At the site of what was once a trolley barn, Manhattan’s 146th Street and Lenox Avenue has been home to a bus depot since 1939. The state-of-the-art Mother Clara Hale Bus Depot replaced the aging facility and was designed to meet the city’s transportation needs as it transitions to ultra-low emission buses.
STV served as architect- and engineer-of-record as part of a design-build team for the 400,000-square-foot depot that opened in 2014. The New York City Transit facility features low-emission boilers, solar air heating, heat-recovery air handling units and natural lighting. A rainwater recycling system allows storm water to be used for bus washing, while a green roof reduces the building’s carbon footprint. The U.S. Green Building Council awarded the project LEED® Gold certification.
Deploying Building Information Modeling (BIM) software, STV developed an integrated design and superior contract documents, reducing conflicts that might otherwise delay construction and increase costs. The firm provided architectural design, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, industrial, structural, communications and geotechnical engineering design services.
The depot’s façade boasts a large-scale mosaic artwork by local artist Shinique Smith. It is the first artwork project commissioned by the MTA Arts & Design for a bus depot.
The effort earned several honors, including a Diamond Award from the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) of New York and a National Recognition Award from ACEC’s national chapter.
400,000
square-foot facility
LEED® Gold
certified
