openhousenewyork’s Weekend Event Guide is Finally Here – Take the Tours!

You can probably guess that we’re pretty excited about the 12th annual openhousenewyork weekend, taking place this year on October 11th and 12th, so of course we couldn’t wait to share the just-announced guide to the spaces on this year’s roster.

Tour goers will have access to 300 sites and tours in all five boroughs, including private residences, new buildings, and sites of architectural, cultural, and historical significance. Some of the sites we’re most looking forward to touring are the TWA Flight Center at JFK, Kickstarter headquarters, the Manhattan Micro Loft, and El Barrio’s Artspace PS109.

The TWA Flight Center is returning to the tour for its fourth consecutive year, as Eero Saarinen’s mid-Century Modern masterpiece has remained the weekend’s most highly visited site. It will be open this year on Saturday the 11th from 11am to 3:30pm. Visitors will have the chance to walk through the “jet age” terminal’s tubes, thanks to recent restoration efforts by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) and Beyer Blinder Belle Architects and Planners. This is especially exciting since there has been so much talk lately about what will happen to the historic site.

Kickstarter Headquarters, courtesy of Yuka Yoneda for Inhabitat

Ole Sondresen Architects designed the Kickstarter Headquarters in a 2,900-square-foot space in Greenpoint’s Pencil Factory. The office boasts a habitable green roof, glass courtyard, theater, gallery, and library. El Barrio’s Artspace PS109 will be an East Harlem arts facility with 89 units of affordable live/work housing for artists and 13,000 square feet of space for arts organizations. Architect Matthew Meier of HHL Architects is converting the former public school building, designed by C.B.J. Snyder, which is expected to start welcoming residents by the end of the year.

Manhattan Micro Loft by Specht Harpman Architects, photo courtesy of Taggart Sorenson

The Manhattan Micro Loft by Specht Harpman Architects is a compact, four-level apartment on the Upper West Side that feels completely contemporary and spacious, despite its 425-square-foot footprint.

There are several special programs highlighted in the guide as well, including the Making It Here series, which explores what manufacturing looks like in the city today and considers why it is so important to the future of New York. OHNY at Night will feature tours of ten projects by lumen award-winning lighting designers, looking at how designers and engineers envision, plan, and execute the illumination of the city’s buildings. The weekend will also offer behind-the-scenes tours, on-site talks, and family-friendly programs.

In addition to the 150 Open Access sites, which can be visited for free by the public, some sites will host limited tours that require advanced reservations, so be sure to peruse the guide today and map out your perfect weekend; reservations begin at 11am on October 1st.