New York State Parks, Perkins Memorial Tower

Perkins Memorial Tower, atop Bear Mountain in Bear Mountain State Park, affords spectacular views of the park, the Hudson Highlands and the adjacent Harriman State Park. Built in the 1930s, the five-story, mass masonry structure regularly endures 95 MPH winds and other weather extremes. In the 1990s, the previously simple, moisture-insensitive interior finishes were enhanced with new plaster and paint systems, as well as new mosaic tile artwork.

When CVM investigated the conditions 15 years later, the finishes were literally being pushed off of the 36-inch-thick walls by vapor pressure. Recognizing these special water infiltration conditions, CVM evaluated a range of solutions for the wall finishes using Transient Heat and Moisture Transport Analysis (WUFI), a moisture temperature modeling program. Under CVM’s guidance, a rehabilitation program was implemented that repaired the weathered exterior and remounted salvaged artwork with a new moisture-tolerant, historically-appropriate mounting scheme capable of long-term protection from further damage.

Location: Rockland County, NY