The highly anticipated Pearl House, a luxury residential conversion in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan, opened its doors to new tenants early this year. Developed by the Vanbarton Group and designed by Gensler, this $273 million project is the largest office-to-residential conversion in the city’s history. Pearl House boasts 588 market rate luxury apartments right in the heart of the Seaport district and offers water views and luxury resort-style amenities to its tenants. Residences range from studios and one- and two-bedroom apartments to penthouses with private terraces.
GMS provided structural engineering services for the conversion of this 24-story, 525,000 sf office tower into rental apartments. An interstitial mechanical floor was infilled, and five new floors were added atop the existing structure. A new lateral bracing system was added to the entire height of the building to accommodate the new wind loading from the additional floors. The facade was reskinned to create operable windows, with the spandrels and mullions treated to create a refreshing new façade and bathe the interiors with sunlight – a challenge for conversions as office buildings often have large windowless spaces. Additionally, three “blind shafts” running through the structure’s core, were cut into the floorplates where concrete and metal deck were removed so that floor area could be relocated to the new upper stories.
Pearl House has 40,000 sf of amenity spaces consisting of a collection of lounges, a grand sculptural brass-clad staircase, resident-exclusive coffee bar, state-of-the-art Technogym Performance House, a bowling alley, a children’s playroom, a pet grooming salon, a high-tech sports simulator, a game room, workspace, spa facilities including a cold plunge pool and hyperbaric oxygen therapy chamber, and rooftop amenity spaces and terraces including a full-sized bar and a chef’s kitchen.
A push for conversions rose after the pandemic, as companies downsized their workplaces, leaving vacant office buildings combining with a housing crisis. This three-year conversion was made possible by NYC zoning outlining which office towers are eligible for residential usage. Adaptively-reusing a building of this size saved approximately 20,000 metric tons of embodied carbon compared to constructing a new building. The building envelope exceeds the Local Law 97 2030 energy performance requirements.
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