green construction

Indian Restaurant to Battle Boston Properties at 250 West 55th Street

Wed

May

The owner of an Indian restaurant on West 54th Street called Purnima has filed a lawsuit against Boston Properties (and its contractor, Bovis Lend Lease) in connection with excavation and foundation work for the (currently suspended) LEED Gold-hopeful 250 West 55th Street project. We’ve followed 250 West 55th Street closely here at gbNYC and thought we’d note the lawsuit, which is seeking $600,000.00 in damages for, among other things, interior and exterior building cracking caused by the adjacent construction. The suit was filed a couple of weeks ago; Purnima is now closed and looking for new space somewhere else in Midtown. According to the Observer, DOB issued three stop work orders for the project; two in December and one in late January on the basis of adjacent “building shaking, vibrating, and [compromised] structual stability.” As an interesting footnote, Purnima was given a makeover by Gordon Ramsey on an episode of the Kitchen Nightmare program on FOX back in 2007.

Morris Adjmi's 450 West 14th Street Tops Out Above High Line

Tue

Apr

by Stephen Del Percio

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Now dubbed The High Line Building at 450 West 14th Street in a press release, the Morris Adjmi-designed, 100,000-square-foot, 11-story tower recently topped out. The project, which we profiled previously here at gbNYC, is seeking a LEED for Core and Shell Gold rating from USGBC; developer Charles Blaichman has already inked fashion tenant Helmut Lang to lease for two full floors and showroom space. (It's unclear whether a lease for 20,000 square feet of office space with Japanese fashion company Theory has been finalized). In addition to its LEED-CS application, Blaichman is touting the building's unique office and retail frontage and access to the High Line and is aiming to complete the project this fall. Green features are mostly LEED-standard, including efficient lighting, plumbing, and insulation, and low-VOC and FSC-certified finishes. Certainly the project's most unique design element though is that the High Line park itself will actually run for 103 feet through the lower floors of the building, which are actually a converted former beef processing facility; the upper six floors are new steel construction.

Panel to Discuss Green Construction at GreenWorks on Grove in Montclair

Wed

Apr

by Stephen Del Percio

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Just a quick post to point you to an event of interest tomorrow, Thursday, April 2, out in Montclair, New Jersey at the LEED-CS hopeful GreenWorks on Grove project which we noted here at gbNYC earlier this year. Montclair's Planning & Community Development department is sponsoring a panel discussion about green architecture and construction with the GreenWorks project team, including Paul Sionas of Sionas Architecture. The event begins at 7:00 at GreenWorks on Grove and is a quick walk from Montclair's New Jersey Transit station on Walnut Street. The panel will also include the project team from Montclair's other LEED project: Academy Square, which we've yet to profile here at gbNYC. In addition to the panel discussion, attendees will have the ability to tour the GreenWorks on Grove project. For more information, give the Montclair Planning Department a call at 973-509-4953.

GreenWorks on Grove (gbNYC)

Stonehill & Taylor Architects Designing Fourth LEED Hotel on Upper West Side

Fri

Mar

by Stephen Del Percio

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Manhattan-based Stonehill & Taylor Architects are currently working on four different LEED hotel projects in Manhattan, two of which we've written about previously here at gbNYC: The NoMad along Broadway just north of Madison Square Park and the Crosby Street Hotel in SoHo. The Broadway Hotel on West 94th Street will be for Hampshire Hotels & Resorts, which also own and operate The Dream, The Night and The Time hotels in Manhattan. Stonehill & Taylor's design will reuse both core and shell of a 95-year-old building and include waste heat reclamation systems, energy-efficient guestrooms with a variety of LED technologies, and occupancy sensors. The hotel's motif is that of a nature conservatory; the firm is aiming for "the feel of an academy of education overtaken by Central Park." The project should result in a four- or five-star hotel property with an unspecified level of LEED certification. Stonehill & Taylor's fourth LEED hotel project - the Fifteenth Street Hotel - is tentatively set for a 2011 opening.

Bunny Lane: Container Architecture by Adam Kalkin in Bernardsville, New Jersey

Tue

Mar

by Stephen Del Percio

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You may have read about Adam Kalkin's container architecture previously, but what you might not know is that Mr. Kalkin is a New Jersey resident whose work is inspired by the endless stacks of shipping containers that sit in Port Elizabeth, visible from the I-78 approach to the Holland Tunnel into Manhattan. Recycling the steel containers into functional components of a domestic architectural vernacular is the thrust of Mr. Kalkin's work; he manufactures the container homes himself from a small New Jersey airport hangar. One of Mr. Kalkin's projects- Bunny Lane- is currently for sale in Bernardsville, New Jersey at an asking price of $2.8 million. The project was completed back in 2001 and completely encloses an existing two-story 19th century clapboard house in industrial steel. As you can see in the images below, the contrast between old and new presents an interesting juxtaposition that takes the container concept one large step forward.

