A community center with a curved roofline and bold color scheme has just opened to serve the West Harlem residents of three low and middle-income housing complexes. Designed by MDSzerbaty +Associates Architecture for the NYC Housing Authority, the 23,000 s/f Polo Grounds Community Center offers much needed recreational, educational and social programs including a gym, classrooms, meeting spaces, a multi-purpose space and a commercial kitchen, targeted primarily for the area's families and children.
"All of the project's stakeholders, from public housing residents, to community groups and city agency representatives, came together to decide what facilities the building should offer," said the building architect Michael Szerbaty, AIA. "We conducted community surveys and public forums to make sure every voice was heard. The building's dynamic form is a direct response to the programs they asked for."
The basketball court, multi-purpose area and performance stage on one side occupy the vaulted space. Under the lower roofline are classrooms that offer access to computers, an arts and crafts studio with a kiln, a video room with a sound booth, and a commercial kitchen serving 200. Programs are being provided by The Children's Village, a public/private partnership that works with area youth.
"We designed the building as a break from the brick residential towers, and felt the energized form and graphic green, blue and yellow color scheme would be a magnet for area residents," said Szerbaty. "Whether approaching the new center from the ground or looking down upon it from 30 stories above, the roof's volume makes for a memorable impression."
All of this was achieved with a budget of $13 million by using metal for the roof and upper walls and masonry below. Visitors using the main entry will pass through the relatively low-ceilinged area devoted to classrooms and meeting rooms to arrive at the gym. A row of skylights illuminates the main corridor, and windows near the roofline bring natural light into the classrooms and gym.
The project team included the following:
* Structural - Leroy Callendar (now retired)
* MEP engineers - George Langer Associates
* Landscape architect - Donna Walcavage
* General contractor - Omni Construction, Yonkers
* Plumbing contractor - Satellite Plumbing, Brooklyn
* Mechanical contractor - Jerusalem Air, Brooklyn
* Electrical Contractor - Stasis/Dallas Electric, Brooklyn.
About MDSzerbaty+Associates Architecture
MDSzerbaty+Associates Architecture (MDSA) is a full service design firm that combines award-winning expertise and a renowned legacy of modern architecture in a wide range of building types. Building on its predecessor firms Herbert Beckhard Frank Richlan Associates, former partner and associate in the office of Marcel Breuer, MDSA brings a contemporary approach to client programs, the shaping of spaces and material composition. The structures the firm creates are twenty-first century responses in building form and function.
The office has designed a range of educational buildings for K-12, colleges and universities, as well as corporate office buildings, healthcare facilities, cultural and religious centers and private residences. Prestigious institutions such as Cornell University and Penn State University are among its clients. MDSA also maintains long professional relationships with developers and public entities such as the NYC Housing Authority, NYC Department of Design and Construction, NY State University Construction Fund and the NYC School Construction Authority - all of whom are repeat clients. Tags: