9 Chapel, New York

Brooklyn-based architecture firm SO-IL has released designs for a residential high-rise currently in development in downtown Brooklyn. The project, known as 9 Chapel, will consist of 27 residences spanning 14 storeys, ranging from one to four bedrooms. It is strategically located just outside the Dumbo neighbourhood and will be prominently visible from the Brooklyn Bridge.

The distinctive feature of this building will be its exterior, enveloped in a perforated metal skin, a design collaboration with developer Tankhouse. Their goal is to set a new architectural landmark for the neighbourhood.

This unique facade, with its undulating form, not only allows the play of light but also ensures privacy for the outdoor spaces, including covered and open patios. Creative details like semi-circular cut-outs in patio ceilings will enhance natural lighting. Additionally, concrete walls will be incorporated to reflect a wave-like pattern, complementing the metal exterior.

Loggias located on the outermost volumes of the building also provide outdoor space.

Each residence will be designed like a corner unit with at least two exposed facades, which SO-IL achieved by placing the building’s volumes at different angles and keeping each floor no more than two windows wide. SO-IL co-founder Florian Idenburg says that leveraging the particular characteristics of this site, the firm introduced an innovative concept: a collection of homes dynamically connected with their surroundings. This presents an exceptional and vibrant approach to 21st-century living in New York.

Concrete ceilings and a light wood floor will run throughout the interiors.

The entrance to the building will be buried just a few feet underground, pushed back from the street so that the ground-level volume cantilevers over the small entrance plaza. The plaza will be framed by the resulting exposed structural columns.