Architectural Preservation Studio, DPC

New York, NY

This designated landmark, 12-story building was designed by Louis Sullivan in 1897 and is the only Sullivan building ever built in New York City. The goal of the restoration project was to preserve as much of Sullivan’s original terra-cotta façade as possible. This required disassembling all cracked terra-cotta units on the building—some 1,300 of the 7,000 pieces—repairing them and then reinstalling the restored material. Pieces damaged beyond repair were replicated, carefully mimicking the original work; however, only 30 new pieces were required. Column capitals at the ground-floor level had long disappeared due to unsympathetic renovations to the storefronts executed in the 1960s. Fortunately, one original capital had survived in the basement of the Brooklyn Museum, and this was replicated. In addition, replicas were reviewed at the upstate New York manufacturing plant for quality control. All work was performed while the building was fully occupied, with minimal disruption to the occupants’ activities.

New York, NY

The American Surety Company Building at 100 Broadway is an individual New York City designated landmark located in the heart of the financial district. Designed by Bruce Price and completed in 1896, with a 1922 addition by Herman Lee Meader, it was an influential early skyscraper, amongst the first New York City buildings to a have steel-framed curtain wall construction. The two Renaissance-style street façades on Broadway and Pine Street are designed as a column with a tripartite division of base, shaft and capital, a model that was widely replicated by subsequent commercial buildings. The granite-clad structure has striking ornamental detailing throughout, including a two-story colonnade at street level with Ionic columns on Broadway and Doric columns on Pine Street; eight one-story high, raised-relief statues at the third floor; two additional pairs at the 14th–15th floor levels on the Broadway façade; and a projecting cornice at the 20th floor.

WASA/Studio A has been working at 100 Broadway since 1998, performing Local Laws 10/80 and 11/98 and FISP façade inspections and filing critical examination reports. We have designed façade repairs and cleaning, re-roofing and sidewalk/waterproofing projects. In addition, APS under WASA/Studio A designed the replacement of all of the building’s windows with New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission-approved double-glazed units.

New York, NY

1410 Broadway is an Art Deco skyscraper originally known as the Bricken Casino Building and dating to 1931. It is located in the Garment Center Historic District listed in 2009 on the National Register for Historic Places. The structure was designed by Ely Jacques Kahn, who was responsible for several skyscrapers in the Garment District.

Architectural Preservation Studio was retained to perform the 8th Cycle FISP critical examination report and to develop and administer construction documents for any façade repairs identified.

New York, NY

1441 Broadway is an Art Deco skyscraper originally known as the Bricken Textile Building and dating to 1929. It is located in the Garment Center Historic District listed in 2009 on the National Register for Historic Places. The structure was designed by Ely Jacques Kahn, who was responsible for several skyscrapers in the Garment District.

Architectural Preservation Studio was retained to perform the 8th Cycle FISP critical examination report and to develop and administer construction documents for any façade repairs identified.

New York, NY

285 Madison Avenue is an eclectic 25-story office building erected in 1925. The steel-framed building is clad in limestone at the lower stories and brick above, with terra-cotta ornamentation, including decorative lintels and sills, balustrades, cornices, and sculptural elements. The building is articulated by six setbacks culminating in a tower at the corner of East 40th Street and Madison Avenue.

Architectural Preservation Studio’s initial involvement with 285 Madison Avenue began with a review of the exterior for a Local Law 10/80 Fourth Cycle report filing. This led to probes of deteriorated areas and a conditions assessment. A major repair program executed in 1996-97 replaced one third of the cracked terra-cotta lintels with cast-stone replicas. Balustrades were disassembled and reconstructed where necessary to stabilize them and to replace fatigued metal flashing with through-wall cap flashing. Continuous vertical cracks required extensive rebuilding of corners, and occasionally, reinforcing of the steel frame. Corroding outriggers which supported the cornices were stabilized by installation of discrete external steel straps on the coping stones. We continued to service the client for the Fifth Cycle of Local Law 11/98, which was filed as Safe. The exterior repair program undertaken from 2005-06 to comply with Local Law 11/98 Sixth Cycle, required work to be performed to new areas of deterioration only, as all of the ten-year old repairs had remained intact.

