Image: Ajay Suresh | The Shed - Complete | CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/)
Assessing air quality for a major Manhattan development
The promise of Hudson Yards became reality in 2019 as one million square feet of retail space opened for business along with The Vessel, a soaring, public spiral staircase receiving substantial media coverage. The largest private real estate development in the history of the U.S. will also include more than 18 million square feet of commercial and residential space, 14 acres of open space, a new public school, and other properties. AKRF played a lead role in preparing the Generic Environmental Impact Statement pursuant to SEQRA and CEQR guidelines, and we were responsible for analyzing land use; socioeconomic conditions; community facilities and open space; historic and archaeological resources; neighborhood character; and air quality.
We also prepared the air quality analysis and permitting efforts for a combined heat and power plant to be located on the retail podium for the Eastern Rail Yard portion of the site, and prepared the Environmental Assessment Statement for The Shed, a $400 million, 20,000-square-foot arts and performance space covered by a movable 4,000-ton shell carried along rails. AKRF also prepared the amended drainage plan for the Hudson Yards District.