Penn’s Robbins House will be recognized with a Merit Award in the Architecture category at the 2019 AIA New York Design Awards Exhibition. The exhibition will feature the 27 awarded projects across the categories of Best in Competition, Architecture, Interiors, Projects, Urban Design and Sustainability.
Designed by Studio Joseph with structural engineering by CVM, the project re-imagined the interior of a historic, three-story, 7,120 SF partial-basement structure originally built as a private home. A structurally-challenging project, the design called for preserving portions of the building’s south and west facades, as well as the party wall it shares with Sweeten Alumni House on its east side, while removing sagging and displaced roof and floor framing that had been damaged by prolonged water infiltration.
CVM designed a permanent lateral bracing system to stabilize the party wall during construction, allowing for the removal of the existing deteriorated roof and floor framing and for the party wall to be underpinned to allow for a new, full-depth basement. CVM also designed a temporary steel bracing system to brace the historic south and west facades during construction, allowing the contractor to efficiently remove the deteriorated floor and roof framing before installing new floor and roof structure.
Congratulations to the project team!