The Brooklyn Navy Yard: a Mission-Oriented Model of Industrial Heritage Reuse
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University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Theses (Historic Preservation) Graduate Program in Historic Preservation 2020 The Brooklyn Navy Yard: A Mission-Oriented Model of Industrial Heritage Reuse Kimberly La Porte Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses Part of the Historic Preservation and Conservation Commons La Porte, Kimberly, "The Brooklyn Navy Yard: A Mission-Oriented Model of Industrial Heritage Reuse" (2020). Theses (Historic Preservation). 691. https://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses/691 This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses/691 For more information, please contact [email protected]. The Brooklyn Navy Yard: A Mission-Oriented Model of Industrial Heritage Reuse Abstract This thesis examines how the mission-oriented corporation, an emerging type of public-private partnership, delivers historic preservation outcomes in coordination with other urban management goals. It presents a study of four redeveloped sites within the Brooklyn Navy Yard in New York: Building 92, the Naval Cemetery Landscape, the Building 128 Complex (also called the “Green Manufacturing Center”), and Admirals Row Plaza. The redevelopment strategies implemented at the Brooklyn Navy Yard form a model for exploring the synergies between the conservation of heritage assets and broad urban planning, management, and regeneration policies. Though its projects have achieved varying degrees of success, the Brooklyn Navy Yard has found a relative equilibrium between retaining its integrity as a 300+ acre historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places and its organizational commitment to job creation, industrial growth, and community engagement. Keywords adaptive reuse, mission-oriented corporation, urban regeneration, economic development, BNYDC Disciplines Historic Preservation and Conservation This thesis or dissertation is available at ScholarlyCommons: https://repository.upenn.edu/hp_theses/691 THE BROOKLYN NAVY YARD: A MISSION-ORIENTED MODEL OF INDUSTRIAL HERITAGE REUSE Kimberly Rose La Porte A THESIS in Historic Preservation Presented to the Faculties of the University of Pennsylvania in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements of the Degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE IN HISTORIC PRESERVATION, 2020 ______________________ Advisor Randall F. Mason Associate Professor, University of Pennsylvania ______________________ Program Chair Frank G. Matero Associate Professor, University of Pennsylvania TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................................... iii List of Maps And Figures ............................................................................................................ iv 1. INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................... 1 Background ................................................................................................................................. 5 Scope of Study ............................................................................................................................ 9 Methodology .............................................................................................................................. 13 2. LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................................................ 16 “Wicked” Problem Theory and the Historic City ........................................................................ 18 The Historic Urban Landscape Approach ................................................................................. 22 Industrial Heritage Reuse .......................................................................................................... 27 3. IN FOCUS: PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS, PRESERVATION OUTCOMES ............... 31 An Overview of Public-Private Partnerships ............................................................................. 33 Typologies of Public-Private Partnerships ................................................................................ 36 Public-Private Partnerships for Historic Preservation ............................................................... 37 An Emerging Institutional Type: Mission-Oriented Corporations .............................................. 41 Stadsherstel Amsterdam ...................................................................................................... 44 Greenpoint Manufacturing and Design Center ..................................................................... 46 4. CASE STUDY: THE BROOKLYN NAVY YARD ...................................................................... 48 Site Description ......................................................................................................................... 48 History ....................................................................................................................................... 50 1964-1968: From Base Closure to Urban Renewal .............................................................. 50 1969: Finalizing The Sale to the City of New York ............................................................... 51 1969 to 1981: Commerce Labor Industry Corporation of Kings (CLICK) ............................. 53 1981 to Present: Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation (BNYDC) ......................... 54 Projects ..................................................................................................................................... 58 Building 92 ............................................................................................................................ 60 Building 128 Complex: The Green Manufacturing Center .................................................... 63 Naval Cemetery Landscape ................................................................................................. 69 Admirals Row & 399 Sands .................................................................................................. 74 Evaluation ................................................................................................................................. 79 Areas for Further Research ....................................................................................................... 86 5. CONCLUSION .......................................................................................................................... 87 Bibliography ................................................................................................................................ 93 Index ............................................................................................................................................. 96 ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am grateful for the support and guidance of my advisor, faculty, family, and friends throughout the process of producing this thesis. iii LIST OF MAPS AND FIGURES Map 1.1. Red frame highlights location of the Brooklyn Navy Yard within the City of New York. Base map from Google Earth, 2020. Map 1.2. Red frame highlights the Brooklyn Navy Yard located along the East River. Base map from Google Earth, 2020. Map 1.3. The perimeter of the Brooklyn Navy Yard Historic District is designated in red. The shapes within the bounds of the district are contribution historic resources. The areas overlaid with green are redevelopment sites reviewed in this thesis. Base map from Google Earth, 2020. Map 4.1. The Brooklyn Navy Yard Historic District is outlined in red. The projects reviewed in this thesis are outlined in green. The white overlay indicates the area transferred to the City of New York immediately following the closure of the Yard. Base map from Google Earth, 2020. Map 4.2. This map builds upon the preceding. The purple overlay highlights the Naval Hospital campus acquired by the City of New York in 2008. Base map from Google Earth, 2020. Map 4.3. This map builds upon the preceding. The blue overlay highlights Admirals Row Plaza & 399 Sands acquired by the City of New York in 2011. Base map from Google Earth, 2020. Map 4.4. Building 92, located along Flushing Avenue, is outlined in green. Base map from Google Earth, 2020. Map 4.5. The Building 128 Complex, located in the south central core of the Brooklyn Navy Yard, is outlined in green. Base map from Google Earth, 2020. Map 4.6. The Naval Cemetery Landscape, in the southeast corner of the Brooklyn Navy Yard, is outlined in green. Base map from Google Earth, 2020. Figure 4.1. Building 92 in 2011. Figure 4.2. Building 128 Complex: The Green Manufacturing Center in 2016. Figure 4.3. The Naval Cemetery Landscape in 2018. Figure 4.4. Admirals Row Plaza in 2019. iv 1. INTRODUCTION The Brooklyn Navy Yard (Maps 1.1 and 1.2) was operated as the New York Naval Shipyard by the Department of Defense from 1801 until its formal closure in 1966. In 1969, after several long years of complicated negotiations, its transfer to the City of New York was finalized.1 The naval shipbuilding facility had served as an economic anchor for both local residents and the city at-large; during the years of World War II, for example, it is estimated that approximately 70,000 people were employed there. In preparation for the closure of the Yard, federal and local agencies alike worked under pressure to plan a smooth transition to municipal ownership that would buffer against detrimental impact on neighboring communities, as predicted