STATUS
IN CONSTRUCTION
CLIENT
New York City Department of Design and Construction
TYPOLOGY
Civic
SIZE M2/FT2
4,181 / 45,000
SHARE
Located in the Melrose neighborhood of the Bronx, New York, the new 40th Precinct Station replaces an existing station house currently on 138th Street to create a dedicated space for the community, areas for fitness and training for officers, as well as storage space for NYPD gear and vehicles.
The 43,500 sq ft, ground-up project includes the first community event space ever to be at an NYPD facility. The form of the building is derived from its programmatic requirements, where individual volumes contain specific elements of the program as outlined by the NYPD and the local residents. The building is set to open in 2024.
The former 40th Precinct Station currently located on 138th Street.
From the outside, the new 40th Precinct resembles a stack of bricks, referencing the rusticated bases of early NYC Police Stations.
PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS
— The precinct requires twelve separate program types.
MASSING & PROGRAM
— Programs are organized vertically to retain required adjacencies and visual connections in a compact volume. Each program is represented by an individual volume stacked around a central atrium.
PRECINCTS WITHIN A PRECINCT
— Volumes are grouped based on the relationship between each program. Separation accommodates circulation while defining each box as a separate entity. This provides individual spaces for the precinct's groups, forming an urban plan at the scale of a building.
SETBACKS & WINDOWS
— A system of separation and setbacks is repeated on the upper floors. The setbacks push the volumes inwards to create space for windows that are removed from the street, increasing privacy and security. They also accommodate mechanical and zoning requirements.
BRICKS
— From outside, the volumes resemble a stack of boxes, unified through material expression or read as bricks, referencing the bases of early NYC precinct station houses. The bricks of the 40th Precinct seek to reference the various police and community functions that the building serves.
COMMUNITY
— A separately accessible community room will be the first of its kind in the city. Small circular perforations in the street-facing façade call highlight the special function of this particular space, creating transparency that is essential to this new kind of public space.
ATRIUM
— All program areas, entrances and circulation routes are oriented towards the central atrium. This allows for complete oversight from the main desk while maintaining visual relationships between all floors. Clerestory windows at the upper levels bring daylight into the building's core.
PERIMETER & SETBACK FACADES
— All perimeter walls are sandblasted, pre-cast concrete panels, while setback facades are composed of polished concrete and reflective materials to contrast the perimeter walls. Glass is replaced with perforated metal to conceal mechanical equipment and allow airflow.
GREEN ROOF
— The 40th Precinct will be the first in NYC to have a green roof. Each roof will have a unique sedum covering, visible at each level from the offices.
STACKING
OVERHANG
COMMUNITY
On the interior, the station is enhanced with amenities that encourage dialogue with the community while providing spaces for officers to reduce stress and promote physical activity. This includes the addition of an exercise courtyard with training areas and a climbing wall. The 40th Precinct also houses a brand-new piece of city program: the first ever community meeting room in a precinct.
With its own street-level entrance, the multipurpose space will contain information kiosks and areas to hold classes or events, encouraging civic engagement with the precinct.
The building also expresses the city’s commitment to environmental responsibility. The first NYPD station with a green roof, BIG detailed non-reflective materials such as sandblasted concrete to optimize the building’s energy performance – surpassing the requirements necessary for LEED Silver certification.
Bjarke Ingels Kai-Uwe Bergmann Thomas Christoffersen Beat Schenk Aran Coakley Davi Weber David Iseri Elizabeth Mcdonald Jan Leenknegt Michelle Stromsta Minjung Ku Nicholas Reddon Nojan Adami Rita Sio Sören Grünert Tara Abedinitafreshi Yu Inamoto Douglass Alligood Molly Hsiao Rou Huang Yumiko Matsubara Pooja Annamaneni Joanne Zheng
AWARDS
SARA Awards, Special Award for Innovation in Civic Design, 2024
NYC Public Design Commission 34th Annual Award for Excellence, 2016
COLLABORATORS
Silman
Cosentini
DACK
Tillotson
Starr Whitehouse
Philip Habib & Associates
Carlin Simpson & Associates
The Friday Group
CCI
Urban Arborists
RWDI
Key Engineering
Harvey Marshall Berlin Associates
BIG Ideas
