Finalists Announced
for urbanSHED Competition |
Three
finalists have been selected to continue
to the second stage of the urbanSHED
International Design Competition, which
seeks to create a new standard of
sidewalk shed design that improves the
pedestrian experience while maintaining
or exceeding the required safety
standards in New York City. The
finalists are:
urbanCLOUD
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Developed by Kevin Erickson, Brodie Bricker, Dan Campbell, Johann Rischau
and Mathew Strack of KNEStudio in New
York, NY, urbanCLOUD is a
floating translucent scaffolding
above the street that is suspended from the
roof using a standard outrigger beam
system. This design allows
pedestrian traffic to flow unobstructed. |
Urban Umbrella
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Developed by Young-Hwan Choi from the University of Pennsylvania in
Philadelphia, PA, Urban Umbrella is made
of carbon fiber and opens like an umbrella. This design
supports the load of the scaffold and
reduces the number of columns,
bringing more light and air to the sidewalk
below. |
Tripod MOD(ule)
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Developed by Jonace Bascon, AIA, Derrick Choi, AIA, Lynn Hsu, RA, Stephen
Lew, PE, and Andrew Stark, PE, of XChange Architects in
Brookline, MA, Tripod
MOD(ule) includes an angled fabric screen which
allows businesses to be visible
to pedestrians and enables more
daylight to reach the walkway. |
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Legislation to Increase Safety at Stalled
Construction Sites |
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On Wednesday, October 12, the New York City
Council voted to adopt Introduction 1015-a regarding stalled construction sites.
The legislation allows for developers to
quickly restart stalled construction sites
by agreeing to increased safety standards
while construction is suspended. The legislation
will create a new program |
through the Buildings Department in which
participating buildings will be required to
notify DOB when work has stalled and to
develop and submit a detailed safety
monitoring and inspection plan to ensure the
site is secure. Developers participating in
the new program would be allowed to renew
building permits at stalled sites for up to
four years, as long as the program's safety
requirements are met.
Owners
are responsible for maintaining their sites
safely, regardless of whether the site is
active or not. View a list of stalled construction sites on DOB's website. |
New Asbestos Abatement Technical Review Unit |
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On
Tuesday, October 13, the Department of
Environmental Protection (DEP) launched a
new unit which is responsible for reviewing and
permitting asbestos abatement projects. The
new Asbestos Technical Review Unit (A-TRU) includes staff from both DEP and
DOB. |
A-TRU also includes a new state-of-the-art,
online Asbestos Reporting and Tracking
System (ARTS) through which contractors will
obtain asbestos abatement permits. DEP has created a new
comprehensive technical guide that will help
industry members adapt to the new permitting
process.
The unit, located at DEP headquarters in
LeFrak City, was developed as part of the
implementation of the 33 recommendations issued by the Construction, Demolition and
Abatement Working Group created by Mayor
Michael R. Bloomberg and led by Deputy Mayor
for Operations Edward Skyler after the fire
at the former Deutsche Bank building in
lower Manhattan in August 2007.
Visit the Construction, Demolition and Abatement section of
DOB's website for more
information on these new rules and
filing requirements.
 |
To train design professionals on the energy
code, the American Institute of Architects (AIANY), American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) and the Urban Green Council are offering three five-part programs that cover topics including energy code
requirements, preparing submittals and documenting
compliance. Continuing
education credits will be offered
for attending.
The first program will run from October 26 |
through November 4. Each session
will run from 8:30am to 10:00am and will be
held at the Center for Architecture,
located at 536 LaGuardia Place in
Manhattan. Advance registration is recommended.
The second program will be a full day
session held on December 2 at the Center for
Architecture. The third program will be
announced soon. |
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Service Updates |
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Concrete Retesting
On September 2, the Department
announced a |
| new concrete re-testing protocol for 82
buildings and construction sites under
the City’s jurisdiction that were named
in the Manhattan District Attorney’s
Office indictment of Testwell
Laboratories and are a part of the
Testwell investigation.
Applicants must now use updated versions
of the TR1, TR2 and TR3 forms to support the new testing
requirements. The Department has
compiled Frequently Asked Questions to assist
owners. |
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Penalty Relief Program
As part of the NYC Penalty Relief Program,
which runs |
through December 21, individuals who failed to
attend ECB hearings and have had the
"default" penalty imposed may be
able to reduce the amount of fines owed. |
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Buildings Bulletin 2009-018
On October 6, the Department issued
Buildings Bulletin 2009- |
| 018 which is a reference guide for the
design, installation, operation and
testing of fire alarm systems in
high-rise buildings. |
Keep reading Buildings News for new information and updates.
34th NYSA Technical Forum
Facade Safety Seminar
On October 22, the Department
will host a seminar with the New York
Society of Architects (NYSA) to review
new rules and policies for facades that
have been implemented since the launch
of the 2008 NYC Construction Codes.
The seminar will run from 4:00pm
to 7:00pm
and three hours of continuing education
credits will be granted for attending.
Registration is required, and seating is
limited. |
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LaToneya Burwell
Training Associate
Buildings University
 On Thursday, October 8,
Buildings University Training Associate LaToneya
Burwell was honored at the Second Annual
Mayor's Excellence in Customer Service
Awards Program hosted by the Mayor's Office of
Operations and held at Brooklyn's
Borough Hall.
The event recognizes programs and teams,
as well as individuals, which have
demonstrated innovation in customer
service. The Mayor’s Office received over 60
submissions for the awards program and
presented 25 awards.
Buildings University is the Department's
in-house training facility for Buildings
employees. As a training associate, LaToneya
coordinates and schedules professional
and development programs for all Department
staff.
Recently, LaToneya led a six-month management training program for 17
Department directors, borough managers
and service managers in the five
borough offices. She also helped
in the development and operation of
a citywide customer service training
program as part of the Mayor’s
Office of Operations Customer
Service Group.
"Customer
service comes naturally to her," said
Lisa Lewis, the Buildings Department's Director of Customer
Service. "She exudes not only excellent customer
service to external customers, but she
also provides excellent customer service
to internal customers - her colleagues at
Buildings." |
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