Historic Front Street Residences

Sciame was the Construction Manager responsible for renovation of the buildings, which line both sides of Front Street and the southern edge of Peck Slip, exhibited various states of advanced decay, with one facade having collapsed. The fourteen properties are owned by Yarrow LLC, a group comprised of Zuberry Associates and Sciame Development Inc. An important milestone in this venture was reached on April 1, 2003 when the Landmarks Preservation Commission voted unanimously to approve Yarrow’s development proposal.

Hidden below the Belgian block, ten geothermal wells, eight inches in diameter, drive more than a quarter mile into the Manhattan bedrock. By utilizing the mass of the earth to modulate heating and cooling cycles, these wells streamline building electrical consumption by roughly a third. An eclectic collection of small-scale independent shops animate the street level of both new and old structures, with nearly one hundred new loft apartments, ranging from studios to three-bedrooms populating the upper floors. The three new buildings draw inspiration from both tangible and intangible aspects of the seaport. Careful analysis of the surrounding neighborhood influenced overall massing as well as brick detailing, while other aspects of the design invoke artifacts, such as whale skeletons and ship rigging, which are no longer present, yet still critical to the heritage of the site.