Annual Building Awards Gala 2019 Created by: The Hotel is proud to be a member of the dynamic county of Queens and support the Queens Chamber of Commerce hotel.com Welcome It is my pleasure to welcome you to the 2019 Queens Chamber of Commerce Annual Build- ing Awards Gala, one of the signature events of the Queens Chamber of Commerce. The Queens Chamber of Commerce has been here since 1911 for the business community with over 1,100 Mem- ber organizations, representing 100,000 Queens- based employees. For over 90 years, this mar- velous awards tradition honors the architects, builders, engineers, lenders, interior designers and owners of buildings and building projects in Queens County. In the spirit of what is old is new again, here’s a quote from a story about our Building Awards in the early 1930’s: “The Queens Chamber of Com- merce Building Awards program was first orga- nized in 1926. The awards served the purpose THOMAS J. of promoting development in Queens at a time when the borough was experiencing a massive in- GRECH flux of new population. President & CEO, Queens Chamber This was partially driven by advances in transpor- of Commerce tation services including the Long Island Railroad, Queensborough Bridge, and New York City Sub- way system, which all connected Queens in the first two decades after the turn of the century. Census records show that the population of the borough more than doubled between 1920 and 1930, so when the awards program began there was a large quantity of new buildings to be con- sidered.” Thank you to our Board, Staff, our Sponsors listed in this Journal as well as all the nominated build- ings. To our selected winners; congratulations and thank you for the inspiration; past, present and fu- ture! LAGUARDIA AIRPORT TRANSFORMING OUR AIRPORTS INTO WORLDCLASS GATEWAYS The Port Authority is committed to bringing our airports to the front of the pack. The first new gates are now open as we build a whole new LaGuardia and transform JFK into a unified, 21st century hub. The Port Authority is committed to working with the local community and businesses. Learn more about job and contracting opportunities at ANEWLGA.COM and ANEWJFK.COM JFK INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT We’re putting our energy behind the community. National Grid values and respects the strength and diversity of our employees, customers and communities. And we take pride in our employees who volunteer their time and talents to enrich the places where we live, work and play. www.nationalgridus.com Connect with us on AWARD RECEPIENT & SPEAKER TYLER MORSE CEO, MCR Development TWA Hotel embodies the ‘excitement of traveling’ By Benjamin Fang | [email protected] The 512-bed TWA Hotel at JFK pool, a 50,000-square-foot event Airport opened this past May to space and the world’s biggest much fanfare. hotel gym. Built to replicate the iconic Jet Even Governor Andrew Cuomo Age terminal that first opened complimented the project’s cre- in 1962, the hotel is replete with ativity and brilliance as “interna- modern amenities like high-end tionally spectacular.” retail shops, a rooftop infinity But for Tyler Morse, the CEO and ect.” managing partner of MCR and MORSE Development, the com- The multi-year project had its own pany that converted the formerly set of challenges that the devel- abandoned terminal into a hotel, oper, architects and builder had to the project was particularly excit- overcome. ing. In total, Morse dealt with 22 gov- A former baggage handler at Los ernment agencies and 14 preserva- Angeles International Airport, tionist groups, which led to a lot of Morse fell in love with the aviation opinions and thoughts on how to business. He was especially thrilled preserve the historic building. by the TWA Flight Center, which ended operations in 2001. “Trying to incorporate all of that into the design was quite tricky,” “The opportunity to bring it back he said. “And doing that simulta- to its former glory was a once-in- neously while opening it on time, a-lifetime opportunity,” Morse said. which we succeeded in doing.” The project was lauded for its Another challenge was figuring painstaking attention to detail, out where to dispose of the soil for from the restoration of the red- the massive project. After a long carpeted Sunken Lounge to the negotiation with the National Park reproduction of the pencils and Service, the TWA Hotel delivered swizzle sticks, all of which had to 74,000 cubic feet of sand for the be done in an environmentally- Spring Creek South South Storm friendly manner. Resilience and Ecosystem Restora- tion Project. Morse even personally collected all of the David Klein posters from According to the company, the that era. sand, valued at $5 million, will help stabilize Spring Creek Park, which “Everything we did is authentic,” is a wildlife refuge in the Gateway he said. “That was important to us.” National Recreation Area on the Jamaica Bay shoreline. While that focus required a lot of time and resources, Morse said it It will reduce the risk of storm was a critical part of the project. damage and flooding in neighbor- hoods like Howard Beach, which “People notice the details, and it was significantly impacted by Su- really matters,” he said. “The amal- perstorm Sandy. gam of the details makes the proj- “It was one tricky challenge after The TWA Hotel is one of the re- another,” Morse said about the cipients of the Queens Cham- project. “The biggest challenge ber of Commerce’s 2019 Building was doing all of that simultane- Awards. This year, the award gala ously.” will be hosted on October 3 at the hotel itself. But it was all worth it when the hotel was finally built and opened Morse said hosting the awards is to the public. Morse said the hotel meaningful for him and his team. hosted a lot of former TWA em- He noted that the original Idlewild ployees for various events. Airport, renamed in 1963 as JFK International Airport, has always He said when they walked into the been a big part of Queens. building, many began to cry and reminisce about their workplace “To be able to host the awards and for decades. Some said the new honor the people from Queens is version looks even better than it very special,” he said. did in 1962. “It’s a great feeling, seeing the joy it brings to people,” Morse said. “People took photos for Instagram, and shared it with their families.” He added that while MCR and MORSE Development are working on other hotels, none will “hold a candle” to this historic project. “I don’t think projects like this will ever come along again,” he said. © 2019 Southwest Airlines Co. Airlines Southwest 2019 © Without a Heart, it’s just a machine. So in 1971, a little Heart built a different kind of airline— one that made sure everyone could fly. Everyone has important places to go. So we invented low fares to help them get there. Here, we think everyone deserves to feel special, no matter where you sit or how much you fly. And with all the places we’re going next, we’ll always put you first, because our love of People is still our most powerful fuel. Some say we do things differently. We say, why would we do things any other way? Without a Heart, it’s just a machine. Southwest Airlines® proudly supports the Queens Chamber of Commerce. CONGRATULATIONS AND BEST WISHES! KEYNOTE SPEAKER GUEST OF HONOR AWARD RECEPIENT KEVIN WOLFE Architect, O’Byrne Residence Douglaston house blends history with contemporary design By Benjamin Fang | [email protected] Even before he began the lat- and there.” est rehabilitation project for the home of Daniel and Mary This time around, Wolfe’s firm O’Byrne, Douglaston-based ar- was tasked with a more compre- chitect Kevin Wolfe was already hensive two-part project, which quite familiar with the house. has won a 2019 Queens Chamber of Commerce Building Award. Twenty years ago, he worked on the same house, which had a dif- The first part, focused on the in- ferent owner. The project back terior, was creating a playroom then was a landscape and resto- out of the attic. The playroom ration job, which Wolfe described now contains a TV setup, a con- as a few “minor tune-ups here vertible billiards and ping pong table, couch beds and even a new cluding the Belasco Theater. He bathroom. also designed the Apollo Theater in Harlem. The project not only included de- sign work, but also filings with the Like many of his projects, Keister city because the third-story space employed the “arts and crafts” in- required a Certificate of Occupan- terior style that was popular in the cy. early 20th century for The Knoll- wood, Wolfe said. On the outside, Wolfe redid the landscape, created a new outdoor When approaching this project, space and driveway, and renovat- Wolfe conducted a lot of research ed the back patio to mesh with on the history of the house. What the house. He completely rebuilt he found was that the site has an the porch, which was demolished “intense social history.” down to the base. For example, he found a story in Wolfe also installed new interior the “Brooklyn Eagle” about a party light fixtures, some of which were hosted at The Knollwood. The host sourced from a company in Bos- who lived there at the time was “fa- ton. The architect said part of the mous for being a ladies man.” He mission was to bring the architec- had been married three times by ture back to an older period, while the time he moved into the home.