Construction starts at Strongbox Theater

Construction is starting on site at the new Strongbox Theater in East Rockaway, NY.  Designed by Think!, The Strongbox Theater is a renovation of an existing bank and two adjacent buildings for new use as a performing arts and event space, totaling 5,306 sq ft. A new addition (816 sq ft) will be provided in the rear of the main building to support the new use while a vestibule is introduced to engage with the commercial street and connect the three existing structures. 

The volume of the existing historic bank building has turned out to be of the perfect proportions for a performance space which will be augmented by a new theatrical lighting grid, acoustic treatments and other theatrical infrastructure components.  A new entrance will be provided with illuminated signage and backlit video displays.  The project will also contain a full service bar and catering kitchen.

Glenmore Manor has topped out

Construction has topped out at Glenmore Manor in Brownsville, Brooklyn. Designed for Brisa Builders, Lemle & Wolff Companies; and the African American Planning Commission, the project will create 233 apartments serving low income families, formerly homeless individuals and low-income seniors.

Located at the intersection of Christopher and Glenmore Avenues, the development is one of several residential components in the Brownsville Neighborhood Plan, an initiative to revitalize and invigorate the surrounding area.

This critically needed project incorporates the key goals of the Plan including commercial and community facilities to create a center for innovation and local entrepreneurship. Its purpose is to energize the neighborhood providing new jobs and opportunities. This center is conceived as a 20,000 sq ft two story, highly transparent element known as the B’Ville Hub. Above the Hub, the building’s façade is composed of glazed blue and dark metal trim, with green roofs and solar panels to enhance the project’s sustainability.

The overall design builds on opportunities within the existing urban landscape, strategically locating building mass, storefronts and entrances to strengthen pedestrian corridors and create diverse opportunities for social and economic activities.

Completion is expected in 2026.

2024: A Banner Year for Think!

2024 was something of a banner year for Think! We completed over 500 affordable housing units in four significant projects in Brooklyn and the Bronx; IMPACCT Senior Residence, St Philip Neri Apartments, Betances Family Apartments and The Bridge Rockaway. The latter is the first of its kind in NYC, co-locating 174 units of affordable housing with 39,000 sq ft of light manufacturing incubator space. Each of these projects offers housing for vulnerable people and includes onsite facilities providing supportive services.

2024 also saw us achieve significant industry recognition for our projects including design awards for the Duane L Jones Recital Hall at SUNY Old Westbury and for market rate housing at 142 West 19th Street in Manhattan. The Bridge Rockaway received the ‘Downstate Project of the Year’ at the NYSAFAH Awards, while our design for Malcolm Shabazz Harlem Plaza – an affordable housing project above a new home for the landmark Malcolm Shabazz Market which is seeking Passive House certification – was awarded the Blue Ribbon Building of Excellence in the fourth round of the NYSERDA Awards.

We are delighted with the achievements of our team that have fostered these milestone projects and are excited for the projects we have on the boards for 2025.

Honorable Mention for the Duane L Jones Recital Hall

Think!'s transformational renovation of the Duane L Jones Recital Hall at SUNY Old Westbury has received an honorable mention in the Architect's Newspaper Best of Design Awards for 2024!

Existing Conditions

An award-winning evening for Think!

The New York State Association for Affordable Housing (NYSAFAH) presented its annual Awards for Excellence and Innovation in Affordable Housing Development last week. The Bridge Rockaway in Brooklyn designed by Think! for Mega Development, The Bridge and Greenpoint Manufacturing Design Center was awarded as Downstate Project of the Year.

At a separate event a few miles away, Think!’s design for the Duane L Jones Recital Hall at SUNY Old Westbury was commended in the education category of the AIA Long Island’s Archi awards.

The Bridge Rockaway Team collect their awards from representatives of NYSAFAH and HPD

Game Arts Studio completed at Pratt Institute

We recently completed the creation of a Game Arts Studio for Pratt Institute. The project responds to the introduction of a new Game Arts BFA and converted existing academic office space within Myrtle Hall - also designed by Think! - into a dedicated 7,100 sq ft state-of-the-art studio.

The Game Arts program represents Pratt’s recognition of how digital media is affecting the creative arts landscape and responding to what incoming students are gravitating towards. Think! has been instrumental in this critical academic transition, beginning in 2011 with the Digital Arts program, designing an advanced facility (Myrtle Hall) that tripled enrollment in one year, followed by the Department of Film and Video in 2019 and now the Game Arts Studio. Again, enrollment is explosive causing Pratt to plan a doubling of the studio space in the near future.

The Game Arts Studio was conceived as a free-form, deep space environment that is designed to highlight the kinetic video displays and on-screen work of our future video artists.  The space includes access to cutting-edge technology, collaboration pods and communal areas with soft seating to foster a more casual interaction between students.

Ribbon cutting at The Bridge: Co-locating affordable housing and light manufacturing

On September 25, 2024, the ribbon cutting ceremony took place at 203 Newport Street in Brownsville, Brooklyn, seeing nearly eight years of efforts to create a unique mix of uses come to fruition. The first of its kind in New York City, the project co-locates affordable housing with light manufacturing workshops.

Designed by Think!, this remarkable project is a collaborative effort involving The Bridge, a prominent supportive housing and behavioral health non-profit; Mega Development with its long history with affordable housing; and Greenpoint Manufacturing and Design Center (GMDC), a non-profit whose mission is to promote high-paying manufacturing jobs in under-served communities.

Members of the 203 Newport Street development team from The Bridge, Mega Development, GMDC and Think!

This new model of mixed-use has never been done in New York - the new zoning uniquely allows for residential units to sit above the manufacturing space - and took years of negotiation with a multitude of City agencies to insure the safety and comfort of the hundreds of people who will call this innovative complex home.

The result is a 180,000 square foot development that includes 174 mixed affordable and supportive housing units for low-income families, with 87 units set aside for homeless individuals and, of those, 35 for frail seniors and veterans. They are accommodated in two residential buildings of 5 and 6 stories flanking a 14,000 square foot landscaped courtyard and set above a shared single-story podium. The podium houses 40,000 sq ft light manufacturing workshop space designed as low-cost incubator spaces for local start-up companies.

The large garden and a glass link connecting the buildings serve as a social nexus to foster interaction among residents. The manufacturing component occupies almost the entire ground floor, making the second floor garden level the principal amenity floor. Think! took advantage of this condition, making the main entrance an unusually grand, two story space with a broad stair leading from the street to the garden. This welcoming and light-filled entry sequence is rarely seen in affordable housing, known for minimum standard spaces, and is designed to encourage social interaction, movement and better physical and mental health outcomes.

This elegant complex aspires to raise the bar for architecture in Brownsville and this new model is a milestone for this partnership, for Brooklyn and for all of New York. It has taken patience, collaboration, creativity and goodwill to shepherd the project to completion and it will hopefully pave a way for future similar developments that seek to address the City’s housing goals and also its workforce and economic goals.

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Betances Family Apartments in Mott Haven, Bronx opens

Betances Family Apartments in the Bronx’s Mott Haven neighborhood has opened, offering 101 deeply affordable homes.  Designed by Think! for Lemle & Wolff Development Company, Alembic Community Development and The Bridge, the 15 story, 98,000 sq ft development on the NYCHA Betances site 6 includes 70 units for low to moderate-income families with 30 set aside for previously homeless individuals.

Elected and city officials join the project team for the opening of Betances Family Apartments.

In addition to the apartments which range from studios to three bedrooms, the building features amenities such as a children’s playroom, bike storage, 24/7 building security and a generous second floor community room that opens out onto a landscaped rooftop terrace. Additionally, The Bridge is providing on-site supportive services, including case management, benefits counseling, and links to community mental health, dental, and substance use services. On the ground floor, 10,000 square feet is set aside for commercial use, creating opportunities for local businesses.

The exterior design is based on a simple light colored grid, infilled with windows and panels of muted colors. To break the repetition of this gridded pattern, and to mitigate the significant scale of a 15-story tower in a predominantly 5 or 6 story neighborhood, Think! devised a darker recessed band that spirals around the tower’s mid-section in order to break down the building mass and better relate to the adjacent NYCHA housing.

It has taken eight years to realize, but this project is a testament to the determination of the team and the power of public and private partnerships in addressing the city's affordable housing shortage.

