April 18, 2008
Bell Labs Charrette Update & Images
Posted by preservationnjorg under Endangered!, Greener Heritage | