This project also preserved the building’s picturesque archways and original red brick walls; the latter is now topped with a clerestory ribbon of clear glass bricks, forming a bridge between the brick and the new roof.
Silman provided structural engineering services to create a performing arts organization’s first-ever permanent home within the walls of an 1860s tobacco warehouse. The design includes a versatile theater space for 300 – 700 people, a multi-use community room, and a public open-air garden.
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This project also preserved the building’s picturesque archways and original red brick walls; the latter is now topped with a clerestory ribbon of clear glass bricks, forming a bridge between the brick and the new roof.
Prior to this transformation, Silman worked with The Landmarks Conservancy and the NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation to save the waterfront warehouse. Rather than razing the structure, which was nearly collapsed, Silman determined that the 20-inch-thick brick walls were relatively sound and in need of isolated repairs and restoration. Lost and failed arches were reconstructed or restored from salvaged masonry, and joist pockets were infilled.
