The time had come to replace 11 miles of worn, 40-year-old cable that runs underneath Long Island Sound between Northport, N.Y. and Norwalk, Conn. The cables had supplied up to 300 megawatts of electric power to either New England or New York when needed. But the $140 million project, which began in the fall of 2007, was so complex that it required one of the most technologically advanced ships in the world and sensitivity to the environment that halted operations while piping birds mated and fishermen caught summer flounder. Related Links: Best Of 2009 Completed in the fall of 2008,
Working around packed corridors, emergency entrances and busy operating rooms all while trying to build a 90,000-sq-ft vertical expansion to Rhode Islands’ largest healthcare facility created a slew of challenges during the construction of the Rhode Island Hospital Bridge Building Expansion. Related Links: Best Of 2009 Shaun Carvahlo, Director of Safety for Boston, Mass-based Shawmut Design and Construction – which served as construction manager on the project – described the construction challenge of the $48 million, three-story addition above a fully operational Level One Trauma Center as “not unlike performing open heart surgery on a moving patient.” In addition to
With an interior that exudes grace, elegance and delicate finishing, it’s hard to imagine that the new Upper East Side Belgian restaurant Rouge Tomate was completed in only 21 weeks. Completed in September, the $10 million interior renovation successfully transformed a space formerly home to the famous Copacabana nightclub into an enduring restaurant with a commitment to sustainability and harmony. Related Links: Best Of 2009 In order to manage the restaurant and oversee day-to-day operations, the Brussels-based restaurant owners opened an office on site. With the owner on-site every day, GCs Shawmut Design and Construction and lead designers Bentel &
When Royal Bank of Scotland decided to consolidate its North American headquarters – moving offices from Manhattan and Greenwich, Conn., to one location in Stamford, Conn. – it wanted a more efficient business operation. But RBS also wanted a state-of-the art building. Related Links: Best Of 2009 Last August, three years after a groundbreaking ceremony, the fast-track $431 million project is complete. It features 1 million sq ft of building space for as many as 3,000 employees and structure parking to accommodate up to 2,000 spaces. The hub of the RBS operation is an airy 100,000-sq-ft sixth-floor trading floor for
For the structural box of its new South Ferry Terminal on the No. 1 train, the MTA opted for a design/build method. As a result, the $250 million contract was completed in just nine months. Led by a joint venture of Schiavone/Granite/Halmar as the general contractor, crews worked closely with Judlau Contracting, the lead contractor on the concurrent $136 million project of finishes and systems on the 7th Ave/Broadway line of the A train, the MTA’s first new station in two decades, which connects to the new structural box of the No. 1. The Best of 2009 judges panel was
As construction work went underway on New York City’s most famous new public open space – the elevated High Line conversion on Manhattan’s West Side – something a bit more exclusive was going up at the same time, quite literally straddling the new park. Related Links: Best Of 2009 The 340-room Standard, Andre Balazs’ newest hotel, takes its cue from the High Line’s transformation from a gritty rail line into a high-concept icon while keeping in mind the character of the surrounding neighborhood. “It was challenging to find the appropriate balance in terms of the architecture of the neighborhood, and
The new $20 million TKTS booth, perched on a wedge at Broadway and 47th St., has already become a bright and welcoming fixture in Times Square since its completion in October 2008: with the expanded plaza, the luminescent red stairs that are the roof to the ticket booths below already act as an amphitheater for the bright-lights, big-city show of the surroundings while offering a respite from the chaos. Related Links: Best Of 2009 Its creation, however, was far more patchy than the smooth glass surfaces would suggest. It took five years alone to build consensus and raise funds for
The Mark Hotel, a landmark of Manhattan’s Upper East Side, received a facelift and partial conversion to condominiums in a $124 million renovation project that resurrected a New York City institution while still preserving its Jazz Age charm. Related Links: Best Of 2009 “We took an old building and breathed new life into it, with the same level of finishes from the 1920s and integrated it with sophisticated electronics,” says Michael Pardee, project executive with F.J. Sciame Construction Co. of New York. “We maintained the original beauty and architectural detail.” Sciame began work on the prestigious property in April 2007
The Visionaire, the Albanese Organization’s third project in the green haven that is Manhattan’s Battery Park City, raises the bar for high performance residential building. Related Links: Best Of 2009 In June the $193 million project earned LEED Platinum certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, surpassing the developer’s earlier “green” residential high rises, The Solaire and The Verdesian, in terms of energy efficiency, indoor air quality and water management. Designed by Pelli Clark Pelli, New Haven, Conn., the 35-story 500,000-sq-ft tower with a 10-story base saves 35% more energy than similar buildings. The sleek tower contains 247 condominiums and
As construction work went underway on New York City’s most famous new public open space – the elevated High Line conversion on Manhattan’s West Side – something a bit more exclusive was going up at the same time, quite literally straddling the new park. Related Links: Best Of 2009 Following its renovation, the Johnson Chapel has become the spiritual heart of New York City’s Trinity School, providing a space for meditation, reflection and worship for all students and faculty. Architects Butler Rogers Baskett studied various elements in the space and explored ways to synthesize building systems such that design elements
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