News

Frances Halsband, FAIA, was inaugurated as the 61st Chancellor of the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). Halsband was elected Chancellor by members of the College of Fellows citing her leadership and service to the AIA, the profession of architecture, and her community. Halsband is a founding partner of Kliment Halsband Architects, now a studio of Perkins Eastman. Kliment Halsband Architects has received numerous awards, including the 1997 AIA Architecture Firm Award, and the 1998 Medal of Honor from the AIA New York. Halsband’s various roles in academic and civic life have provided a unique perspective…

The grand opening of the Pratt Manhattan Gallery, which Covid had delayed, was on September 22nd. Everyone was in a celebratory mood, including Frances Bronet, president of the Pratt Institute, who gave remarks.

Last weekend's Open House New York tours of NYU School of Global Public Health and the Pratt Institute Gallery were a great success. Thank you to everyone who joined us! We are so happy to see students thriving in these spaces.

Join architects from Kliment Halsband on a special tour of the Pratt Institute Gallery on  Saturday 22, 2022 2–2:45 pm and 3–3:45 pm. The lottery will open on October 13 at noon and stay open for 24 hours on the OHNY website. https://ohny.org/place/pratt-institute-gallery/ The gallery is open to visitors without advance reservations from 1–4 pm on Saturday. The special tours with architects from Kliment Halsband require tickets. The Pratt Institute Gallery occupies the ground floor of a historic building on 14th Street. The gallery supports the goals of Pratt Institute by presenting exhibitions that reflect their interdisciplinary research and inquiry-based…

Join architects from Kliment Halsband on a special tour of the building, normally accessible only to students and faculty, and learn how the goals of the school it houses are reflected throughout the space. The tour is Saturday 22, 2022 3:00pm-3:45pm / 4:00pm-4:45pm. The lottery will open on October 13 at noon and stay open for 24 hours on the OHNY website https://ohny.org/place/nyu-school-of-global-public-heath The NYU School of Global Public Health is a new school in two adjoining historic buildings at NYU. It is a healthy environment for a group of researchers, faculty, and students who are transforming the global health…

Perkins Eastman and Kliment Halsband Architects are pleased to announce their merger, which will combine the formidable talents, experience, and skills of both legacy firms. With Perkins Eastman celebrating its 40th anniversary and Kliment Halsband celebrating its 50th, this merger promises to create powerful synergies. Perkins Eastman, the seventh largest architecture and design firm in the world with more than 1,100 employees, has worked on projects on five continents in 60 countries. Its portfolio reflects expertise in multiple practice areas with strengths in healthcare, senior living, large-scale mixed-use, K-12, higher education, hospitality, and workplace design as well as planning, urban…

Frances Halsband FAIA spoke at the SVA Interior Design's Spring 2021 INSIDE THE BOX: Designing Wellness Lecture Series. Her lecture, Hospitals vs. Hospitality: Giving Form to a Healthy Environment reflected on the lessons learned from her work on prior projects.

Since 1968, AIA New York State’s Annual Design Awards celebrate local, national and international projects that achieve architectural excellence designed by architects throughout New York State. We are thrilled and honored to be recognized with an award of Citation. 42 projects were recognized for Citation, Merit and Honor Awards this year. The jury members stated, “We know that this is a long list, but these are deserving recipients from a strong class of submittals that survived considerable scrutiny. This represents the strength and talent of AIA New York State members.” See Mount Sinai Ambulatory Surgical Facility.

Congratulations to Michael A. Nieminen FAIA for becoming the 2021 Chair of the National AIA Committee on Architecture for Education. As a long term member of the committee, Michael brings extensive knowledge and remarkable insight on the transformation of educational environments to our team.

