New York plots can often pose a serious challenge to architects. Squeezed and narrow, with strict zoning and massing requirements, it’s not always easy delivering a client’s brief – particularly when its a series of airy, contemporary residences set in a modern, tall building. But if you’re NYC-based architecture firm ODA – of 123 Melrose, 1040 Dean St and Bedford Hotel fame – you turn the conventional high rise on its head; welcome to 100 Norfolk.
This residential development, created between Delancey and Rivington Streets on the Lower East Side of Manhattan for Adam America Real Estate, is a tall building with a twist. The architects designed it as an inverted stepped volume, where the base is narrow, but the the outline widens as the height increases, becoming its most generous towards the top – providing plenty of light and space for the coveted top apartments.
When Eran Chen of ODA was called upon to propose a solution for the site, while researching local planning regulations and the surrounding area he uncovered an interesting fact. There were some ‘11,000 square feet of unused air space ripe for construction above the adjacent buildings’, he explains. By transfering the nearby structures’ air rights – which allowed the architects to work on 100 Norfolk’s finely chiseled form and extend cantilevered floors over the existing neighbouring buildings – the architects were able to include more units exactly where the building gets the best light and optimal views, in a gesture towards a more balanced distribution of space and sunlight within the scheme.
100 Norfolk is built in glass and steel, with curtain walls wrapping around the main frame, so as to create bright interiors and allow for far-reaching views for the residents. The scheme comprises 38 homes, which range from studios to three-bedroom apartments. The interiors are clean and minimalist, leaving space for the striking vistas to take centre stage. Meanwhile living spaces are matched by a series of amenities, such as a gym, yoga room, extra storage and two terraces for the residents – one of which sits on the building’s roof, rather fittingly for this development which is all about making the most of what you’ve got.§
The glass-and-steel structure sits on a prominent narrow plot between Delancey and Rivington Streets
In an unusual and inspired move, ODA created a volume that is narrower at its base but widens towards the top
This allows for extra living space at the most desirable, top levels
The development contains 38 apartments, as well as a lounge terrace for residents
Further amenities at the scheme include a gym and stylish lobby
Now, the residences can enjoy far-reaching views of the city, including the water, uptown and Williamsburg
INFORMATION
For more information visit the website of ODA
-
Aram Gallery spotlights a pioneering material that could be upholstered furniture’s less toxic futureAt Aram Gallery for London Design Festival 2025, eight designers experiment with EcoLattice’s 3D-printed foam to showcase the material’s comfort, creativity, and everyday use
-
You can now buy Toyota’s robotised micro-bus, with more autonomy coming soonThe Toyota e-Palette is the urban transport of the future, a multifunctional autonomous vehicle designed to cover several roles in the same day
-
Central Park’s revitalised Delacorte Theater gears up for a new futureEnnead Architects helmed an ambitious renovation process that has given the New York City cultural landmark a vibrant and more accessible future
-
Herzog & de Meuron and Piet Oudolf unveil Calder Gardens in PhiladelphiaThe new cultural landmark presents Alexander Calder’s work in dialogue with nature and architecture, alongside the release of Jacques Herzog’s 'Sketches & Notes'. Ellie Stathaki interviews Herzog about the project.
-
Meet Studio Zewde, the Harlem practice that's creating landscapes 'rooted in cultural narratives, ecology and memory'Ahead of a string of prestigious project openings, we check in with firm founder Sara Zewde
-
The best of California desert architecture, from midcentury gems to mirrored dwellingsWhile architecture has long employed strategies to cool buildings in arid environments, California desert architecture developed its own distinct identity –giving rise, notably, to a wave of iconic midcentury designs
-
A restored Eichler home is a peerless piece of West Coast midcentury modernismWe explore an Eichler home, and Californian developer Joseph Eichler’s legacy of design, as a fine example of his progressive house-building programme hits the market
-
How LA's Terremoto brings 'historic architecture into its next era through revitalising the landscapes around them'Terremoto, the Los Angeles and San Francisco collective landscape architecture studio, shakes up the industry through openness and design passion
-
Inside a Donald Wexler house so magical, its owner bought it twiceSo transfixed was Daniel Patrick Giles, founder of fragrance brand Perfumehead, he's even created a special scent devoted to it
-
The Pagani Residences is the latest ultra-luxe automotive apartment tower to reach MiamiRising up above Miami, branded apartment buildings are having a renaissance, as everyone from hypercar builders to crystal makers seeks to have a towering structure bearing their name
-
A modern cabin in Minnesota serves as a contemporary creative retreat from the citySnow Kreilich Architects' modern cabin and studio for an artist on a lakeside plot in Minnesota was designed to spark creativity and provide a refuge from the rat race