Malcolm Shabazz Harlem Market featured on Passive House Accelerator

Following the NYSERDA Buildings of Excellence award, Passive House Accelerator recently spoke with Jack Esterson and Lisette Wong about the Malcolm Shabazz Harlem Plaza project, which includes affordable housing and a large indoor marketplace for West African merchants. The result is a fascinating article about the history of the market and an in depth look into how it will achieve Passive House certification through our thoughtful design. It also touches on how Think!'s history of Passive House design for affordable and supportive housing considers the wider reaches of where responsible architecture meets social justice. You can read the full article here.

Our gratitude to the Procida Development Group and Malcolm Shabazz Development Corporation for their insight.

Ribbon cut at new affordable housing for IMPACCT Brooklyn

On July 2, 2024, the ribbon cutting ceremony took place at a 63 unit affordable housing development designed for low-income seniors and frail elderly, at 811 Lexington Avenue in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. Designed by Think! for IMPACCT Brooklyn, this long-awaited four-story building will provide rent-subsidized housing for seniors earning less than 50% of the area median income, with at least 30% of units set aside for seniors at risk of homelessness.

In addition to the residential units, which are a combination of studio and one-bedroom apartments, the 41,421 sq ft building includes program support spaces, parking, community rooms and a large 500 sq ft recreation room that opens onto a planned rooftop garden. Seating areas, a patio, and paths will enhance the experience for those accessing the garden by incorporating active design elements.

Marty and Jack attended the ribbon cutting ceremony

The design also takes care to counterpoint the building’s horizontal composition with a strong glazed vertical gesture at the main entry, which brings natural light to every elevator lobby, creating connectivity between exterior, entry, lobby and elevators, up to the community room and out to the rooftop, enhanced by natural materials and warm colors.

IMPACCT is committed to helping residents build and sustain flourishing communities in Central Brooklyn. With this in mind, Think!’s goal was to design a supportive, comfortable and compassionate environment to bring the senior population together as they ”age in place” in their community. With limited budget, the design process included selecting the simplest solutions to elements such as building structure and a repetitive but elegant window pattern in order to devote greater resources to elements that more directly affect the residents’ quality of life.

Think! is proud to have been part of a team creating uplifting, safe and community-focused residences for vulnerable seniors that enable them to stay living in a neighborhood that may have been home for decades, while reinforcing multi-generational communities.

SARA Award win for West 19th Street

Think!’s design for 142 West 19th Street has been awarded Design Award of Honor in the Multi-Family Residential: Condominiums and Apartments category of the Society of American Registered Architects New York (SARA NY) Awards.  Completed in 2023, the seven story building offers spacious high-end condominium apartments in the Flatiron District of Manhattan. It comprises 5 floor-thru two-bedroom units and one duplex unit opening out to the building’s rear garden.

Find out more about the project here.

Think! appointed to design new Hudson Forum theater

Think! has been appointed by the Galvan Foundation to restore the former Community Theatre in Hudson, NY to create the new Hudson Forum.

Working within the shell of the original 1930’s cinema, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, we are designing a new 400+ seat proscenium theater complete with front of house, rehearsal spaces and production facilities.

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Sectional perspective of the new Hudson Forum

The design includes the reintroduction of balcony seating that was removed when the theater was converted into a tennis center in the 1960s. Retractable orchestra seating means the main theater can become a large multi-purpose space when used in conjunction with the stage area.

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Stage view inside the Hudson Forum

Audience view inside the new Hudson Forum

Think! awarded in NYSERDA Buildings of Excellence Round 4

Think! is proud to announce that the Malcolm Shabazz Harlem Plaza project in Harlem, New York has been awarded in Round 4 of New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s (NYSERDA) Buildings of Excellence, winning the distinguished project award and a $1 million development grant. The program rewards the design, construction and operation of clean, resilient and carbon neutral-ready multifamily buildings.

Designed for the Malcolm Shabazz Mosque Development Team and Procida Companies, the project includes 109 units of affordable housing across two buildings, a central landscaped garden for the residents, and provides an indoor home for the landmark, currently open air, seasonal Malcolm Shabazz Harlem Market; an iconic destination in Harlem.

The new market place will function as a local business incubator and showcases West African crafts, traditional clothing, goods and food. The market hall which spans West 116th Street to West 115th Street will act as a pedestrian arcade at street level between two city blocks, and will create a bustling ‘spine’ that activates and provides connectivity in the neighborhood. The two new 9 story buildings above the market will offer homes that conform to the City’s Extremely Low and Low‐Income Affordability (ELLA) criteria. 

