New York State Appellate Court

The Department of Citywide Administrative Services retained SBLM to renovate the New York State Appellate Court building. SBLM designed infrastructure and interior upgrades and improvements without compromising the historic detail and integrity of the original building. SBLM’s design decreased the construction phase from two years to eight months by identifying swing space for the clerk’s office within the building. The swing space allowed the staff to move out of the existing area into a temporary space, eliminating downtime and avoiding complex phasing scenarios.

The renovated Clerk’s office features new furniture systems with low wood-veneered partitions to conceal the modern components. In addition, the team designed customized wood storage units to accommodate the specific requirements for organizing and retaining departmental paperwork. The wood-veneered units were detailed to align with existing wood moldings. A similar strategy was employed for the installation of new HVAC units in the Judges’ Chambers.

Due to the restrictions posed by the historic envelope, additional equipment rooms were placed on the roof to serve the building. In order to maintain the landmark status of the structure, SBLM provided sight line studies to ensure that new equipment would not be visible from the street.