3 Firms Foster Community With Projects in New York City
Andrew Franz Architect, Body Lawson Associates Architects and Planners, and Lubrano Ciavarra Architects foster community and education with these projects in New York City.
Washington Community Center by Andrew Franz
Architect
Undergoing a comprehensive revamp at a reduced fee, the 11,000-square-foot facility in East Harlem will feature more daylight, fresh air, and improved ventilation and HVAC systems; expanded reception and waiting areas for greater social distancing; a robust senior center and youth-services program; and an improved entrance that provides “a gracious and transparent connection to the community.”
Home Street Residences by Body Lawson Associates Architects
and Planners
The innovative low-income housing in the Bronx offers 30 percent of its 550-square-foot units to formerly homeless seniors, the remaining to a diverse group of low-income senior individuals and families, and a teen community space, all in a LEED Gold–certified structure, its handsome gray-brick facade echoing the schist from the Presbyterian church that once stood on the site.
GETWELL! by Lubrano Ciavarra Architects in Bronx, Brooklyn, and Manhattan
Already dedicated to bringing design excellence to under-resourced NYC children, when the shutdown hit, the firm teamed with engineers JB&B to reconsider school design, addressing not only germ transfer but also systemic problems, resulting in holistic educational concepts like Wellstation, which integrates a chair, desk, and locker, minimizes cross-contamination, and is in prototype phase; the team also volunteered to assist five public schools in reopening planning, suggesting custom vinyl decals that simultaneously illustrate six-foot spacing and teach ruler measurements.
