Façade work is continuing on Fashion Institute of Technology‘s ten-story New Academic Building at 220 West 28th Street in Chelsea, Manhattan. Designed by SHoP Architects, the 110,000-square-foot structure is engineered to achieve LEED Gold certification and will yield classrooms, administrative offices, review and exhibition spaces, and a student quad illuminated by skylights. Forte Construction Corp. is the general contractor for the property, which sits on a shallow plot between Seventh and Eighth Avenues on the northernmost edge of the FIT campus.
The first glass panels were just beginning to be installed on the second level at the time of our last update in late October. In the intervening months, crews have enclosed the main northern elevation up to the midway point, and construction could likely reach the flat parapet by early spring. Recent photos show the look of the envelope, which is composed of floor-to-ceiling glass adorned with bronze-hued fins, and earth-toned metal paneling on the ends of the superstructure.
220 West 28th Street. Photo by Michael Young.
220 West 28th Street. Photo by Michael Young.
220 West 28th Street. Photo by Michael Young.
The double-height fifth floor will house a student lounge, and its envelope will remain without bronze fins. The glass on this section is shown in the rendering to have a more transparent quality than the top and bottom sections.
220 West 28th Street. Photo by Michael Young.
220 West 28th Street. Photo by Michael Young.
220 West 28th Street. Photo by Michael Young.
220 West 28th Street. Photo by Michael Young.
220 West 28th Street. Photo by Michael Young.
220 West 28th Street. Photo by Michael Young.
220 West 28th Street. Photo by Michael Young.
220 West 28th Street. Photo by Michael Young.
220 West 28th Street. Photo by Michael Young.
The below renderings preview the final look of the New Academic Building’s northern profile, main entrance and tree-lined sidewalks, and the student lounge.
220 West 28th Street. Designed by SHoP Architects
220 West 28th Street. Designed by SHoP Architects
The student lounge at 220 West 28th Street. Designed by SHoP Architects
The New Academic Building is situated within close proximity of Penn Station, Madison Square Garden, and Moynihan Train Hall. The local 1 train is located half a block to the east at the 28th Street station on Seventh Avenue.
YIMBY anticipates the New Academic Building to be fully complete within the second half of 2023, possibly in time for the beginning of the next school year.
Subscribe to YIMBY’s daily e-mail
Follow YIMBYgram for real-time photo updates
Like YIMBY on Facebook
Follow YIMBY’s Twitter for the latest in YIMBYnews
What the beautiful are you looking at? Although the buildings located next to each other are not as tall, I adored everything about its installation that meets the design. With the glass on two sections and more transparent viewed, which can see through and I can see inside how people doing it with their restlessness: Thanks to Michael Young.
I get restless when I read David’s dribble…..
Same with me J hahaha
Well, according to David’s description…
I’m assuming the “rain falls mainly on the pane”! 🤣😂
Stunning. Big improvement ok this block
Glad to see New York’s colleges and universities updating, renovating, and expanding their facilities. This is a great draw for students and faculty.
This is a beautiful design. I do wish the redish end panels were stone as the rendering implies. But overall, this is an instant iconic design for FIT.
The bronze panels works quite well in my opinion. I like the sheen as well. Stone would have also beem nice but not necessary better.