Project Management Institute is celebrating the achievements of this unprecedented year in its Most Influential Projects 2020 list. We are proud to see Mount Sinai Ambulatory Surgical Facility recognized as an influential project that overcame obstacles to create long-lasting social impact. We designed this self-sufficient infrastructure to provide access to qualified surgical treatments not available before to this community. Our goal was to design a prototype of a surgical facility that could be replicated all over the world where needed. Careful analysis of required systems and equipment resulted in elimination of many redundant complex and costly systems typically found in…

Partner Michael A. Nieminen FAIA, 2021 Chair of the AIA Committee on Architecture for Education, will participate in two virtual sessions for EDspaces 2020 this week and will engage with school leaders and design professionals in discussions about how architecture and design can improve learning experiences. In his first session on 11 November, Exploring Intersections between K-12 and Higher Education, Michael will be joined by Susan T. Morgan AIA, Associate Partner and Project Manager / BKV Group, and Alissa Harrington, Senior Instructional Designer / McDaniel College. On Thursday 12 November, Jason Forney FAIA, Principal / Bruner/Cott Architects, and Tom Huf,…

This fall's Oculus issue dives deep into the topic of Climate Change and Social Justice. Associate Caitlin Watson AIA was featured amongst other progressive social and climate activists, including Shannon Gathings and Roy Decker, her fellow steering committee members at US Architects Declare, in an article by Fred A. Bernstein and Julia van den Hout. Read article here.

Campus Transformation in an Age of Information Abundance is our newest ideabook that focuses on KHA’s experience working with leading higher education institutions. We welcome you to click on the image below to open our ideabook or view it at this link.  

The United Nations has just published the Architecture Guide to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals: two volumes of case studies featuring 128 projects from around the globe. We are proud to announce that Mount Sinai Ambulatory Surgical Facility was selected to represent Goal 8, Decent Work and Economic Growth, for providing access to safe and affordable surgical treatments and delivering a facility with educational and training resources connecting local surgeons to Mount Sinai Hospital in New York through telemedicine. “Architects can facilitate an open dialogue and work in partnerships to give us good solutions, and they can encourage authorities to…

Available beginning 17 October, our 15-minute presentation for 2020 Open House New York Weekend features interviews with our Partner-in-Charge, Project Manager, and Pratt's Director of Exhibitions. We get to the bottom of what drove our project approach, design attributes, and our projected cultural and community achievements. Get an insider's sneak peak of the project through on-site videos, renderings, and drawings. Speakers Michael Maza AIA, Partner-in-Charge Simone Meeks, Project Manager Nicholas Battis, Pratt Institute's Director of Exhibitions Interviewed by Gabriela Valero Arias, Communications Director [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHniMA7HI9U[/embed] See Pratt Manhattan Gallery and Academic Center.

The AIA Healthcare Design jury recognized eight projects that "help solve aesthetic, civic, urban and social problems while also being functional and sustainable." “This friendly building is elegant in its simplicity and use of local materials like the glazed masonry block,” said the jury. “The unique solar canopy provides shading and recalls the surrounding tree land; it’s a nice touch of biomimicry. These details make the building feel very of the place.” AIA Press Release, 1 October 2020. See Mount Sinai Kyabirwa Surgical Facility.

The Passionist Catholic religious order has maintained this Jamaica, Queens facility for fellowship and contemplation since the 1920s. A hydroponic farm will help feed the house and support a new paradigm for intentional community, with a community kitchen and print shop operated by Reconnect, a social enterprise supporting disconnected youth. The entire house will gather daily for meals, social interaction, and spiritual communion in bright new spaces oriented toward the landscape and designed to strengthen the connection with the outdoors. Intentional living communities, including a group of previously-incarcerated women from Hour Children, will occupy residences on the upper floors, and…

As initiatives to fight climate change grow stronger, new sustainable materials are becoming more common and available. Getting rid of glass is only one of the solutions. Produced by Antonella Crescimbeni for Cheddar, this video explores the many drawbacks that glass skyscrapers present to our natural environment. Experts Mark Chambers, Director of Sustainability at Mayor Bill de Blasio's Office, and Justin Davidson, Architecture Critic at New York Magazine, also joined to discuss the matter. Frances comments,"I wouldn't say we are in love with skyscrapers I would say that there is an understanding right now amongst everybody that skyscrapers are not…

The first formation of Architects Declare emerged in the Spring of 2019 in the UK. The group organized to bring together architecture firms and allied institutions to bring awareness to the emergencies of climate change and biodiversity loss. Since then, branches of Architects Declare have appeared and assembled all over the world to turn this declaration into a global call to action. This past May, the Architectural League of New York formed a steering committee to launch the United States chapter of Architects Declare. Caitlin Watson AIA, who leads our firm’s Sustainability Working Group and is a member of the…

Michael A. Nieminen FAIA, vice-chair of the National AIA Committee on Architecture for Education, participated in a series of virtual charrettes in collaboration with the AIA and a team of experts to develop design of strategies to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmissions in schools. Their accomplishments are reflected in this recently released documents, Reopening America Strategies for Safer Schools. We will continue to assist our clients as they prepare their schools for reopening.

In this live-stream interview podcast, Frances Halsband and Dr. Michael Marin will discuss a person, a place, and a thing they find meaningful. By focusing on what guests care about, Cohen is successful at provoking surprising and heart-to-heart conversations. "The founding partner of Kliment Halsband Architects teamed up with the head of surgery at Mount Sinai to create a hospital in Uganda and fight crime in outer space. One of those. The former. Their solar-powered facility, in the village of Kyabirwa, provides surgical services for a long underserved community." - Person Place Thing. Organized by the Center for Architecture, this…

Matthew Marani writes, "Facadism, the act of retaining a historic facade whilst fundamentally adapting a structure’s interior, is often maligned by preservationists as relegating historic architecture to urban set pieces. Lost in such orthodox pedagogy is recognition of the functional demands of the client and the pragmatic reality that buildings evolve over time." In this article, Marani brings forth the fundamental preservation elements and the great value of adaptive reuse architecture. He describes KHA's Friends Seminary project as "inventive and meticulous." Link to Article See Project

Trading Notes brings experts together to discuss the challenges facing the AEC industry. Frances Halsband was invited to join The Architect's Newspaper's conversation on Approaches to Architectural Preservation and Adaptive Re-Use, which streamed on 22 May 2020. Frances shared her expertise on retaining heritage and strategies for best practice in the restoration and transformation of historic architecture. Register to watch the recording on-demand here.

Building and supporting healthy, sustainable communities is more important now than ever. Fast Company's World Changing Ideas honor designs that promote innovation for the good of society and the planet. [embed]https://vimeo.com/415964050[/embed] We wanted this project to provide a safe space for surgical procedures but we also intended to strengthen the community's socioeconomic network. In construction, we worked with local businesses and labor to use traditional building methods: the steel structure was filled in with clay bricks and clad with kiln-fired tiles manufactured locally in Jinja, Uganda. The surgical facility provides nurses and surgeons with training in quality surgical care. Twenty…

Framework For Hope by Cara Ehlenfeldt '16 Earlier this year, Cara Ehlenfeldt from Swarthmore Bulletin wanted to learn more about Frances Halsband FAIA role and vision for Mount Sinai Kyabirwa Surgical Facility. “We thought we were just building a building,” Halsband says, “but we were actually learning how to simplify a whole architectural process.” In her article, she quotes Michael Marin, chief surgeon at Mount Sinai Health System, who engaged the firm to realize his hospital project in Uganda. “The design that Frances created has fit into the community and into the environment so seamlessly, yet it is clearly and…

[wpgmza id="1"] We could all benefit from a momentary escape right now. This Earth Day, we can admire countless landscapes across the world from the safety of our own homes. Click through our selection of projects above and join us on a relaxing virtual tour. Scroll over to East Africa to view the construction and finished product of the recently finished Mount Sinai Kyabirwa Surgical Facility. For more information on these and other projects, visit our Work. Videos credited to Pepper & Bones and our on-site staff. Thanks to all who helped bring these projects to life! Please enjoy and…

