NYCHA Stephen Wise Towers

Stephen Wise Towers is a public housing community originally built in 1965 for the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA). Located in Manhattan’s Upper West Side, the development consists of two apartment buildings that offer a mixture of comfort and style. Dirtworks recently overhauled the exterior spaces at the 2.7-acre complex when funding was provided to improve living conditions and quality of life for residents. Like many public housing sites, the Towers’ outdoor settings play a key role for residents, functioning as an outdoor living room, recreation zone, and a place to meet, play, socialize and enjoy nature. For the updates, the landscape architect created a design language that carries through the renovated spaces. This encompassed designing a custom owl logo that was incorporated into several elements, including our benches and litter receptacles. It also entailed bringing the hexagon perforation pattern of our Balance Bench into the Ratio Benches used on the project—a unique touch that echoes the hexagonal shapes in the playground equipment.