25 Kent is a new tech campus in Brooklyn designed as a social campus for innovators, startup founders, and tech leaders. The project is Williamsburg’s first speculative office space in over 50 years.
The 500,000-sf building, which occupies a full city block, has staggered floors to create a ziggurat-shaped building that juts in and out as it rises. The short ends of the facade are capped in floor-to-ceiling windows that bring natural light into the building and provide views of the Manhattan skyline and Brooklyn. The building’s exterior takes its cues from the neighborhood’s industrial character as it stacks a series of brick forms that are an homage to the materials and proportions of nearby warehouses.
25 Kent’s H-shaped plan creates advantages over a generic donut office building. Instead of a typical 45-foot span between the core and the walls, 25 Kent achieves 70-foot spans with three-sided window exposure. Mechanical and circulation cores, of which each wing of the building has its own, were distributed throughout to create flexible floor plates that can be used by single tenants, two tenants, or adapted for a large quantity of multi-tenant configurations. A shared central space connects the two wings and acts as a space for tenants to socialize and collaborate informally.
See Also: River Rock mixed-use community breaks ground in Chattanooga
The interior features highly flexible floor plates designed to support a wide variety of tenants. Several types of workspaces, such as fully-equipped maker spaces, open plan office floors with shared coworking spaces, collaborative lounges, and glass-enclosed conference rooms, offer tailored environments to each tenant’s particular needs.
Related Stories
Office Buildings | Feb 18, 2015
Why the mobile workplace isn't always mobile
Perkins+Will’s Janice Barnes addresses the nuance in mobility types and explains the importance of defining terms upfront.
High-rise Construction | Feb 17, 2015
Work begins on Bjarke Ingels' pixelated tower in Calgary
Construction on Calgary’s newest skyscraper, the 66-story Telus Sky Tower, recently broke ground.
Mixed-Use | Feb 13, 2015
First Look: Sacramento Planning Commission approves mixed-use tower by the new Kings arena
The project, named Downtown Plaza Tower, will have 16 stories and will include a public lobby, retail and office space, 250 hotel rooms, and residences at the top of the tower.
Codes and Standards | Feb 12, 2015
New Appraisal Institute form aids in analysis of green commercial building features
The Institute’s Commercial Green and Energy Efficient Addendum offers a communication tool that lenders can use as part of the scope of work.
Office Buildings | Feb 12, 2015
Is Houston headed for an office glut?
More than 13 million sf could be completed this year, adding to this metro’s double-digit vacancy woes.
Architects | Feb 11, 2015
Shortlist for 2015 Mies van der Rohe Award announced
Copenhagen, Berlin, and Rotterdam are the cities where most of the shortlisted works have been built.
Office Buildings | Feb 6, 2015
6 factors steering workplace design at financial services firms
Grossly underutilized space and a lack of a mobility strategy are among the trends identified by HOK based on its research of 11 top-tier financial services firms.
Contractors | Feb 6, 2015
Census Bureau: Capital spending by U.S. businesses increased 4.5%
Of the 19 industry sectors covered in the report, only one had a statistically significant year-to-year decrease in capital spending: the utilities sector.
Office Buildings | Feb 3, 2015
5 trends transforming workplace design
RTKL's workplace design expert Jodi Williams foresees healthier and more technologically enabled offices that allow productive worker interaction, wherever they happen to be.
Office Buildings | Feb 3, 2015
Bjarke Ingels' BIG proposes canopied, vertical village for Middle East media company
The tensile canopy shades a relaxation plaza from the desert sun.