Design Diversions
fl

  • About
  • Diversions
  • Map
  • News
  • Support DD
  • Contact

Green Manhattan

     

Themes
Architecture, Business, Design, Interior, Sustainable, Urban
Location
Manhattan, NY



Our May diversion included two recent green building projects that offer a nice counterpoint to each other: new construction vs. retrofit; large vs. small; outward-facing vs. inward-looking. Despite their differences, both projects had demanding design briefs and utilised very specific materials, furniture & equipment. They raise interesting questions about payback periods for green technology; how to scale demonstration projects; how to incorporate Operations & Maintenance (O&M); and issues of design intent vs. actual use.

We started at the New School University Center, a 16-story, mixed-use educational facility that includes a dormitory and academic space. Thomas Whalen, the Director of Facilities, and his Head Engineer were kind enough to take us on a behind-the-scenes tour of this high-performance building (including co-generation plant and ice storage) while it’s under construction. It will give The New School much needed classroom, auditorium and office space. A key feature are the conditioned stairways that run across the facade (seen from the exterior), the goal of which is to serve as arteries for the building, providing both communication and social space.

Next we walked down to SoHo, where Graham Hill gave us a demonstration of LifeEdited, his 400 SF transformable apartment, which offers sleeping space for 3-4, dining space for 10-12, office space and storage for a bike and surfboard. You can read more in this New Yorker article, which came out just after our visit.

 
SHARE

Tweet





 



Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>


SHARE :
Tweet
 

     

RELATED PROJECTS


credit: Ethan Arnowitz
Globus Cork

Such a fun and interesting visit to Globus Cork! A renewable material from the bark of the cork oak,…

credit: Denise Ramzy
Sunset Park Material Recovery Facility

What a breathtaking site! We arrived to the Sims MRF in Sunset Park just before dusk and were treated…

credit: Denise Ramzy
Mana + Richard Meier Model Museum

To think that the mundane world of storage would lead to such a great example of adaptive…




fl

About Design Diversions

Design Diversions is a curated series of design-related events and visits in and around New York. DDs cover a mix of art, architecture & design, and generally fall under the rubric of built environment.

Who is curating?

Denise Ramzy is a designer and educator whose work bridges multiple disciplines in the built environment. She loves to orchestrate at all scales–buildings, diversions & good meals. You can follow her @dramzy.

Subscribe to hear about upcoming DDs



  • About
  • Diversions
  • Map
  • News
  • Support DD
  • Contact