New Housing New York

David Burney, FAIA, Commissioner, NYC Department of Design and Construction
Adolfo Carrión, Jr., Bronx Borough President

Randolph R. Croxton, FAIA, Principal, Croxton Collaborative Architects

Shaun Donovan, Commissioner, NYC Housing Preservation & Development M. David Lee, FAIA, Adjunct Prof…  more

David Burney, FAIA, Commissioner, NYC Department of Design and Construction
Adolfo Carrión, Jr., Bronx Borough President

Randolph R. Croxton, FAIA, Principal, Croxton Collaborative Architects

Shaun Donovan, Commissioner, NYC Housing Preservation & Development M. David Lee, FAIA, Adjunct Professor of Urban Design, Harvard School of Design

Setha Low, Professor of Environmental Psychology and Anthropology, City College of New York

Ron Moelis, Principal, L & M Equity Participants

Enrique Norten, Hon. FAIA, Principal, TEN Arquitectos

Lawrence Scarpa, AIA, Principal, Pugh + Scarpa Architecture

Mark Willis, Executive Vice President, JPMorgan Chase

Winning Team

Phipps Rose Dattner Grimshaw
Developers: The Phipps Houses Group and Jonathan Rose Companies
Architects: Dattner Architects and Grimshaw

Honorable Mention

seg Full Spectrum Hamlin Behnisch studioMDA
Developers: seg, Full Spectrum of New York and Hamlin Ventures
Architects: Behnisch Architekten…  more

Winning Team

Phipps Rose Dattner Grimshaw
Developers: The Phipps Houses Group and Jonathan Rose Companies
Architects: Dattner Architects and Grimshaw

Honorable Mention

seg Full Spectrum Hamlin Behnisch studioMDA
Developers: seg, Full Spectrum of New York and Hamlin Ventures
Architects: Behnisch Architekten and studioMDA

Finalists

BRP Bluestone Rogers Marvel
Developers: BRP Development Corporation, The Bluestone Organization and the Mid Bronx Desperadoes
Architect: Rogers Marvel Architects

The Legacy Collaborative
Developers: The Dermot Company, Nos Quedamos and Melrose Associates
Architects: Magnusson Architecture and Planning and Kiss + Cathcart

WHEDCo Durst Cook+Fox
Developers: Women’s Housing and Economic Development Corporation (WHEDCo) and Durst Sunset
Architect: Cook+Fox Architects

The goal of the NHNY competition was to elicit concepts for high design and high quality affordable housing in New York City. Launched in the fall of 2003, the competition featured three sites throughout the city representing prototypical contexts for future affordable housing development: in East H…  more

The goal of the NHNY competition was to elicit concepts for high design and high quality affordable housing in New York City. Launched in the fall of 2003, the competition featured three sites throughout the city representing prototypical contexts for future affordable housing development: in East Harlem, an infill site within a row of brownstone houses; in Brooklyn, a front block facing 4th Avenue; and, in Queens, an entire block in an underutilized manufacturing zone to be rezoned for low and/or mid-rise construction.

Competitors were invited to propose innovative affordable housing designs for one, two, or all three of the sites presented in the competition. In all three locations the challenge was to design excellent housing that would contribute to the composition and context of the neighborhood. The competition focused on exploring new forms of urban living, and encouraged entrants to design units for different populations, including senior citizens, single parents, people with disabilities and telecommuters. Entrants were also encouraged to integrate other functions into their designs, including retail space or office space where appropriate. Sustainable design was an important consideration, to improve energy efficiency and ecological friendliness in the construction, the lifespan, and the recycling/deconstruction phase of the building.

Winners were announced in February 2004.

In response to community needs, the program envisioned for the NHNY Legacy Project is a mixed-use, mixed-income development with residential upper floors and commercial and community uses at street level. A public open space will be located across the street and should be integrated into the design…  more

In response to community needs, the program envisioned for the NHNY Legacy Project is a mixed-use, mixed-income development with residential upper floors and commercial and community uses at street level. A public open space will be located across the street and should be integrated into the design concept for the overall project.

The housing component will target low-, middle-, and moderate-income families desiring homeownership opportunities in the form of condominium or cooperative apartments, or affordable rental housing. It may also include, but does not require, housing units for specific needs populations such as the elderly or independent young adults graduating out of foster care.

The commercial/community facility component may be rented on the open market, or a charitable sponsor or not-for-profit organization may be found to support activities to enhance the lives of the targeted residential populations.

