New York Public Library, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building

New York, USA

Photo © Courtesy of NYPL, photo by Jonathan Blanc

Visualization © Mecanoo with BBB

Architects: Beyer Blinder Belle Architects

Location: Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street, 10018 New York, USA
Client: New York Public Library
Team: Elizabeth R. Leber (Managing Partner/Partner-in-Charge), Stephen McHale (Principal), Miriam Kelly (Principal), Elizabeth Kim (Senior Associate), Lars Moestue (Senior Associate/Environmental Graphics), Kerry Nolan (Senior Associate), Bob Stern (Senior Associate/Director of Graphic Design), Cedric Araica (Associate), Kate Reggev (Associate/Architectural Historian & Designer), Michael Elizabeth Rozas (Associate), Gladysa Vega (Associate), Eran Birnbaum (Architect)
Collaborating Architect: Mecanoo
Landscape Architect: OLIN
Structural Architect: Silman
MEP/FP/IT: Kohler Ronan, LLC
Civil & Geotechnical Engineers, Surveyors: Langan
Lighting Design: Tillotson Design Associates
Acoustics/Audio/Visual: Jaffe Holden
AV/Acoustics/IT/Security: Shen Milsom & Wilke
Code/Accessibility: Code Consultants International (CCI)
Sustainability: Atelier Ten
Environmental Strategy Consultants: AKRF, Inc.
Vertical Transportation: Van Deusen Associates
Cost Estimator: Stuart-Lynn Company
Expeditor: Conversano Associates
Wayfinding: Beyer Blinder Belle
Wayfinding: Geerdes
Construction Manager: Turner Construction Company
Construction Manager, Treasures project: Suffolk Construction
Construction Mngr, Ctr for Research in Humanities: Tishman Construction Corporation
Owner's Representative: CBRE

Reimagining the New York Public Library’s Midtown Campus includes renovation of the historic and iconic Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, the Library’s flagship research facility.

Ongoing renovations at this New York City and National Historic Landmark in midtown Manhattan will enable the library to provide a greater range of public facing-programs, exhibitions, and amenities, augment research facilities, and improve logistics and services for its many constituents as the building continues into its second century. Spaces formerly serving back-of-house uses are restored for public use—including the Center for Research in the Humanities, dedicated to research and scholarly work. Other proposed enhancements include the Marshall Rose Plaza, a new public entrance and terrace, new exhibition, retail, and café functions, as well as adding vertical circulation and upgrading building systems, all in deference to the building’s original Beaux-Arts design. The next two phases of the renovation will cover approximately 90,000 NSF with nearly half of this space dedicated to public programming. BBB is working in collaboration with Mecanoo on the Midtown Campus Renovation, which includes renovation and expansion of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library (SNFL) across Fifth Avenue.