SIMS Municipal Recycling Facility in Brooklyn. Image courtesy of Selldorf Architects.
Selldorf Architects, located at Manhattan’s Union Square, recently opened their studio to Cooper-Hewitt’s Design Watch Members. The firm has acquired an international reputation for work that is sensitive to context and program, thoughtful in execution and timeless. The firm has worked on public and private projects that range from museums and libraries to recycling facilities; and at scales from the construction of new buildings to the restoration of historic interiors and furniture design.
The highlight of the evening was learning about the SIMS Municipal Recycling Facility in Brooklyn, currently under construction. An undertaking of Sims Metal Management and the City of New York, the facility is planned for the 30th Street Pier in Brooklyn’s Sunset Park. The program includes a visitors’ center and administration building, an enclosed barge unloading facility, and a materials-handling building for the processing and storage of New York City’s metal, glass and plastic recyclables. Working within the constraints of a pre-engineered building, one of the design challenges was to find ways to articulate the program and give an overall expression to the facility that would distinguish it from ordinary big box construction. The facility is expected to open in December 2011
Learn more about Selldorf Architects and Annabelle Selldorf, a 2006 National Design Award Finalist.
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