Now in construction, KHA’s project for NYU’s School of Global Public Health will open in January 2021. The School educates tomorrow’s leaders in global health planning and supports collaborative research on public health issues around the world. Specialty programs include Biostatistics, Epidemiology, Global and Environmental Public Health, and Public Health Policy and Management. In the past three years, the school has seen its enrollment triple and its grant ranking surge. Cheryl Healton, Dean of the School says “NYU GPH is working in the United States and around the world to prevent and combat epidemics. Their new home will bring together…

Our design stimulates a calm and serene patient-doctor experience while integrating the latest technology. Careful arrangements of seemingly small features, dimmable and shadowless skylight ceiling fixtures in treatment rooms or quite sliding glass doors for example, boost the energy of our healthcare spaces. Mount Sinai Health System.

11 March By Julia Gamolina, Madame Architect Frances is a founding partner of Kliment Halsband Architects. Her varied roles as a designer, faculty member, and peer reviewer have provided a unique perspective on the many voices that shape planning and design today. She was the first woman president of AIANY and the Architectural League of NY. She is a former Commissioner of the NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission, and has served as an Architectural Advisor to the US Department of State Office of Overseas Building Operations and the Federal Reserve Bank. Frances received a Bachelor of Arts from Swarthmore College and…

KHA Sustainability Working Group is reporting on all of our projects that were active through design phase in 2019. Spearheading the group's initiatives, Associate Caitlin Watson AIA comments that "decarbonization of the building sector must be a central task for all architectural practices going forward. We see reporting as an important way for architects to share with and learn from each other, and we're excited to fold it into other initiatives we have taken on to push for significant reductions in both embodied and operational carbon across our projects.” Learn more about the AIA 2030 Commitment here.

Better buildings. Better students. KHA designed Friends Seminary to qualify for recognition by Collaborative for High Performance Schools (CHPS). This alternative to LEED, developed specifically for K-12 schools, addresses student and staff health, enhanced learning environments, conservation of energy and water, and reduction of waste pollution and environmental degradation. The goal is to create the ideal learning experience, with good lighting, clean air, and comfortable classrooms in buildings with the smallest impact on the environment.

In 2017, two Category 5 hurricanes caused catastrophic damage to the U.S. Virgin Islands. 2.7 million square feet of educational facilities spread across three islands were severely damaged and some were destroyed. Working with the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Education and Witt O’Brien’s, disaster recovery specialists, KHA and a team of engineers created Educational Sector Industry Standards that serve as the basis for securing FEMA funding for repairs. The standards we created represent an extensive collection of available existing standards organized through an outline of appropriate and widely used educational criteria. Unlike mainland locations, there is nowhere to go…

10 March at 8:30am - SCUP 2020 North Atlantic Conference in New Haven, CT Partner Michael A. Nieminen FAIA, will present “Resuscitating Educational Facilities for Innovative Learning and Environmental Stewardship” on transforming buildings that are near the end of their useful lives and adapting them to serve current and future needs. With creative design and programming buildings can be transformed into suitable, thriving, innovative learning environments. Co-speakers, Jason Forney FAIA, Principal at Bruner/Cott Architects, and Thomas Huf, Sr. Program Manager at UMass Amherst. 19 March - Frances Halsband FAIA on Madame Architect Don't miss Frances' interview with Julia Gamolina, Founder…

An integral part of Manhattan’s Stuyvesant Square Historic District, Friends Seminary has been dealing with growing pains for decades, with an increasing number of kindergarten-through-12th-grade students sharing tight quarters in a disparate group of 19th- and 20th-century buildings. Now the campus has room to breathe, due to a meticulous renovation and expansion by Kliment Halsband Architect (KHA), completed last September, that treads gently on the old-world charm of its setting. Bordered on the east by the verdant square, the independent Quaker day school, founded in 1786, still occupies one of three landmarked masonry buildings, reminiscent of Federal and Greek Revival…

