The Brooklyn Community District 3 Sanitation Garage and Offices received two design awards: a SARA National Professional Honor Award and an AIA New York State Design Merit Award in the Infrastructure category. The project was also named SARA’s Government category winner.
The 220,000-square-foot facility in Bedford-Stuyvesant reimagines essential civic infrastructure as a high-performance public building shaped by neighborhood context, transparency, and environmental responsibility. Serving one of New York City’s busiest sanitation districts, the building accommodates 68 sanitation vehicles and 120 workers, with vehicle storage and repair areas, offices, and staff spaces.
The design mediates between the site’s residential and industrial contexts. Extensive glazing along Nostrand Avenue brings daylight deep into the workplace while making the operations of an essential public service visible to the community. Vehicular circulation is concentrated along the industrial side of the site, reducing truck traffic, noise, and exhaust near neighboring residences.
Designed for LEED Gold certification, the facility incorporates a 46,000-square-foot native-planted green roof, rainwater harvesting, photovoltaic canopy, solar shading, and electric-vehicle charging infrastructure. Together, these strategies pair long-term operational performance with an architecture that reflects the City’s investment in its essential workforce and public infrastructure.
Paul Bauer, Partner, shared, “We are proud to accept this honor on behalf of NYC, DSNY, the project team and stakeholders whose dedication over 20 years and multiple administrations made this vital piece of essential infrastructure a reality. The District 3 Sanitation Garage demonstrates what is possible when we come together to achieve common civic goals; a piece of essential architecture that is an asset to the community it serves, a building that dignifies the daily jobs of essential workers, an operationally flexible facility that anticipates change within a robust yet transparent and welcoming structure.”
Patrick McAffrey, Associate Principal, adds, “It is an honor to be recognized for this important work we have done with the New York City Department of Sanitation. We strive to create spaces that honor the roles of our City’s essential workforce, while benefitting the communities they serve. We are thrilled to have these goals embodied in the Community District 3 Facility. Thank you to the awards juries and all of our collaborators.”
