian
· Passively Efficient in Brooklyn
· Private School Designed for Its Curriculum
· Center for Light Industry and Artisans Rehabilitates Derelict Factory
· Cancer Research Interrelates at New Research Center

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Geochemistry Building Supports Climate Change

Designed by Boston-based Payette, the 70,000-square-foot Gary C. Corner Geochemistry Building at Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in Palisades, NY, is home to hundreds of research scientists who study the evolution and future of the natural world, including the dynamics of the solid earth, circulation of the oceans and atmosphere, and transport of materials via wind and water. A supporter of climate change research, Payette sought to demonstrate that sustainability is more than using green materials and power. The project is notable for its siting and building organization strategies. The imbalance between the number of laboratories and offices required led to an innovative skip-stop massing strategy. A two-story wing of 15-foot-high laboratories was coupled with a three-story wing of 10-foot-high offices. Separating the laboratory and office functions not only reduced the building footprint, it also allowed for a highly responsive energy infrastructure. The lab side is a high-energy environment with complex mechanical systems, while the office side is a low-energy structure with modest systems and operable windows.

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A Studio Refines Corian

The Morris Sato Studio’s custom-designed DuPont Corian Design Studio for Evans & Paul DuPont and Dolan & Traynor recently opened in the Flatiron District. The 5,000-square-foot studio is a multi-sensory experience and features a multiplicity of surfacing solutions and applications. The firm defined the space by using the Japanese concept of a borrowed landscape, and the technologies used within the space were designed to draw people in close to the material. Highlights include “starry sky” lighting, featuring 74 pieces of thermoformed Corian.

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Passively Efficient in Brooklyn
After Brooklyn Cohousing signed a purchase and sale agreement for a site in the South Slope/Windsor Terrace area, the membership unanimously voted to create a Passive House for its new home. The circa-1929 three-story factory and warehouse is being retrofitted by Levenson McDavid Architects into 30 units ranging in size from studios to three-bedrooms. Known in Germany, where the method originated as “PassivHaus,” the three principles for buildings are: efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and comfort, and involve a set of techniques that result in a nearly air-tight building that is simultaneously supplied with clean, fresh air. The cost of heating and air conditioning is expected to be reduced by up to 90% and an overall energy reduction of up to 70%. As with other cohousing projects, there will be communal areas including a dining room and kitchen, a living room and game room, kid’s room, guest room, workshop and tool room, and outdoor roof space.

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Private School Designed for Its Curriculum

The Mandell School will be expanding into a new facility in a 15-story residential building that is part of Columbus Square, a three contiguous block retail and residential community currently under construction on the Upper West Side. The 50,000-square-foot build-out, designed by JRS Architect and Aragon Construction, consists of the building’s entire second floor, half of the first floor, and a cellar, and will serve 650 students. The classrooms will be designed around the curriculum. The school will feature a black box theater for student productions, a 20-foot-digital screen that will display student artwork, a vertical garden in the sub-level cafeteria, and a roof garden complete with a poetry reading space. In addition, the team is building a 10,000-square-foot learning center for the school in a residential building nearby that will contain a library and media station.

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Center for Light Industry and Artisans Rehabilitates Derelict Factory
The Greenpoint Manufacturing and Design Center (GMDC) recently celebrated a grand opening at 221 McKibbin Street. A 72,000-square-foot building in the North Brooklyn Industrial Business Zone, the former turn-of-the-20th century jute factory was preserved and redesigned by OCV Architects, and has flexible units suitable for light industrial and artisanal uses. The renovation focused on stripping the existing structure of brick, heavy timber, and cast iron down to the original historic features, restoring and highlighting these elements, while designing a functional and efficient space that takes advantage of the original building’s sources for natural light. 221 McKibbin Street represents GMDC’s first project to utilize New Markets and Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credits, and, as a recipient, it will be placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Next month, the project will receive a Building Brooklyn Award in the category of Historical Preservation from the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce.

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Cancer Research Interrelates at New Research Center

The Helen Diller Family Cancer Research Center at the University of California, San Francisco, designed by Rafael Viñoly Architects, has recently opened its doors. Designed to encourage interaction and collaboration among three different cancer-related research programs, the approximately 162,000-gross-square-foot, five-story building mediates the city/campus transition with two interlocking L-shaped masses above a stone base. The building’s functional order develops around a sky-lit multi-story atrium located between the lab and the office blocks that also is used for public functions. Terraced floor levels are linked by a series of bridges and cascading stairways. The facility’s program includes research labs that feature an open, flexible environment to serve future planning needs by incorporating custom modular lab bench systems with integrated utilities, faculty offices, conference rooms, open break rooms and lounges, a seminar room, lobby, and rooftop terraces.