Advantage Testing, a national tutoring firm, is consolidating its New York administrative offices and tutoring locations into a single commercial property. The scope of work is extensive, providing all new MEP infrastructure, extensive mechanical upgrades for COVID-19 protection, new elevator and highly designed internal stairwells, new windows and expansion of the 2nd floor by enclosing a rear terrace area to create additional operational space. In order to occupy the property as a for-profit firm, a City Planning Commission 74-711 special use permit application was developed, submitted and approved for this initiative.

In conjunction with the Advantage Testing renovation above, the 74-711 approval from the City Planning Commission mandated the concurrent facade and roof restoration of the Church of the Holy Trinity’s rectory building immediately adjacent to 350 East 88th Street. The drawings were developed and filed with The Landmarks Preservation Commission and NYCDOB. Ongoing work, including approvals for terra cotta replacement elements, brick relocations/replacements, mortar joint materials, roofing and copper gutters are monitored by LPC staff and the preservation architect as the restoration work progresses.

This non-profit landmark property requires the replacement of a major exterior architectural element - a 280sf skylight that illuminates the entire five-floor stairwell throughout the building. In conjunction with this retrofit, the Foundation is upgrading its HVAC system and equipment to address their current COVID-19 mitigation strategy before reoccupancy. Both rooftop equipment and basement equipment will be upsized to increase fresh air and air exchange, and local air purification units will be distributed to clean interior air distribution.

This project required the complete replacement of a 40 year old chiller plant and roof top cooling tower array, an off-season demolition of the entire facility, ordering and tracking the fabrication and delivery of equipment from multiple vendors and onsite coordination of three crane lifts to bring two Daikin 750-ton chillers, multiple B&G chilled water and condenser water pumps, a two-cell 1,395 ton EVAPCO cooling tower, exhaust fans and hundreds of feet of massive piping sections up to the 20th floor and roof. The project also included erecting a 20-story scaffold for new electrical service conduits from the 2nd floor main electrical room to the 20th floor MER and roof.