Sustainable Design

The new building will be in line with our environmental politics, utilizing sustainable design principles: energy and water efficiency and conservation; use of local and recycled materials; use of less toxic (low VOC) materials; recycling of materials from our demolition; creation of a green roof; and use of both active and passive solar technologies. Our commitment to building in this way emerges from ABC No Rio's mission and purpose.

Our Architect

We are thrilled to be working with architect Paul Castrucci on the design of the new building. Paul has over twenty years experience and has designed or renovated over 1,000 dwelling units and numerous historic buildings and cultural institutions. Paul specializes in contextual, sustainable and energy-efficient design. One of his buildings can be seen right down the block at 179 Rivington Street.
Paul has also been involved in the cultural milieu of which ABC No Rio is part. He was co-founder of the Bullet Space gallery and squat and is the architect for several of the formerly squatted buildings on the Lower East Side now being developed as limited-equity coops. Paul's commitment to sustainable and energy-efficient design resonates with ABC No Rio's institutional values. His understanding of what is unique about ABC No Rio has served us well in designing a new space for our projects and programs.

Please Contribute

  The total project cost for building our new facility is $5 million. This new facility will allow us to augment and enhance ABC No Rio's use of the site for all our projects and programs. And we will show New York City and the world that sustainable design is not just for massive office buildings or luxury condominiums, but also for smaller grassroots spaces open and accessible to the public.
  To date, we have in place almost 80% of the funds needed for this project. We've raised $1.5 million in private funding, have received $3.15 million in support from the City of New York, and $275,000 from the Lower Manhattan Development Corp. The project is moving forward, and we're working closely with the City's Dept. of Design + Construction and Dept. of Cultural Affairs.
  Now more than ever we need the support of people who share our vision of environmental sustainability and cultural autonomy, of artfully aware activism and socially engaged art.

A New Building

On March 14, 2008, at the opening event for our sixth building-wide exhibition, the Ides of March, we presented our design for a new facility for ABC No Rio. We're proud to share with you here our plan for new construction at our Rivington Street location.

The existing building is distressed and in disrepair. In 2007, our architect and engineer determined that existing conditions would make responsible repair and renovation difficult, and not significantly less costly than new construction. Through new construction we will build dramatically improved facilities for our cultural, community and educational activities. We will:

double the size of our gallery and performance space
provide more efficient insulation and soundproofing
create spaces specifically designed for our programs and events
install an elevator and make the building wheelchair accessible
install new energy- and water-efficient building-wide systems
increase our capacity for alternative energy use

Cross-section of new building plan for ABC No Rio

More Images

Support

We are gratefor the support received for this project from New York City Councilmember Margaret Chin, the New York City Council, and former City Councilmember Alan Gerson; Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer; the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs; the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation; the Dedalus Foundation; the Golden Rule Foundation; the Lily Auchincloss Foundation; the Light Fund of New York; the New York State Council on the Arts; and many, many hundreds of individual contributors and supporters. Thank you.