New Schools for New York
This study, sponsored by the New York Architectural League and the Public Education Association, addresses the reconstruction of New York City's public schools and their integration into the community. The project called for the creation of a small high school and community center.
The site for this project is a deteriorating mid-block, "H" plan, collegiate Gothic school between 147th and 148th streets in Harlem. Across the street, a vacant lot is designated as a proposed park. The selective removal of the center portion of the existing structure creates two distinct, small-scale buildings: the new high school and community center occupy these buildings and are connected below grade by the rennovated auditorium and gymnasium.
A plaza extends between the high school and the community center and across the street to the proposed park at 148th Street. As the locus of activities for the school and community center, the plaza -or agora- provides an outdoor space for multiple uses and serves as an improvisational educational and cultural center. The addition of two opposing vertical glass arcs form accessible lobbies overlooking the newly configured plaza. Visible from all sides and animated by round-the-clock uses, this space creates a safe "heart" for the community.
