Hudson Yards in West Manhattan, New York City. Credit: Connie Zhou
In a recent article outlining the evolution of the central business district (CBD), ArchDaily highlights how the KPF-designed development creates a lively neighborhood that meets the needs of an increasingly flexible professional culture.
In cities around the world, the COVID-19 pandemic and the rise of remote work have transformed expectations for central business districts. Clusters of single-use office towers have lost their luster as workers and businesses demand amenity-rich places to live, work, and play. In response, real estate developers are repositioning buildings to foster more connections with the surrounding urban realm. As yesterday’s central business districts evolve into tomorrow’s “central social districts,” “The goal,” writes Moises Carrasco for ArchDaily, “is to reinforce a highly active, neighborhood-scale experience and create private-public adjacencies that could expand the site’s activity level throughout the day or week, instead of just office hours.”
To see these ideas put into practice, the article looks to Hudson Yards on Manhattan’s far west side. Conforming to the fresh typology of the central social district, the KPF-designed development combines Class-A office space with retail destinations, residences, and cultural programming to create a self-sufficient neighborhood that’s active beyond the hours of nine to five. With public transportation connections that are on par with the traditional CBD, Hudson Yards features a greater abundance of podium and low-rise structures that engage the streetscape and remove barriers between vertical programming.
Read the full article here.