New York Public Library, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building

New York, NY

Cultural Museums & Institutions Landmarks

New York Public Library, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building: John Bartelstone

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Client

New York Public Library

Size

600,000 GSF

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.

Renovations at this New York City and National Historic Landmark in midtown Manhattan 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. BBB worked in collaboration with Mecanoo on the Midtown Campus Renovation, which includes renovation and expansion of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library (SNFL) across Fifth Avenue.

New York Public Library, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building: Round 2 Of 2 BBB Commissioned Photoshoot. Taken 8/1/23

Enhancements include the Marshall Rose Plaza, a new public entrance and terrace, new exhibition, retail, and café functions, as well as the addition of vertical circulation and upgraded building systems, all in deference to the building’s original Beaux-Arts design.

New York Public Library, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building:

New York Public Library, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building: Round 1 Of 2 BBB Commissioned Photoshoot. Taken 6/27/23

Modernizing a Landmark

New York Public Library, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building: NYPL SNFL PLP Ext01 copy

A Fifth Avenue Campus

Rethinking the two-building NYPL Midtown campus, BBB's plan consolidated all circulating materials at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library (formerly the Mid-Manhattan branch) and refocused the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building around research and exhibitions.

A New, Accessible Entrance

After lowering an existing electrical room on 40th Street, the space above was transformed into the Marshall Rose Plaza, a 2,250-square-foot public space with a new, ADA-accessible bronze-and-glass doorway and marble cladding sourced from the same Vermont quarry as in 1911.

Room to Move

With new exhibition space elsewhere, the Library could remove outdated displays that crowded the corridor overlooking Astor Hall. Historically sensitive ceiling lamps and seating were reconstructed, and contemporary glass parapets meet current safety requirements.

Sustainable Energy

The project included the replacement of aging, inefficient mechanical equipment with new, more efficient systems, yielding an estimated 30% reduction in Energy Use Intensity (EUI) and long-term operational cost savings.

New York Public Library, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building: 5 2 Sasb 2016 12 08 Room 217 01792

Beyer Blinder Belle

Other 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.