HWKN has unveiled Bushwick Generator, a new office campus meant to embody the Brooklyn neighborhood’s energy and tradition of disruptive entrepreneurship.
As part of the campus’ design, the light-industrial buildings that existed on site were reimagined as part of the new building’s foundation. Atop this base, HWKN designed a brick-clad, sculptural, gem-like volume that introduces a vertical focal point in the neighborhood and comprises 400,000-sf of workspace.
In order to create working environments that reflect the lively, unique exterior form, the design invites the surrounding neighborhood’s energy inside with areas for public programming. These spaces can be used for exhibitions, performances, and social events, bringing together office tenants with community members in a bustling center that offers something to tenants and Bushwick locals alike.
To further open the building to the street, a corner of the existing light-industrial structures is sliced off at the base, creating a triangular entrance that continues the faceted geometry to the ground plane and carves out space for a sidewalk plaza. Above this, a landscaped outdoor terrace activates the area where the rectangular base meets the vertical gem. This unique amenity can serve as a breakout space, an informal meeting area, or a venue for public events.
The octagonal floor-plates can be flexibly subdivided, allowing the building to host businesses ranging from start-ups and growth-phase companies to established industry leaders. The building’s form creates distinctive interior work environments with 270-degrees of exposure, flooding each floor with natural daylight and panoramic views of Brooklyn and Manhattan.
The campus is slated for completion in 2023. The build team includes HWKN (design architect), Land Collective (landscape design), Salamon Engineering Group (MEP), Philip Habib & Associates (civil engineer), and Titan Engineers (structural engineer).
Related Stories
Office Buildings | Jul 31, 2015
Design unveiled for Apple HQ visitor center
A glass-walled single-story building alongside the main office building in Cupertino, Calif., will be used as a visitor center.
Office Buildings | Jul 29, 2015
Design plans for Fannie Mae’s new HQ revealed
The developer/owner, Carr Properties, envisions a 1-million-sf plus mixed-use center with a large retail pavilion.
Contractors | Jul 29, 2015
Consensus Construction Forecast: Double-digit growth expected for commercial sector in 2015, 2016
Despite the adverse weather conditions that curtailed design and construction activity in the first quarter of the year, the overall construction market has performed extremely well to date, according to AIA's latest Consensus Construction Forecast.
Office Buildings | Jul 23, 2015
Office bust hits suburban Washington D.C.: metro area awash in vacant office buildings
Most of the building and buying is happening within the city’s limits.
Office Buildings | Jul 21, 2015
Finally! There's a workplace trend that’s worth embracing
There’s a realization by corporate real estate executives that in order to create a successful workplace, there must be alignment between their people, their place, and the tools they have to do their jobs.
High-rise Construction | Jul 20, 2015
Morphosis' Casablanca Finance City tower to be topped with crown-shaped pinnacle
The tower will anchor a new business district being planned, similar to the glass and concrete business La Défense section at the outskirts of Paris.
Office Buildings | Jul 15, 2015
BIG’s design for Philadelphia Navy Yard defies gravity
Ground has broken for 1200 Interpid, a 94,000-sf office building designed by BIG that appears to be leaning.
High-rise Construction | Jul 13, 2015
Herzog & de Meuron’s triangle tower stirs controversy in Paris
The 590-foot glass pyramid building will include a 120-room hotel, 754,000 sf of office space, and cultural facilities.
High-rise Construction | Jul 7, 2015
Bjarke Ingels designs Frankfurt skyscraper with a surprise in the middle
Several levels in the center of the 185-meter tower are shifted outward to allow for terraces with city views.
Office Buildings | Jun 30, 2015
'What’s the latest trend in workplace design?': How architects and designers should answer this hot-button question
Hint: Your response must be better than a laundry list of solutions, according to VOA Associates' John Varholak.