An international jury of architects, educators, critics, and planners selected the 2020 AIA New York Design Awards winning projects. We are thrilled and honored to receive the Sustainability Merit Award. At the awards announcement this past Monday, 13 January, the jury commented that "the photovoltaic elements bind the sides of the clinic together, creating a depth of light - the idea of a forest within the project itself - in a beautiful way. The columns are like trees and the very high performing interior is wrapped with the exterior materials that pull all these things together." We developed minimally invasive…

KHA is proud to announce the promotion of Adam Richards AIA, Bradley Sherburne AIA, and K.C. Underwood AIA, LEED AP as our newest Associates. Congratulations and thank you for your contributions to the profession and hard work! Adam Richards AIA is recognized for his exceptional design and management skills. Adam joined KHA in 2014 and is a successful Project Architect and Project Manager bringing exceptional quality to every phase of a project. His strong interests in sustainability and graphic representation methods also bring widespread support to our team. Most recently he has served as the Project Architect for the renovation…

On September 17, 2019, around 3 a.m. Eastern Time, a few dozen physicians, architects, and others connected to New York’s Mount Sinai Health System woke up, turned on their computers and phones, and tuned in to a livestream of a hernia-repair surgery in the rural village of Kyabirwa, Uganda. It was the first procedure taking place at a new ambulatory surgery center there. Designed by Kliment Halsband Architects (KHA), the $1.35 million project makes use of technology and design to provide outpatient care to residents of the small East African town near the Nile River. For much of his career,…

Associate Nicholas Wan AIA led tours of the recently opened transformation of Friends Seminary for Open House New York. Nick was the Project Manager and was thrilled to describe every detail of the project's design and construction. We want to thank the OHNY team and volunteers for making this happen. This event was a great way to wrap up a 4 year project.

The expansion of Friends Seminary, the oldest coeducational independent school in New York City, creates a single accessible facility for 780 students, within a landmarked district in the East Village. KHA designed an entirely new structure behind the facades of three 1852 townhouses and connected them seamlessly to the school's main building. With progressive learning environments and extensive landscape and natural elements, this project integrates contemporary architectural solutions into the historic fabric of the campus.

The comprehensive transformation of Horace Mann School’s Pforzheimer Hall featuring new Middle School Science classrooms reopened last week after an ambitious summer construction schedule. The project integrates all new energy efficient mechanical systems and new casework, lighting and audio visual systems. HMS is a coeducational, independent, private school serving Pre K-12 in New York City.

The New York State University Construction Fund (SUCF) commissioned KHA to design the adaptive reuse of the historic Colonial Revival mansion as the home for Institutional Advancement and Admissions at SUNY Purchase College. The rehabilitated and modernized building will be a welcoming front door for alumni and prospective students.

14-16 July - SCUP 2019 Annual Conference Partner David Whitehill AIA participated in a panel discussion on the integration of technology in higher education with a special focus on digital native students. David was joined by Brian Carter of Integrus Architecture, Ron Cramer of University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Steve Jowett of Michigan State University. The panel was moderated by Pam Taggart of AVIXA. 24-26 July - 8th Annual STEM Forum & Expo, hosted by NSTA Partner Michael Maza AIA, LEED AP led, with John Dale FAIA from Harley Ellis Devereaux, three workshops on best architectural and design practices for creating…

The NewSchool of Architecture & Design in San Diego awarded Frances Halsband with an Honorary Doctorate of Design and, was invited to give this year’s commencement address. Read Frances’s encouraging words to Class of 2019 read

Frances Halsband FAIA has been recognized for her activism in strengthening ethical standards for architects with election as Secretary of the Executive Committee of the AIA College of Fellows. Her election was held at the business meeting of the annual AIA conference in Las Vegas, NV last Saturday June 8, 2019. Next week, Halsband will be the commencement speaker at the NewSchool of Architecture & Design in San Diego and will be awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Design. The school is a globally recognized and forward-thinking institution that aims to represent innovation in the shifting design landscape. Halsband says that…

