New York: The Latest Architecture and News

Mayor Bill de Blasio and the New York City Public Design Commission have announced the winners of their 2016 Awards for Excellence in Design. Established in 1983, the award has been bestowed annually to projects from the city’s five boroughs that “exemplify how innovative and thoughtful design can provide New Yorkers with the best possible public spaces and services and engender a sense of civic pride.” Both built and unbuilt projects are considered for the award. Previous winners have included Studio Gang’s Fire Rescue 2 (2015), the Louis Kahn-designed Four Freedoms Park (2014), and Steven Holl’s Hunters Point Library (2011).

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[In New York] there’s this math problem: 1.8 million small households and only one million suitable apartments. – Mimi Hoang, principal of nArchitects

Last year, nArchitects released a trailer that teased the development of their winning adAPT NYC entry, Carmel Place (formerly known as My Micro NY). The competition sought to address the need for small household apartments in New York City. Now in a newly released video, the full story of the city’s tallest modular tower comes together in smooth timelapse to a dainty piano soundtrack.

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Many have walked by and wondered what purpose this vast, windowless skyscraper in the heart of Manhattan serves. 33 Thomas Street, also known as the "Long Lines Building" (LLB), is an impenetrable monolithic fortress amid canyons of glass and steel. Ostensibly an AT&T telecoms building, the New York Times have recently reported (based on investigative work by The Intercept) that this "blank face[d] monument to privacy" may in fact be a NSA (National Security Agency) listening post, hidden in plain sight.

The idea of revitalizing a public space by bringing improvement that brings people together should not generate suspicion or fear. However, specific examples of places that have seen the cost of living greatly increase after their revitalization have been creating paradoxes. After all, does this "new villain" called gentrification have any relation to placemaking?

The answer, unfortunately, is yes. Although it's not a direct relation of cause and effect, it is impossible to deny the tenuous line between the two concepts. By definition, gentrification, or "ennoblement," refers to the social, cultural, and economic improvement of a neighborhood or, on a larger scale, of an entire region. Placemaking is the process of planning quality public spaces that contribute to the well-being of the local community. The concepts may be similar, but the methods and consequences of the two are very different.

Rafael Viñoly Architects, Richard Meier & Partners Architects, and Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates (KPF) have been tapped to design towers for “Waterline Square,” a new luxury residential development located along the Hudson River in Manhattan’s Upper West Side. The three buildings will fit into five acre masterplan between West 59th and West 61st Streets on Riverside Drive, just two blocks north of BIG’s recently completed VIA 57 West.

The New York Public Library has revealed the first renderings of Mecanoo and Beyer Blinder Belle’s renovation of the NYPL’s Mid-Manhattan Library at the corner of 5th Avenue and 40th Street, diagonally across from the library’s main branch, the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building on Bryant Park. The $200 million project will increase seats, expand services and add public space to the building, which receives 1.7 million annual visits and constitutes the NYPL’s largest circulating branch.

“New Yorkers will soon have the central circulating library that they need and deserve,” said NYPL President Tony Marx. “This library will transform lives by providing books, classes, and programs for New Yorkers of all ages, and it will transform our city – as it will be a model for how libraries can strengthen communities.”

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Socrates Sculpture Park and The Architectural League invite designers and architects to help shape the physical setting in which the park fulfills its mission as a venue for art, creative expression, public programming, and education.
Socrates Sculpture Park, located in Long Island City, Queens, is one of the most distinctive cultural organizations in the country with its combination of waterfront setting, accessibility, and community-based programming. As a venue for the presentation of public art, a New York City park, and an active social space, Socrates has for 30 years harnessed the power of creative minds to transform the urban landscape.

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Studio Seilern Architects (SSA) has unveiled its design for a new skyscraper in New York, located on the riverfront of the Hudson River, which will offer views to the South West towards the river and Hoboken, as well as to the East towards the Empire State Building and Manhattan skyline.

The 16.107 square meter building (24 floors) will feature commercial units in the form of a gallery in the plinth—which is reduced to form a sculpture garden—at the lower levels, while upper levels will contain residential units.

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Richard Meier & Partners has revealed the design of 685 First Avenue, a new 42-story residential tower to be located just south of the United Nations Headquarters along the East River in Manhattan. The 460-foot-tall building, Meier’s tallest in New York City, will be primarily constructed of black glass and metal panels, marking a surprising departure away from Meier’s signature all-white aesthetic.

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LOT has been selected as the winner of the third annual Flatiron Public Plaza design competition in New York, which called for proposals from 5 New York City firms to design a temporary installation to be located at the base of the iconic Flatiron Building.

The winning proposal, titled “Flatiron Sky-Line,” consists of a series of 10 large contiguous arches, constructed out of white powder-coated steel tubes housing LED lights, from which an array of hammocks will be suspended to allow visitors to rest and take in the surrounding landmarks such as the Met Life Tower and Empire State Building.

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Final renderings of BIG’s latest New York City project, 149 East 125th Street in East Harlem, have been revealed at the project’s groundbreaking ceremony. In contrast to original images showing a bright red facade, the undulating, rotating building will instead feature a gray exterior that Bjarke Ingels has referred to as “inspired by an elephant’s skin.”

The first stage of Columbia University’s new Manhattanville Campus, consisting of two buildings by Renzo Piano Building Workshop, is nearly complete, with a move-in and grand opening slated for spring 2017.

The Piano-designed Jerome L Greene Science Center and Lenfest Center for the Arts are the first two buildings to be completed within the larger campus masterplan, conceived by Piano in collaboration with SOM, that will eventually encompass nearly 19-acres between 125th and 133rd streets in northwestern Manhattan.

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One year after public outcry led the Frick Collection to abandon plans for a 6-story addition by Davis Brody Bond, the museum has announced its newest renovation plans: a major upgrade, enhancement and expansion of the institution’s facilities to be designed by Selldorf Architects.

The expansion plan will address the Collection’s needs to “accommodate the growth of its collections and programs, upgrade its conservation and research facilities, create new galleries, and—for the first time—allow for dedicated spaces and classrooms for the Frick’s educational programs,” while staying within the museum’s existing built footprint. Circulation throughout the Frick will also be redesigned to provide a more natural visitor flow through the building’s exhibition galleries, library and public spaces.

The New York City Department of Design and Construction (DDC) has selected 26 architecture firms to be pre-qualified to design new public projects throughout the city’s five boroughs. In effect until 2019, these firms will be given exclusive access to Request for Proposals (RFPs) for public works projects with an estimated budget of $50 million of less. These projects will include new constructions, additions and renovations of existing public buildings, parks and plazas.

The program, known as the Design and Construction Excellence 2.0 Program, was established in 2005 to increase the efficiency and quality of procuring design services. Recent successes of the program include the Times Square pedestrian plaza by Snohetta, Dattner and WXY’s Spring Street Salt Shed, Studio Gang’s Fire Rescue 2, and BIG’s 40th precinct police station in the Bronx.