Situated at the northern part of Brooklyn where Newton Creek and the East River intersect, OMA New York / Jason Long's Greenpoint Landing residential towers have reached their latest phase of development; The North Tower is currently at 300 ft. and the South Tower is at 400 ft. The buildings are expected to provide 745 units of mixed-income housing, and will expand an acre beyond the existing esplanade, creating a new section of public waterfront that overlooks the Manhattan skyline.
The project consists of 745 residential rental apartments divided across 3 buildings, 30% of which will be affordable to various income families. 8,600 sq. ft. of retail space are dispersed along the ground floor, implemented to help activate the new gateways to the Greenpoint waterfront. A bridge linking the two towers together will house the pool and fitness programs, and provide a panoramic view of Manhattan and the waterfront.
The towers are built in an area zoned for a maximum floor plate of 11,000 sq.ft., which forced the architects to reduce the towers’ footprints, allowing for maximum open space between them, and then expand and contract floors within the towers for maximum efficiency. This resulted in the towers' distinct shapes, with each stepping in and out of each other. Each tower has expansive views to the west, north, and east, allowing for clear visibility from Queens, Manhattan and Brooklyn.
The taller tower widens toward the east as it increases in height, maximizing the exposure to Manhattan's skyline. The shorter tower widens towards the bottom, creating a series of terraces that gradually angle away from the adjacent towers, meeting the waterfront promenade to the North. The stepped parts of the facade ease the contrast between the scale of the two towers along with the neighboring buildings. On the facades, eight-foot by eight-foot windows are implemented within a grid of precast concrete panels, keeping the panoramic view undisturbed. Similar to the facades seen on Greenpoint’s townhouses, the precast panels are carved with a series of angled planes that alternate in orientation, animating the facade as the sun moves during the day and emphasizing the scale of each tower.
These towers, our first in Brooklyn, have reached an important milestone made possible by the perseverance of Brookfield, Park Tower Group, BBB and the entire construction and design team during an unprecedented time. It’s exciting to see our collective efforts take shape on Greenpoint’s dynamic skyline. -- Jason Long, OMA Partner
Greenpoint Landing is a 22-acre site designated for residential projects. The site is developed by Park Tower Group, and is situated along a half-mile of the East River waterfront. The master plan will include almost 5,500 residential units, 1,400 of which are affordable houses, a new pre-kindergarten through 8th grade public school, and four acres of public open space.
This Greenpoint Landing residential towers were designed by Partner Jason Long with Associates Chris Yoon and Yusef Ali Dennis, and the OMA New York team. The interior spaces and landscape are designed by Marmol Radziner, with Beyer Blinder Belle as the executive architect and unit interior designer. The general contractor is New Line Structures and superstructure contractor is Highbury Concrete.