Architectural Preservation Studio continued to design and implement repairs to the exterior of the building in a systematic manner. The courtyard fire-stair platforms were completely rebuilt. All of the setbacks, originally quarry tile, have been abated and replaced with modified-bitumen waterproofing. The main roof and its bulkheads were also re-roofed. At the 12th floor, the original steel section, double-hung windows were restored. The courtyard façades underwent repair including replacement of steel lintels and concrete sills, and some parapet rebuilding. The 25-story chimney was demolished and the brickwork revealed coated with stucco. Another project involved the repair of the lobby marble work damaged from a fatal elevator accident. Recently, we completed exterior repairs in compliance with the 8th Cycle of FISP (formerly Local Law 11/98), permitting us to file the critical examination report as Safe.

New York, NY

Architectural Preservation Studio (APS) performed a FISP (Façade Inspection and Safety Program) critical examination and report filing for this historic structure. This was followed by the preparation of Construction Documents for terra-cotta, metal and brick-masonry façade restoration, including repainting of the metal-cornice elements of this early 20th-century commercial building located in the Ladies Mile Historic District of New York City. APS is currently overseeing construction, which is scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2020.

New York, NY

Architectural Preservation Studio (APS) prepared construction documents for the terra-cotta, cast-iron and brick-masonry façade restoration, including repainting of the cast-iron elements of this early 20th-century commercial building in the Garment District of New York City. APS is currently overseeing construction, which is scheduled to be completed in the summer of 2020.

New York, NY

1515 Broadway is a 57-story office building with a seven-story limestone-clad extension on the south, east and west elevations that houses the Astor Theatre and ground-floor retail space. The tower has distinctive projecting vertical limestone fins located near each building corner, accentuating the glazed curtain-wall system. At the top of the tower, the fins are connected together by a two-story-high limestone-clad mechanical equipment space. WASA/Studio A was first called in to determine the cause of curtain wall glazing failures, where 5-foot by 10-foot windows were falling from the building in high- wind conditions. We discovered an inadequacy in the structural attachment of the double-bay corner windows and developed a simple repair to rectify the condition.  APS under WASA/Studio A has worked on this building for the past 20 years performing Local Law 11/98 critical examinations, as well as repairs to both the limestone and glazed curtain-wall façade elements.

New York, NY

New York, NY

APS under WASA/Studio A has worked on many phases of roofing and façade projects over the years at this historic New York City structure within a landmark district. The duplex penthouse in the building provided the primary residence to Nelson Rockefeller for many years. The 14-story steel-framed structure is composed primarily of limestone with an ornamental terra- cotta cornice.

During a recent restoration of the two street façades,  APS prepared documents and administered construction for the project, which included extensive installation of dutchmen at previously inappropriately patched locations; replacement of deteriorated ornamental limestone elements with new limestone to match the original; dismantling and replacing the support structure; repairing and reinstalling the terra-cotta cornice; repointing of open mortar joints  and installing lead weathercaps at all horizontal surfaces; repairing, repainting and recaulking of all the wood windows; and complete building cleaning using a combination of water washing and the JOS low-pressure water micro- abrasives system. During previous phases, we designed and administered the replacement of all roofing systems, including the large penthouse deck, as well as repairing and re-stuccoing the penthouse structure.

New York, NY

Architectural Preservation Studio (APS) performed a FISP (Façade Inspection and Safety Program) critical examination and report filing for this historic structure. This was followed by the preparation of Construction Documents for terra-cotta, metal and brick-masonry façade restoration, including repainting of the metal-cornice elements of this early 20th-century commercial building located in the Ladies Mile Historic District of New York City. APS is currently overseeing construction, which is scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2020.

New York, NY

Over a 25-year period, Architectural Preservation Studio performed façade evaluations, restoration and repairs to the exterior of the world’s largest department store. Covering most of an entire city block, the store is listed on the National Register for Historic Places and is actually several combined structures: the Palladian-style Broadway building of 1901–02, designed by De Lemos & Cordes, and enlivened by brick, terra cotta, stone and cast iron facades; and successive brick and stone Art Deco additions designed by Robert D. Kohn in 1924, 1928 and 1931.

Brooklyn, NY