Thursday, September 2, 2021

NEW GREEN-WOOD CEMETERY EDUCATION AND WELCOME CENTER PROPOSED

 

Proposed Green-Wood Cemetery Education and Welcome Center
 
Public Hearing on Green-Wood Cemetery 
Education and Welcome Center
Tuesday, September 14th, 6:00 p.m.
 
A proposal for a new Education and Welcome Center for Green-Wood Cemetery will be discussed at a public hearing on Tuesday, September 14th, at 6:00 p.m. Brooklyn Community Board 7 will host the hearing on Zoom. 
 
Following the hearing, the Land Use/Landmarks Committee will meet to discuss the proposal. 
 
The public is invited to attend the public hearing and the Land Use/Landmarks Committee meeting. Register at https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_DK1fLLi9QGSwVgOvfwd7QA. You'll receive an e-mail confirming your registration and explaining how to submit questions in advance and how to connect to the meeting by PC, Mac, iPad, Android, and landline.
 
You can watch the hearing on Community Board 7's YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/channel/UCcAZ1cECSeZI8iNyQDKuX5Q.
 
The proposed Center would surround two sides of the restored historic Weir Greenhouse (renamed the McGovern-Weir Greenhouse in 1971, when the Weir family sold it to the McGovern family). It's located on the southwest corner of 5th Avenue and 25th Street, across the street from Green-Wood's main entrance. 
 
Built in 1895, the greenhouse is the only surviving Victorian commercial greenhouse in New York City. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission landmarked it in 1982. It was added to the United States government's National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

Project Description

A new Education and Welcome Center will strengthen the visitors’ experience of Green-Wood Cemetery as a cultural institution for art, history, and nature. The new building is L-shaped, surrounding two sides of the restored historic greenhouse with expansive views towards the Cemetery and the Richard Upjohn Arches.
 
The building houses exhibition galleries, a classroom, a multipurpose space within the greenhouse, and offices on the second floor. Its massing is organized by a one-story volume that faces 5th Avenue and relates to the existing greenhouse and a two-story volume along the west end of the building site, introducing an entry courtyard that opens onto 25th Street.
 
The façade is comprised of an aluminum curtain wall screened by glazed terra cotta baguettes and a glazed terra cotta rainscreen that covers the solid areas of the building as well as the adjacent party wall that abuts 5th Avenue.