Original article by: Stephen Del Percio The $37 million Early Childhood Center 361 is one of the first schools in New York City to be built pursuant to the School Construction Authority's Green Schools Guide and Rating System; the first, P.S. 59 at 212 East 61st Street, opened its doors this past fall. Designed by Gran Kriegel Associates, the 48,000-square-foot ECC 361 will eventually house pre-K through third graders from neighboring P.S. 94, a century-old school that was designed by Charles Snyder, who served as the architect for all of New York City's schools that were built between 1895 and 1922. Green features at ECC 361 will include natural daylighting, efficient landscape irrigation, 10 percent post-consumer recycled-content and locally sourced building materials, low-VOC paints and sealants, and mold-resistant sheetrock.
What's particularly interesting about the project is how Gran Kriegel's design attempts to recreate the "Snyder School" architecture of both P.S. 94 and other of its contemporary schools as designed by Charles Snyder; ECC 361's facade features both traditional red brick masonry and more modern colored panels and cast stone. When it opens in September of 2010, the school will offer 22 classrooms and accomodate up to 478 students. The project is located at East 211st Street in the Norwood section of the Bronx and appears to successfully blend a traditional architectural vernacular with a modern green design aesthetic. As you'll recall the Green Schools Guide aims to assist public school projects in complying with Local Law 86, which requires a LEED-certified rating for most New York City schools. New York Construction magazine profiles ECC 361 in detail in its April 2009 issue.
Link to Article:
Gran Kriegel Associates' ECC 361: Modern Green Take on "Snyder School" in the Bronx