Hudson Square is defined by the powerful, massive masonry urban factories, warehouses and printing press buildings that rose along Hudson, Greenwich and Varick Streets. Left among the more modern art-deco era buildings was 100 Vandam. This relatively diminutive red brick warehouse was of the first generation of large working buildings that began to replace the small farms, smith shops and industries that developed on the undesirable marshy land along the Hudson River in the 1800s.
The design for the new residential building at 100 Vandam intends to preserve this narrow band of history, emerging as a rare vertical extension; a 25-story contemporary tower rising within the brick façade. The façades of the historic warehouse are preserved while a new core is anchored in the void of the demolished interior bays. The tower above functions as a counter to the massiveness of the warehouse with its thick loadbearing exterior, inverting the structure that pulls its mass into the core, while the exterior is reduced to thin, light plates held aloft in tension. The fine edges extend as solar shades to create a deep exterior wall pushed inward at intervals to allow planted loggias designed to be accessible from every home in the tower.
The loggia gardens, designed by Terrain-NYC, are oriented to sun angles, aspect and elevation, and the selection of plantings is derived from the local ecosystem to provide the most resiliency as well as new habitat for birds and insects. Plantings include edibles, and the design plans for spring blooms and fall colors. The loggia landscapes are designed to filter the light and frame views of the city, recreating a natural plane to allow biophilic responses connecting occupants to natural cycles and their location in a specific place and time.
