Build Magazine 25 Design rePLACE is an urban design lab committed to shaping a healthier urban future. Tailored to address the unique challenges of each project, Founding Partners Philip Palmgren and Peter Syrett built the foundations of their company upon data, research, collaboration, exploration, and creativity. This, along with their cross-discipline expertise, positions their team to conceptualize a full range of urban design services from small-scale cost effective urban interventions that build early momentum ranging up to large-scale sustainable visions for the future. e see ourselves as a part of the continuum of urban thinkers who understand that place matters,” Peter comments. “Unlike our predecessors, we have access to the rich bounty of data of our information age. An essential part of practice is developing new data driven tools to find hidden patterns, show unrealized potential, and see emerging trends. “One key way we use technology is to hear the many voices that shape the urban environment from the private and public sectors. We use technology to gain an understanding of stakeholders’ distinct points of view, concerns, and drivers. For example, The Community Dashboard is an interactive application that links stakeholder input to location. This allows rePLACE to have real time input on a design as it evolves. We believe this sets apart from our peers.” One key principle that the Partners have been diligent to imbue in the rest of their team is that no two projects are going to be the same, so interactive application of ideas and a constantly evolving view on their work are essential in order to make headway in the industry. “The ecological, cultural, social, and economic factors that our clients experience all converge to make every project distinct and unlike any one other,” Peter says, expanding on the point. “Our approach is based upon this reality. We believe that design solutions cannot be endlessly repeated from one master plan to another master plan, rather a unique set of solutions needs to be crafted for each place. In other words, a successful master plan can only come out of a process that generates implementable solutions that are built upon the strengths of a place while also addressing its challenges.” “To achieve this,” Philip continues, “our collaborative process is based upon a model that is used in the technology sector to develop new products. As a process its primary advantage is that design concepts can be quickly vetted, tested, adjusted, and integrated – covering a wide range of possible solutions without having to fully implement an entire plan to understand the ultimate results. This approach recognizes that a master plan is not an end unto itself, but rather the Collaborate for A Better Tomorrow “W first in a series of larger steps towards implementing a vision. As the initial step of a long-term effort, a master plan must be rooted in logic, it must be persuasive, and it must generate momentum. With this understanding, our design process has been fashioned to result in a cogent vision that will articulate the structure, space, and character of the study area and provide a convincing roadmap for the future.” The firm’s work in Newark, which gave them free rein to craft and realise a vision for the downtown district, has been heralded by the Partners as the standout success project for their firm. “We have learned the value of creating a collaborative network that allows us to broaden our work beyond design realm into investing and being active participants in building upon the social, economic, and ecological capacity of a community.” In the years since inception, and building a firm base in their native Newark, the steady growth in opportunities has continued to offer the Founding Partners of rePLACE Urban Studio a steady stream of high-profile projects, from which they have emerged with proven mettle and ability. “We have worked with a wide range of private and public sector clients,” the Partners explain. rePLACE have recently found numerous such opportunities in the rich apple that is New York City, in particular the Department of Planning and Columbia University. Elsewhere in the State of New York, the Empire State Development has been an important link to spread rePLACE’s signature further afield, in places such as the Village of Mamaroneck. Not only that, but their proximity to New York has also contributed towards rePLACE gaining exposure to international clients - the City of Shanghai in China has seen the impact on rePLACE’s commitment to collaboration and masterful urban design. Over the last decade in the US, Philip and Peter have witnessed a shift in their respective market, where architectural practices have merged or have grown through acquisition. This trend, they are sure, will continue for the foreseeable future, but this will also lead to more people seeing a growing gap in the industry between the corporate mega-firms and the smaller, more boutique practices, leaving very little in between these two extremes. “We believe this is an opportunity for smaller, more facile, practices to carve out and dominate segments of the marketplace where clients are seeking something more thoughtful than the fashion of the moment produced by most corporate practices.” Looking to take advantage of this situation fits well within Philip and Peter’s aspiration to evolve into an urban think tank “that is vertically integrated to design, invest, and build.” The duo plan to continue the work that they have begun in Newark by expanding their presence into other, neighbouring cities. In their words, remaining as they are for too long is too risky for them, so responding to the market and evolving in kind is the way forward. “Simply put,” Peter explains, “those who don’t evolve don’t survive. We believe that for our business to be an enduring success we must always being seeking new and creative solutions.” Company: rePLACE Urban Studio Name: Peter Syrett / Philip Palmgren Email:
[email protected] / P
[email protected] Web Address: www.replaceurbanstudio.com Address: 12-16 Vestry Street, 7th Floor, NY, NY 10013 Telephone: +1 212.380.1079 Best Sustainable Urban Design Firm 2016 - USA