• Marcus Garvey Park

    Bandshell & Amphitheatre

    Manhattan, New York, New York

    Marcus Garvey Park is a well-used neighborhood resource with a deteriorating band shell and amphitheater dating from 1969. The stage limits performances, sight lines are poor, and there is no shade for audiences in the 1,600 seats. Cooper, Robertson developed a series of options to fix these problems and the City Parks Foundation selected one including a new stage house with a large multi-purpose room (with changing rooms and toilets for performers). The design corrects the geometry of the band shell, providing a wider stage closer to the audience. With a roof canopy floating above the sidewalls, supported by a series of masts and tension cables and a system of cable-supported fabric shades, the design is open and light. Existing audience benches will be replaced with new seat-back benches of a durable recycled plastic. Ground was broken June 3, 2010 and construction is underway.

    Client: City Parks Foundation; NYC Dept of Parks & Recreation
    Size: 5,400 gross square feet
    Completion: 2010
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