Episode 6 of the gbNYC Audiocast takes a deeper look at Boston Properties’ 250 West 55th Street project, which was recently dubbed the “Lever House Redux” by the company’s Regional Manager Robert Selsam. As you’ll recall, both the seminal Lever House at 390 Park Avenue and the new tower were designed by Skidmore Owings and Merrill as glass boxes rising out of a wider podium base. The audiocast also traces the history of the International Style in New York City and presents a comparison of 250 West 55th Street with the Lever House, suggesting that green building generally might find its roots in the historical tenets of the movement, including “form follow[ing] function” and Le Corbusier’s vision of the house as a “machine for living.”
April 7th, 2008 | Stephen Del Percio | 0 comments | ContinuedAll Posts Tagged With: "gbNYC Audiocast"
gbNYC Audiocast, Episode 5: Greening Ground Zero
Episode 5 of the gbNYC Audiocast reviews the ongoing redevelopment efforts at the former World Trade Center site in light of recent remarks from Larry Silverstein about construction progress at the site, as well as uncertainty over the future of KPF’s Beer Belly Building in the aftermath of JPMorgan Chase’s pending acquisition of the failing Bear Stearns. As you’ll recall, in addition to the Freedom Tower, a number of high-profile towers that will pursue LEED certification are currently under construction at the site, including 200, 175, and 150 Greenwich Street, designed by Norman Foster, Richard Rogers, and Fumihiko Maki, respectively. Episode 5 discusses each of these towers in detail, as well as the Robert A.M. Stern-designed Four Seasons Hotel which will rise at 99 Church Street.
March 24th, 2008 | Stephen Del Percio | 0 comments | Continued
gbNYC Audiocast, Episode 4: The Argonaut & Existing Buildings
Episode 4 of the gbNYC Audiocast takes a look back at gbNYC’s recent post about the pending green renovations at the historic Argonaut Building on 57th Street and Broadway. As you’ll recall, and as we describe in greater detail in the episode, the Argonaut was initially built in 1909 and served as the headquarters for General Motors; the building’s name actually comes from that of GM’s holding real estate holding company. The neo-Gothic, terra cotta tower was landmarked by the city back in 2000. We also discuss sustainable design in the context of existing buildings, including the often misunderstood interplay between LEED for Existing Buildings and Energy Star.
March 12th, 2008 | Stephen Del Percio | 0 comments | Continued
Introducing the gbNYC Audiocast: Episodes 1-3
As you may have noticed, about a month ago we gave gbNYC a major facelift. We’re still working out some kinks and playing with the format, but we hope you’re finding it more user-friendly so far. One of our new features that we’re excited to introduce for the first time in connection with the new-look site is a weekly audiocast. We’ve recorded the first three episodes, which you can access after the jump, and hope to present a new episode weekly moving forward. The goal of the audiocast is to increase the depth and scope of content that gbNYC brings to you, allowing us to dig a bit deeper into important green building issues. In each episode, we’ll discuss posts from the previous week in more detail, as well as present other green issues that we’ve yet to delve into on the site.
February 24th, 2008 | Stephen Del Percio | 1 comment | Continued