Bjarke Ingels Is Designing a $50M NYPD Station House in the South Bronx
Taking a break from his glitzy builds like the Via tetrahedron and 2 World Trade Center, starchitect Bjarke Ingels is taking on a project that is much more modest, yet just as laudable–a station house for the NYPD’s 40th Precinct in the South Bronx (h/t Curbed). The $50 million commission, facilitated under the Department of Design and Construction, is located in the Melrose section of the borough and will resemble a “stack of bricks,” according BIG’s website, “referencing the rusticated bases of early NYC police stations.” Spanning three stories, rising 59 feet, and encompassing 43,000 square feet, the precinct will be the first ever to include a green roof, not surprising considering Ingels’ commitment to incorporating nature into his buildings.
Ingels’ design was informed by the DDC’s parameters for police station design. Where the station houses of the early 1900s reflect an architectural language of fortification and stronghold, the design of the later 20th century clearly aims to express a sense of civic engagement,” he explained to The Architect’s Newspaper. “Independent of era, all precinct designs reflect a sense of solidity and durability, and we tried to evoke this same robustness in the 40th.” The firm achieved this through a series of rectangular volumes that serve varying purposes, almost a smaller, squatter version of 2 World Trade’s stacked-cube plan. Each floor, other than the basement, has four different-sized volumes with non-symmetrical gaps in between that are the circulation spaces. A three-story atrium unifies the design, brings light in, and acts as a surveillance hub.
In addition to boasting the NYPD’s first green roof, the building will also have the first community room within a precinct. Though adjacent to the main lobby, it will have a separate street-level entrance and will offer information kiosks and classrooms. To accentuate its public nature, the room’s volume will be clad in small glazed openings that symbolize transparency. Other notable elements of the project include the use of non-reflective materials like sandblasted concrete to reach its LEED silver goal and an exercise courtyard complete with climbing walls where officers can reduce stress.
The 40th Precinct serves the neighborhoods of Port Morris, Mott Haven, and Melrose, and its new location will be at 560 Brook Avenue. It’s expected to be completed by 2020.
[Via Curbed via The Architect’s Newspaper]
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All Images courtesy of BIG
