This virtual Pro Tour offered participants a behind-the-scenes look at a unique renovation during construction in Manhattan: the transformation of a historic firehouse into 4 units of PHI-certified passive housing. The project team aimed for PHI EnerPhit certification and detailed some of the specific challenges and opportunities associated with bringing a DER to an urban building of this scale.

About the Event

Through a mix of presentation and small group breakout rooms, we used a format that preserves the interactive, behind-the-scenes vibe that has made NESEA’s Pro Tours so popular.

Unlike a traditional webinar, attendees came with their mics and cameras on: as a participant in this event, we were able to see and hear other attendees, ask content experts questions directly, and meet new people in the NESEA community

About the Project

Once home to the Metropolitan Steam Fire Engine Company No. 16 in Manhattan’s Kips Bay area, this historic firehouse building was converted into a church in 1974, whereupon the building was only partially used and fell into disrepair. Now this beautiful masonry rowhouse is brought back to life with a full scale, passive certified renovation and conversion into a multifamily residence with a community facility on the ground floor. Engine 16’s façade is completely intact from its cast iron base and ornate terracotta brick details, to its unusually deep cornice and a cast iron firehose shed on the roof. The team also used many of the original interior features such as stair railings, interior windows and doors, tin ceilings, flooring, and floor joists.

This alone makes for an interesting building, but as a certified Passive House with renewables, Engine 16 becomes a potential beacon project. New York City is replete with buildings similar in scale, making this a project a model for future building transformations. Baxt Ingui Architects and their partners are pleased to be able to share the approach they have implemented on 15 rowhouses into  passive housing. Their goal in hosting this event was to share their progress, replicate the adaptive reuse process, and help educate others on resilient, energy efficient building strategies.

This project was recognized as a Round One Winner in NYSERDA’s Buildings of Excellence competition. The Buildings of Excellence Competition, administered by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), was launched in March 2019 and has awarded over $31 million to over three dozen exemplary new construction projects. Click here to learn more about Buildings of Excellence, the only competition of its kind.

Schedule

If you have questions about this event, you can contact Florence at fmacgregor@nesea.org.