275 Atlantic Avenue
HOK · Downtown Brooklyn · 2027
North facade from Boerum Place.
Facade installation is underway at the 15-story Brooklyn Detention Complex in Boerum Hill, Brooklyn. Designed by HOK, the 339-foot-tall structure replaces a previous detention complex on the full block site bounded by Atlantic Avenue, Smith Street, State Street, and Boerum Place. Superstructure is close to topping out and curtain wall panels by Enclos are starting to be installed on the lower floors. The facade design includes alternating multi-story panels of glass and champagne and bronze metal panels with a twisting shape that gives added depth. Outdoor recreation spaces are located vertically along several of the facades and are articulated as large eroded voids. When completed, the facility will be able to house up to 1,040 inmates as part of the city’s plan to replace the Rikers Island detention complex with new facilities in each borough except Staten Island. Community facility space will also be located at the ground floor along Atlantic Avenue.
Northwest corner from Boerum Place.
West facade from Boerum Place.
South facade from Smith Street.
Southeast corner from Atlantic Avenue.
Looking up at the east facade from Smith Street.
Northeast corner detail.
East facade detail.
Northeast corner from State Street.
Northeast corner from Smith Street.
Looking up at the north facade from State Street.
North facade detail.
North facade detail.
Looking up at the north facade from State Street.
Looking up at the north facade from State Street.
Architect: HOK; Contractor: Tutor Perini; Client: NYC Department of Design and Construction; Program: Detention Facility, Community Facility; Location: Boerum Hill, Brooklyn, NY; Completion: 2029.
Shirley Chisholm Recreation Center
Studio Gang · East Flatbush · 2026
West facade.
Construction has wrapped up at the Shirley Chisholm Recreation Center in East Flatbush, Brooklyn. Named for the first black woman elected to the United States Congress, the Studio Gang-designed facility houses programs dedicated to fitness, recreation, and learning for the surrounding community across its 74,000 square feet. A gymnasium, walking track, and double-height competition-grade swimming pool are located on the lower three levels. The uppermost level provides learning spaces for kids, teens, and adults, with adjacent roof terrace and gardens for connecting to nature.
Recreation center entry.
The facade features a brick-faced architectural precast concrete panel with mineral wool or spray-applied, closed cell insulation depending on the location. Double and triple glazed windows and curtain walls invite light into the interior spaces, with gently arched windows predominantly located at the ground floor. At the topmost floor, the stepped back exterior transitions to corrugated metal panel cladding and a green roof allows for access to nature.
West facade.
The project is the first LEED Platinum v4 public building in New York City, achieved through its high-performance building envelope, energy recovery system, and all-electric heating and cooling. Some of the notable sustainable features include 75-foot-long mass timber beams spanning the ceiling of the pool space, low-carbon concrete superstructure, extensive green roofs, and bioswales at the surrounding ground floor landscape.
Southwest corner.
Close-up of a window.
Architect: Studio Gang; Structural and Facade Engineer: Thornton Tomasetti; MEP Engineer: WSP; Landscape Architect: Elizabeth Kennedy Landscape Architect; Construction: Consigli Construction; Client: NYC Department of Design and Construction/NYC Department of Parks & Recreation; Program: Fitness, Pool, Basketball Court, Community Meeting Space; Location: East Flatbush, Brooklyn, NY; Completion: Early 2026.
Solar One Environmental Education Center
BIG · Kips Bay · 2025
Construction is nearing completion on the Solar One Environmental Education Center at Stuyvesant Cove Park, part of the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project. Situated at the northern end of the park, the BIG designed two-story structure will house educational programming for Solar One, a leading sustainable energy non-profit. The building will house afterschool and summer camp programs, classroom space, presentation and lecture space, and a rentable hosting site for indoor community events, celebrations, workshops, and other opportunities. One major sustainable feature of the project will be the off-the-grid solar electricity generation from the rooftop 38kW solar array and battery storage.
East facade from the East River.
East facade of the Solar One Center and Stuyvesant Cove Park from the East River.
Southeast corner from the East River.
South facade from Stuyvesant Cove Park.
South and east facades from Stuyvesant Cove Park.
Close-up of the facade.
Architect: Bjarke Ingels Group; Program: Education; Location: Lower East Side, New York, NY; Completion: 2025.
Wagner Park Pavilion
Thomas Phifer and Partners · Battery Park City · 2025
Construction is wrapping up at the Wagner Park Pavilion, part of the South Battery Park City Resiliency Project to construct a perimeter storm and flood protection system along the park’s boundary. In the wake of the millions in damages the park sustained from Hurricane Sandy in 2012, the Battery Park City Authority has undertaken a redesign of the park to help with future flooding. The level of the landscape and structures is raised from the previous park’s design, including the new Wagner Park Pavilion and Robert F. Wagner Park at the southern boundary. Designed by Thomas Phifer and Partners, the fully accessible pavilion will house a community room, restaurant, public restrooms, park storage, and a roof deck (opening later this fall) with views of the Hudson River and the Statue of Liberty. The project hopes to achieve ILFI Net-Zero Carbon Certification with sustainable features that will include geothermal heating and cooling, stormwater reclamation systems, LED lighting, and a highly insulated building envelope.