"As a tribute to ongoing discernment and determination by faculty and administration of the Yale Divinity School (YDS) regarding the preservation of its Sterling Quadrangle, the New Haven Preservation Trust bestows its Landmark Award. Exemplary buildings over the breadth and depth of history inspire and deserve preservation. Indeed, in 1996, Vincent Scully, Yale’s beloved and renown professor of architectural history, quickly responded to the University’s proposal to radically truncate the east end of the YDS quadrangle. Ever since his call to rethinking the issue, YDS has been and continues to be committed to the challenge of preservation and in so…

Frances's article, A Different Kind of Place, explores three environments for retreat including KHA’s Zen Mountain Monastery. She writes, "Leaving our normal routine and comfort zone prepares us to be more open to new experiences and insights. Retreats are not necessarily escapes, but rather journeys to new places to seek spiritual change." Read More

KHA Associate Caitlin Watson AIA will present her paper, Citicorp Center, Counter-Terrorism, and the Nevelson Chapel, at the SAH International Conference tomorrow, Friday 26 April in Providence, RI. Congratulations Caitlin! Read More

On March 21, KHA was thrilled to attend Engineering News Record's black tie gala celebrating "25 Newsmakers of 2018." Frances Halsband's effort to encourage ethical transformation in the workplace was recognized with an award. In her acceptance speech she said, "Let this award inspire us all to welcome a new generation into a safe, equitable, and inspiring profession." Click to read the full story.

Engineering News Record's annual class of the top 25 newsmakers recognizes individuals who have "served the best interests of the construction industry and their communities." ENR selected Frances for her work in rallying the members of the AIA College of Fellows to endorse an anti-abuse and anti-harassment resolution to amend the AIA's Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct, which was introduced and approved at the 2018 AIA Annual Meeting. Click here to read the full story.

Kliment Halsband Architects is pleased to announce that Caitlin Watson AIA and Nicholas Wan AIA have been promoted to Associate. Caitlin Watson AIA has distinguished herself as an exceptional designer and manager of diverse projects, from the renovation and expansion of a contemporary Catholic church on Staten Island to the adaptive reuse of a historic Manhattan loft building into academic office and instructional space. She brings her expertise with 3D modeling software to the design process, including her acumen with translating sketches and schematic drawings into photorealistic renderings. Caitlin also continues to pursue her scholarly research about the intersection of…

At the AIA National Conference held in New York City in June, Frances Halsband FAIA introduced Resolution 18-16 to amend the AIA Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct. The proposed amendment requires that members of the AIA ensure the equal treatment of all design professionals and staff, and explicitly prohibits abuse and harassment within the architecture community. Frances was motivated by the #MeToo movement’s arrival within the architecture community and decided to take action after lecturing at architecture schools this past Spring. “I found many students eager to know what we were doing to stop all forms of abuse,” Halsband…

Partner Michael Maza AIA, LEED AP was among four new members unanimously voted to serve on the South Orange Village Center Alliance Board of Directors during the organization's September board meeting. The SOVCA works with all of South Orange's downtown stakeholders on improvement issues to ensure a safe and vibrant district for the entire community. Partner David Whitehill AIA was recently elected as a Board Member of the Northampton, MA, Community Preservation Committee. The Community Preservation Committee is responsible for making recommendations of the expenditure of tax monies earmarked for the areas of community housing, historic preservation, open space protection,…

Kliment Halsband Architects hosted tours of Avalon Morningside Park Apartments during this year's Open House NY Weekend in October. Frances Halsband FAIA led the tours with assistance from Nazeela Alli, Community Consultant at AvalonBay, owners of the building. The 20-story apartment building is on the campus of the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine in Morningside Heights, Manhattan. Opened in 2009, the building includes 300 rental apartments, community spaces, and a 150-car garage.