Proposals should attempt to incorporate street-level uses with a nutrition and fitness theme to promote a healthy neighborhood. Uses with a community benefit component, including but not limited to childcare and job training, will be strongly encouraged.

The railway tracks adjacent to the primary site, a 40.5-foot-wide strip of land that extends the length of the site, is not owned by the City and is not currently part of the site. However, the air rights 22 feet 6 inches above the railway tracks are City-owned, making decking or cantilevering an option. The project teams may consider possible uses if ownership/access could be obtained for the tracks at a future date.

The open space component of the project should be designed with the residents’ and the community’s needs in mind. Balancing active and passive recreational uses for all ages and populations, the design of the open spaces should enhance the livability and desirability of the project and benefit both residents and the community. The development rights from the smaller vacant lot cannot be transferred, nor can the public open space built here be used towards the open space requirements as mandated by zoning for the residential portion of the project. Additional open space opportunities above and beyond existing zoning requirements should be considered for the primary site as well.

The NHNY Steering Committee seeks to translate the enthusiasm generated by the competition into a built project. As the Committee continues to define its mission and next steps, it has attracted and will continue to seek out important contributors to New York’s affordable housing community.

The…  more

The NHNY Steering Committee seeks to translate the enthusiasm generated by the competition into a built project. As the Committee continues to define its mission and next steps, it has attracted and will continue to seek out important contributors to New York’s affordable housing community.

The Steering Committee comprises experts in housing design, development, and funding. Key members include Lance Jay Brown, FAIA, of City College; Simone Dennery, R.A., Holly Leicht, Steven Faicco, R.A., and Judy James Hernandez of the City of New York’s Housing Preservation and Development (HPD); David Resnick of the City of New York’s Department of Design and Construction (DDC); Rex Curry of City College Architectural Center; Dan Gorczycki of Granite Partners; Susan Wright, AIA, of Gruzen Samton Architects; Helen Ng of Domus A.D.; Tara Siegel, a Rose Fellow at the Pratt Center; Evan Supcoff, AIA, of HNTB Architecture; and Mark Ginsberg, AIA, and Karen Kubey of Curtis + Ginsberg Architects.

The primary NHNY Site (Bronx Block 2359, p/o Lot 3) is a City-owned vacant lot of approximately 40,000 square feet, on the southeast corner of Brook Avenue and East 156th Street. Previously used as a railroad yard, it is designated as Site 1A within the Bronxchester Urban Renewal Area (URA). Most of…  more

The primary NHNY Site (Bronx Block 2359, p/o Lot 3) is a City-owned vacant lot of approximately 40,000 square feet, on the southeast corner of Brook Avenue and East 156th Street. Previously used as a railroad yard, it is designated as Site 1A within the Bronxchester Urban Renewal Area (URA). Most of the site is sloping below grade from the public sidewalk at the northwest corner. A legally-abandoned, single-track railroad line runs along the eastern edge of the property, mostly level with the site. A retaining wall defines the property line of the eastern edge, alongside the railroad track.

The City owns the air rights (Bronxchester URA Site 13) over the abandoned railroad track. The air rights entitle the site’s developer to build above 22 feet 6 inches over the existing trackbed with a horizontal clearance of 8 feet 6 inches from the center of the track. The track itself, running northwest into the Melrose Commons URA from Port Morris, is owned by an entity in California that is willing to sell its interest.

The secondary site, located on the north side of East 153rd Street between Bergen and Brook Avenues, is a triangular City-owned lot measuring approximately 7,000 square feet. Formerly used in packing and manufacturing, it has been vacant since the 1970s.

Site Location: Bronxchester Urban Renewal Area

Primary Site: 1A (Block 2359, p/o Lot 3)

Secondary Site: p/o 4 & 5 (Block 2363, Lot 1)

Square Footage: Approx. 47,000 square feet

Zoning Current zoning: M1-1; Required rezoning to residential with commercial overlay and open public space accordingly

Acquisition Price: $1 per lot

Types of Development Mixed-use: first floor commercial/community space and
residential on upper floors; public open space

Affordability: Mixed-income

Developers

The Phipps Houses Group

Jonathan Rose Companies

Architects

Dattner Architects

Grimshaw

Developers

The Phipps Houses Group

Jonathan Rose Companies

Architects

Dattner Architects

Grimshaw