Facade fronting onto Battery Place.
Facade detail.
Facade detail.
Facade detail.
Facade detail.
Facade detail.
Facade detail.
West entry to the park and pavilion.
West facade of the pavilion.
South facade of the pavilion.
South facade of the pavilion from the stepped seating in the park.
South facade of the pavilion and the stepped seating from the park’s southern boundary.
South perimeter of the pavilion.
Architect: Thomas Phifer and Partners; Structural Engineer, Landscape Design, and Project Management: AECOM; MEP Engineering: Milhouse; Envelope: SGH; Program: Park Amenities; Location: Battery Park City, New York, NY; Completion: 2025.
Construction Update: Sunset Spectacular
Construction is wrapping up on the three dimensional billboard structure for Orange Barrel Media and the city of West Hollywood in Los Angeles. Designed by Tom Wiscombe Architecture, the structure combines an east and west facing digital billboard with cultural space at the center. The project is clad in recyclable aluminum and includes a solar array to power the billboards. A multi-use public plaza with permeable grounds materials will surround the structure.
Architect: Tom Wiscombe Architecture; Client: Orange Barrel Media and the City of West Hollywood; Program: Advertising, Cultural; Location: West Hollywood, Los Angeles, CA.
Construction Update: NYPD 40th Precinct
East facade from St Ann’s Avenue.
Construction is ongoing at the new 40th Precinct Station for the NYPD in the Melrose neighborhood of the Bronx. Designed by the Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), the massing features stacked boxes, each housing a different program element for the 43,500 square foot precinct. The facade is clad in sandblasted concrete and large rectangular windows at either end of the stacked volumes. Program includes a community meeting room at street level, exercise courtyard with training areas, and the first ever green roof for an NYPD station.
Northeast corner.
Northeast corner.
Southeast corner from East 149th Street.
Close-up of the southeast corner of the facade.
South facade from East 149th Street.
Architect: Bjarke Ingels Group; Client: NYC Department of Design and Construction; Location: Melrose, Bronx, NY; Completion: 2024.
Construction Update: FDNY Rescue Company 2 Training Facility
South façade.
Construction is wrapping up at Studio Gang's FDNY Rescue Company 2 Training Facility in the Brownsville neighborhood of Brooklyn. The three-story structure will serve as a facility for the FDNY to simulate various scenarios encountered when responding to emergency calls. Large voids cut horizontally through the central ground floor space and vertically to the sky to allow for simulating a multitude of real world scenarios. Large apertures cut into the concrete facades are accented by glazed terracotta panels in various shades of red. Sustainable features include a green roof, geothermal HVAC system, and solar water-heating system.
Closeup of the south facade.
Terracotta detail.
South façade.
Closeup of the east facade.
Northeast corner.
Architect: Studio Gang; Client: NYC Department of Design and Construction; Program: FDNY Training Facility; Location: Brownsville, Brooklyn, NY; Completion: 2019.
Tour: Miami Design District Museum Garage
Miami Design District’s latest garage has opened to the public. The project is a collaboration between WORKac, J. Mayer H., Clavel Arquitectos, Nicolas Buffe, K/R Architects, and Sagmeister & Walsh. Each firm has designed a portion of the garage’s facade to produce the effect of a collage spanning the entire enclosure.
WORKac’s facade consists of a four foot thickened space that allows for a vertical progression of public spaces, including a graffiti art gallery, children’s play area, a garden, a DJ platform, lending library, listening lounge, fountain, bar, car washing/charging station, and space for pets.
Architects/Designers: WORKac, J. Mayer H., Clavel Arquitectos, Nicolas Buffe, K/R Architects, and Sagmeister & Walsh; Program: Parking Garage; Location: Miami, FL; Completion: 2018.
United States Courthouse Los Angeles
Looking up at the north façade from West 1st Street.
Construction is wrapping up at Skidmore Owings & Merrill's new United States courthouse indowntown Los Angeles. The building is designed as a glass clad cube that hovers over a stone base. As part of the sustainability strategy to achieve LEED Platinum status, a serrated curtain wall cladding will help to drastically reduce solar heat gain and maximize views. Inside, the 633,000-square-foot facility will contain 24 courtrooms and 32 judges’ chambers.
U.S. seal glass frit close-up.
Tower base close-up.
Façade corner close-up.
East façade with the Los Angeles Times Building in the foreground.
West elevation from South Olive Street.
Looking east from South Grand Avenue and West 2nd Street.
Southwest corner from South Hill Street and West 2nd Street.
Façade close-up.
Façade corner close-up.
U.S. Courthouse with the Walt Disney Concert Hall in the foreground.
