79th Street Boat Basin Dockhouse

The new 79th Street Boat Basin dockhouse celebrates New York City’s maritime legacy on the Upper West Side.

Located on the Hudson River beside Manhattan’s Riverside Park, this new public structure replaces an existing dockhouse, which was extensively damaged by Superstorm Sandy, with a new 3,800 SF building that meets the flood zone code and necessary accessibility requirements. The building provides support facilities for the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation’s operation of the long-standing marina.

Diagonal structural columns along the façade support the building’s roof and create a triangular pattern inspired by the city’s maritime vernacular, referencing similar forms in the historic 69th Street Transfer Bridge, the trusses of the George Washington Bridge, and a boat’s mast, rigging, and sails. With durable exterior materials of low-luster stainless steel, aluminum grilles, and bird-friendly glass, the dynamic façade takes on the qualities and color of the surrounding water and sky.

A “floating” beacon, the new one-story dockhouse announces its civic identity at 360 degrees while maintaining views to the water from the Riverside Park promenade and the historic 79th Street Rotunda above.

The project is an integral part of the fifteen-acre renewal and expansion of the Upper West Side’s Boat Basin. The most heavily subscribed public marina in New York City, where there is currently a 1,000-person, fifteen-year boater waiting list, the marina has served thousands annually since 1937.

Led by Moffatt & Nichol Engineering, the team includes PS&S as architect of record.