Think! is collaborating with the MEP and sustainability team at Ettinger Engineering on mechanical innovations including newly efficient airtight packaged terminal heat pump technology utilizing low global warming refrigerants. Healthy comfortable spaces provide co-benefits for the residents through fresh filtered air, corridors and common areas filled with daylight, quiet spaces, and outdoor recreation.  The building’s electrical requirements will be supplemented by rooftop photo voltaic arrays.

The project will also implement Passive House design principles which increase energy efficiency up to 90% for heating energy and 75% in overall energy in comparison to traditional buildings. The choice of building materials will reduce embodied carbon by approximately 10% through the use of recycled brick façades. The energy and sustainability performance of the building will meet Energy Star, Enterprise Green Communities, Indoor airPLUS & Fitwel certifications.

The main West 116 Street entry is articulated by a grand 16 foot high glass art wall that will act as a beacon to identify the market. It will be commissioned to a culturally relevant artist or collaborative. The aim is to create an iconic piece that will continue to celebrate and elevate the landmark market and become a meaningful legacy in the community.

With today’s climate urgency, The Malcolm Shabazz Harlem Plaza project strives to address the most urgent imperatives by providing social justice, equity, resilience, and healthy environments. It will provide a home to the neediest and a year-round bustling urban gathering place for an iconic and important cultural asset, the Malcolm Shabazz Harlem Market.

Think! Moves Forward With ShareNYC Project

Think!’s proposal with Ascendant Neighborhood Development and Ali Forney Center has been selected by NYCHPD as a part of its shared housing initiative, ShareNYC. Our project combines social services and four duplex shared units as well as one simplex shared unit affordable to low-income households.

Jack Esterson's Brooklyn Brownstone Featured in Brownstoner

An inside look of architect, Jack Esterson’s, brownstone.

When not hard at work at Think!, partner Jack Esterson is an ardent collector of mid-century Danish furniture and art by local Brooklyn artists. Recently, he gave a tour to Brownstoner of his Clinton Hill brownstone, where these two passions come into conversation. Click the image above to read the article and learn more about the design choices that went into creating this beautiful home.

Modular Construction Meets Design That's Just Right

We have been fortunate to have had the recent opportunity to work on a number of modular residential projects.  These have ranged from small condominium buildings on infill sites in Manhattan to a recent proposal for a 160 unit affordable housing project on an open site in East New York, Brooklyn.  We’ve come away from these projects impressed with the possibilities this type of construction offers in terms of quality and speed of construction and we have also learned a number of lessons that will help us improve the process of designing modular projects going forward.  It appears that modular construction is on the cusp of much wider acceptance with a larger group of dependable manufacturers serving the New York City market.

Please take a look at a recent article from the New York Post about Think! and modular construction.  Just click on the image below.

Think! Wins Brownsville RFP

Think! is excited to announce its Glenmore Manor Apartments as the chosen competition winner as part of New York City’s HPD Brownsville Plan. Along with the African American Planning Commission, Inc., Brisa Builders, and Lemle & Wolf; Think! designed a compelling building including 230 affordable homes for low income households, ground floor commercial space, and supportive spaces for young business developers and entrepreneurs.

Waterfront Development Wins SARA Design Award

We are proud to announce that we won the Society of American Registered Architects National Design Award for our waterfront complex plan in Newburgh, New York, in the urban planning category. This multi-building residential complex, with its landscape components and new ferry terminal, is meant to help economically revive this old Hudson river city.

REACT Center Opens

On June 16 the Roosevelt Educational Alcoholism & Counseling Treatment (REACT) Center, designed by Think!, opened its doors to the community. Director Carol Jobson praised the new Center's design, filled with natural light, color and natural materials, as being a reflection of renewal and hope for their clients in outpatient treatment. The project included a total interior and exterior renovation of a dark and dilapidated warehouse.

Think! wins Mott Haven RFP

After months of deliberation, the NYC Housing Authority has selected the team of Think!, Lemle & Wolff, Alembic Community Development and The Bridge for their Betances VI site in Mott Haven, the Bronx. This 15 story, 101 unit building will consist of affordable family units, housing for formerly homeless veterans, support space for The Bridge and a significant retail component on Willis Avenue.