Developers Taking Liberty with LEED, Garden Street Lofts in Hoboken, & gbNYC in The Gort Cloud

Sun

Feb

by Stephen Del Percio

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Affordable and green Dinkins Gardens housing project breaks ground in Harlem .
A closer look at Bijou Properties' LEED Gold hopeful Garden Street Lofts condos in uptown Hoboken.
Some developers are taking liberties with advertising LEED certification of their projects (note our quote!)
MTA won't give stimulus dollars to Bruce Ratner's Atlantic Yards project.
Report projects "significant risks" to New York City's climate due to global warming.
gbNYC included in The Gort Cloud , bo
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456 West 19th Street: Cary Tamarkin-Designed/Developed Green Condos in West Chelsea

Tue

Feb

by Stephen Del Percio

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Don't ring the death knell for green luxury condominiums here in Manhattan quite yet; construction is moving forward at 456 West 19th Street (between 9th and 10th Avenues) in West Chelsea. The 12-story project, designed and developed by Cary Tamarkin's New York City-based Tamarkin Company, will offer 22 duplex residential units across 12 floors ranging in size from 1100 to 3000 square feet. Tamarkin is aiming for an unspecified level of LEED certification; green features will include FSC-certified white oak flooring, multi-zoned air conditioning units, low-VOC paints and sealants, bicycle storage space, indoor air filtration, and low-E glass.

Hoekenga House: LEED Gold in West Cape May, New Jersey

Fri

Feb

by Stephen Del Percio

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The Hoekenga House in West Cape May, New Jersey was designed by Cecil Baker + Partners Architects of Philadelphia and is pursuing a LEED Gold certification from USGBC. The 3100-square-foot home features a variety of green design features ranging from a geothermal heating and cooling system to a green roof that includes local flora and roof shingles manufactured from 85 percent recycled-content material. Gretchen Hoekenga, a college professor from Florida and former landscape architect, is developing the project and hopes to sell it at unspecified asking price to an older couple; although the home offers modern green amenities, as you can see Cecil Baker's design does strive to blend in with local Cape May architecture. Hoekenga is aiming for a 35 percent reduction in energy use over a comparable conventional house.

575 Fifth Avenue: Affordable Platinum in Park Slope by Amie Gross Architects

Fri

Jan

by Stephen Del Percio

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Construction is underway at 575 Fifth Avenue in Park Slope; designed by Midtown-based Amie Gross Architects with consulting services from Steven Winter Associates, the affordable housing development is aiming for a Platinum LEED certification from USGBC. Developer the Fifth Avenue Committee broke ground on the project last August and expects an early 2010 occupancy for 49 residential units and 2000 square feet of ground-level commercial retail space. Each of the units is approximately 300 square feet and set aside for tenants earning less than 60 percent of AMI (around $30,000.00 annually). In terms of the retail space, the developer will give preference to local businesses. The 5-story, $8 million project (obviously) includes a number of green design features, including an efficient, gas-powered HVAC system and recycled-content structural materials. The development is at the corner of 5th Avenue and 16th Street and sits on the site of a former muncipal parking garage. Funding came, in part, from HUD's Supportive Housing Loan Program.

ML: Jacob Burns Film Center Media Arts Lab, Pleasantville, New York

Mon

Dec

by Stephen Del Percio

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The $15 million Media Arts Lab at the Jacob Burns Film Center is on track for one of Westchester County’s first LEED Gold ratings from USGBC. Designed by Mount Kisco-based Kaeyer, Garment & Davidson Architects & Engineers, the 27,000-square-foot Media Arts Lab will provide hands-on education for both the public and fellows, expanding on the numerous classroom offerings at the Film Center.

The project broke ground approximately 18 months ago and includes a number of green design features, including a geothermal heating and cooling system, radiant heating, natural daylighting, a green roof, and recycled-content structural materials. The Jacob Burns Film Center has operated since 2001, screens both independent and international films, and hosts industry guest speakers, including directors, actors, and authors.

The Media Arts Lab is located across the street from Metro North and is just a block down from the Film Center itself.