Education
Educational planning and design is a major focus of our
professional efforts. Gruzen Samton has continued to be
actively involved in the planning and architecture of academic
facilities since the firm's inception over 65 years ago.
We have seen the nature of our commissions parallel the
nation's demographic trends and technological evolution.
Today our current projects range from the planning and design
of primary and secondary schools in Newark, Jersey City
and on Long Island, to new buildings at Columbia University
and William Paterson University to a master plan at the
United States Merchant Marine Academy, and renovation work
at Medgar Evers College. This important element of our history
and our current activity in this field attracts talented
design and planning professionals maintaining the intellectual
vitality of the firm.
Transportation
Gruzen Samton's work in the transportation field is extensive
and has included architectural design services for intermodal
facilities, subway and commuter line stations, office facilities,
interior design and space planning, as well as master planning
and feasibility studies for the development of transportation
related property.
Justice
Since its 1936 founding, Gruzen Samton has completed more than 80 of the nation’s most successful and architecturally significant justice facilities, including court, police, and public safety projects in over 25 states. Our courthouse portfolio, which ranges from federal courthouses to local facilities, includes both new construction and the renovation and restoration of existing buildings. Our experts have extensive experience with family and matrimonial court design, site and building assessment for judicial complexes, courthouse interior design, and judicial site planning. We designed the
Queens Family Courthouse in Jamaica, Queens with Pei Cobb
Freed as associated architects, providing programming, planning,
design, interior design, and construction documents services.
The firm also worked with Pei Cobb Freed to design the $168-million
Boston Federal Courthouse, for which the firm provided programming
and court design consulting for this 730,000 square foot
project. More recently, the firm has been awarded The Modernization
of the Existing Emanuel Celler U.S. Courthouse in Brooklyn,
NY. This project has a $49,000,000 construction cost.
Commercial
Gruzen Samton has been designing office buildings and hotels
for over fifty years. The success of the firm is rooted
in the knowledge and leadership abilities of the principals,
and the design and technical expertise of the staff-all
applied to each client's unique objectives. Approaching
each project as a member of a cooperative team, we strive
to create workplaces where individuals as well as communication
are preeminent, and where disruption is minimized and has
the least amount of impact on work flow. Some of the planning
considerations supporting this goal include providing an
integrated telecommunications application throughout office
areas, organizing work spaces into team or matrix systems
with shared resources, and standardizing the office so it
is more flexible to movement and change.
Cultural
Gruzen Samton’s libraries, museums, religious structures, and other cultural facilities have made a significant impact in their communities. From the Pavilion of Spain, one of the most celebrated buildings of the 1964 World’s Fair, to the acclaimed renovation of El Museo del Barrio, the 2004 winner of the Art Commission of the City of New York’s Award for Design Excellence, the firm consistently works to develop architecture which responds sensitively and creatively to the needs and desires of those whose lives it affects.
Residential
Gruzen Samton has extensive experience in all types of housing-
both high and low-rise, luxury, market, and low-income,
and housing geared toward students, seniors, and families.
Through this experience, the firm has developed the design
and technical expertise necessary to make the critical decisions
necessary in determining the success of every unique housing
project.
Senior Living
Gruzen Samton has over four decades of experience in the design of senior living facilities, ranging from comprehensive retirement communities, supportive housing, and nursing homes to daycare and related community facilities. We are proud that the majority of our projects come from repeat clients. Since the completion of Goldfine Pavilion 40 years ago, we have been the architect of choice for the Hebrew Home for the Aged, designing 7 buildings at their Riverdale campus, as well as independent facilities elsewhere. We have also developed continuing relationships through multiple projects with Atria Senior Living, Maple Knoll Village, the Hebrew Hospital Home, Hassett-Belfer Senior Housing, Care Matrix Corporation; Sunrise Assisted Living/New Life Management, and Life Care Services.
Sustainable Design
Our staff utilizes principles of sustainable design or "green"
architecture-a design approach geared toward the reduction
of human impact on the natural environment, through energy
efficiency, the use of non-toxic materials and finishes,
air and water quality, waste reduction, and other sustainable
principles.
Interior
Design
For more than 65 years, we have created spaces that support our clients’ objectives and image requirements. This history includes thousands of successful projects, ranging from small renovations to multi-million square foot interior design and planning projects. Although our assignments vary in size and services performed, our designs are always flexible, taking into account the likelihood of increased future demands on a building’s infrastructure and technological changes.
Planning
Gruzen Samton has earned an international reputation for the planning and design of large-scale urban projects, encompassing residential, educational, office, and commercial facilities. The firm’s portfolio of planning projects has added immeasurably to the economic and social revitalization of our cities, with large-scale planning projects such as the Queens West Development Plan in Long Island City, the Dubai Waterfront Master Plan and Palm Jebel Ali Design Guidelines in the UAE, the new town for Bell Helicopter Corporation in Isfahan, Iran, master plans for numerous colleges and universities, and revitalization projects such as the University Heights Science Park in Newark, New Jersey.