Over 23,000 participants will converge on New York City this week for the A’18 Conference on Architecture. We are thrilled to be able to welcome everyone to our city and to be participating in the conference through several events and programs. More details below about where you can find us. TOURS Secondary Education in the City: A Lesson Plan Wednesday, June 20 10 am – 3 pm Michael A. Nieminen FAIA will lead a tour of The Spence School, an independent K-12 all-girls school on the Upper East Side. The Spence School is one of three notable public and private…

KHA's project for SUNY College of Optometry in New York City is a winner of this year's AIA New York State Excelsior Award. These awards recognize excellence in the design and construction of state-funded public buildings. The SUNY College of Optometry welcomes 70,000 visitors a year to the University Eye Center and provides academic and research space for 400 students and over 100 faculty. The College is a vertical campus on 18 floors of a midtown office building on 42 Street in the heart of Midtown Manhattan. The University Eye Center is one of the largest outpatient facilities in the…

KHA is designing two projects for the Blind Brook-Rye Union Free School District in Rye Brook, NY. Both projects will include new workshop spaces for interdisciplinary projects in science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM). A new wing at the elementary school will provide flexible classroom space, a new “maker space” for STEAM, and a hybrid cafeteria and auditorium. At the high school, a new fabrication lab with a variety of hi-tech tools and equipment will support provide space for students to pursue collaborative project-based learning and gain hands-on experience and problem-solving skills.

Michael A. Nieminen FAIA, a Partner at KHA, has been appointed to the five-member Leadership Group of the National AIA Committee on Architecture for Education. The Committee is a member-led group of architects and allied professionals that focus on the quality and design all types of educational facilities. Michael’s active involvement with the National CAE includes serving as the Co-Chair to Higher Education Sub-Committee, which has grown under his leadership from 6-8 members to over 20 who participate in monthly online programs covering a wide range of relevant topics to the field. He is also an active member of the…

Sarah Parks, a junior at Swarthmore College with a background in engineering and studio art, spent a week-long externship at Kliment Halsband Architects in early January. Sarah was paired with KHA’s Partner Frances Halsband, a Swarthmore alum, for this job-shadow mentoring program offered by the college, which is designed to expose students to career exploration and guidance. During her week at the firm, Sarah had the chance to attend several in-house and client meetings with Frances and other KHA team members, providing her a glimpse into the working process of an architectural design firm.

Frances Halsband FAIA is an invited speaker and panelist for a discussion organized by the Urban Design Forum about how to design and finance New York City’s neighborhood parks. “Valuing Parks” on Wednesday, February 17, at 6-8pm, is the seventh program of the Forum’s year-long inquiry into strengthening New York City’s physical and social structure. In her talk, titled “Not a Park!”, Frances will examine how the even the smallest of public spaces could contribute to civic life and community vibrancy, as well as pay their own way. She suggests redefining the notion of a neighborhood park to embrace a…

Catalyzing new approaches for responding to climate change, applying the mathematical and computational methods of modern trade to study ancient trade, and pioneering a new scholarly approach that integrates evolutionary history of the brain and the distant past of the human species are among the eight new interdisciplinary research projects underway at the Neubauer Collegium for Culture and Society at the University of Chicago. This innovative research incubator and institute is set within the walls of the historic, former Meadville Theological Seminary which KHA has transformed into a destination that fosters collaborative research in the humanities and social sciences. Presentation…

Saving Place: 50 Years of New York City Landmarks, on view at the Museum of the City of New York through January 3, 2016, celebrates the 50th anniversary of the New York City Landmarks Law. Enacted in 1965, the law has ensured the preservation of the character of many historic neighborhoods and buildings throughout the city. The Conrad B. Duberstein U.S. Bankruptcy Courthouse and Post Office in downtown Brooklyn is among the buildings featured in the exhibition. KHA designed the adaptive reuse of this Romanesque Revival-style building from the late 19th-century, restoring such elements as the skylit atrium and intricate…

KHA is working with the IFC Center on the design of an expansion for this art house movie theater on 6th Avenue in New York's Greenwich Village. The new addition, planned for a vacant lot behind the theater, will double the building's size and include a new lobby/waiting area and six new intimate theaters. The IFC Center is known for its programming of independent and foreign films as well as unique series of classic films. Read more here.