The Jarvis Center’s new rooftop farm and event space has completed as part of the Center’s $1.5 billion expansion project on Manhattan’s West Side. The 200,000-sf rooftop includes a glass-enclosed pavilion, an outdoor terrace, and a one-acre working farm that is expected to generate up to 40,000 pounds of produce each year.
The farm features a greenhouse that can host intimate gatherings or meals fo dup to 25 people. Brooklyn Grange will manage the day-to-day operations of the farm and the greenhouse. The produce will be sent directly to on-site kitchens to be incorporated into meals served to clients. It builds on the success of the convention center’s sustainability program, which includes an existing 6.75-acre green roof that serves as a habitat for area wildlife.
The 15,000-sf, glass-enclosed pavilion can host events with up to 1,500 individuals throughout the year. The pavilion is adjacent to a large outdoor terrace that features a meadow, a shade garden, and an orchard with 32 apple trees and six pear trees.
![Javits Center rooftop apple orchard](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Rooftop%20to%20Table.jpg)
A solar farm with more than 3,000 solar panels, making it the largest rooftop solar farm in Manhattan, was also included as part of the project. It is expected to generate 1.7 megawatts of solar energy with an additional 3.5 megawatts of battery storage, providing the convention center with more than 2 gigawatt hours per year. The installation of two underground retention cisterns helps capture and treat rainwater to be used for irrigation on the roof, reducing the need for potable water for irrigation by at least 50%.
![Javits Center rooftop events space](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Rooftop%20Event%20Space.jpg)
The total Javits Center project features 50% more front-of-house and back-of-house areas and more than 200,000 square feet of new meeting room and pre-function space, including a 54,000-square-foot special event space — the largest of its kind in the Northeast. The newly expanded Javits Center also features 500,000 sf of event space and a four-level truck marshaling facility that can house up to 200 tractor-trailers at one time.
The project was led by the New York Convention Center Development Corporation, a subsidiary of Empire State Development, the state’s chief economic development agency, a Lendlease and Turner joint venture and architectural firms TVS, Moody Nolan, Stantec and WXY Studio.
Related Stories
| Nov 15, 2013
First look: Jacob K. Javits Convention Center renovation and expansion [slideshow]
The massive upgrade included a 110,000-sf expansion – Javits North – as well as the installation of 240,000 sf of energy-efficient glass curtain wall on the existing facility and the region's largest green roof.
| Nov 15, 2013
Metal makes its mark on interior spaces
Beyond its long-standing role as a preferred material for a building’s structure and roof, metal is making its mark on interior spaces as well.
| Nov 13, 2013
Installed capacity of geothermal heat pumps to grow by 150% by 2020, says study
The worldwide installed capacity of GHP systems will reach 127.4 gigawatts-thermal over the next seven years, growth of nearly 150%, according to a recent report from Navigant Research.
| Nov 13, 2013
First look: Renzo Piano's addition to Louis Kahn's Kimbell Art Museum [slideshow]
The $135 million, 101,130-sf colonnaded pavilion by the famed architect opens later this month.
| Oct 30, 2013
11 hot BIM/VDC topics for 2013
If you like to geek out on building information modeling and virtual design and construction, you should enjoy this overview of the top BIM/VDC topics.
| Oct 23, 2013
Gehry, Foster join Battersea Power Station redevelopment
Norman Foster and Frank Gehry have been selected to design a retail section within the £8 billion redevelopment of Battersea Power Station in London.
| Oct 18, 2013
Researchers discover tension-fusing properties of metal
When a group of MIT researchers recently discovered that stress can cause metal alloy to fuse rather than break apart, they assumed it must be a mistake. It wasn't. The surprising finding could lead to self-healing materials that repair early damage before it has a chance to spread.
| Oct 1, 2013
13 structural steel buildings that dazzle
The Barclays Center arena in Brooklyn and the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte, N.C., are among projects named 2013 IDEAS2 winners by the American Institute of Steel Construction.
| Sep 26, 2013
6 ways to maximize home-field advantage in sports venue design
Home-field advantage can play a significant role in game outcomes. Here are ways AEC firms can help create the conditions that draw big crowds, energize the home team to perform better, and disrupt visiting players.
| Sep 24, 2013
8 grand green roofs (and walls)
A dramatic interior green wall at Drexel University and a massive, 4.4-acre vegetated roof at the Kauffman Performing Arts Center in Kansas City are among the projects honored in the 2013 Green Roof and Wall Awards of Excellence.