Brent Buck Architects has successfully delivered one of New York City’s first mass timber buildings, Frame 122, a 5-story apartment building in Brooklyn’s Clinton Hill neighborhood. The project capitalizes on a 2022 update to the NYC building code permitting the use of mass timber.
The building features 15 rental units and a unique design that substitutes a conventional double-loaded corridor with a large open-air courtyard. The courtyard is punctuated by two spiral staircases connected to a network of interior-facing balconies, providing unit access and a zoning trick that allowed the architects to add buildable square footage to the project.
To comply with NYC’s building code, the firm designed an exterior lobby space and open-air breezeway carved beneath the main mass of the building. The building’s envelope consists of an earthy brick podium topped by silver corrugated metal cladding, with a wall system packed with outboard insulation.
Frame 122 was designed to passive house specifications, although it fell short of full certification. The building features energy-recovery ventilators, triple-glazed windows, and fully electric appliances and mechanical systems. The mass timber structure and exposed timber beams and columns are a premium feature, reflected in the rents, which range from $6,800 to $9,000 per month.
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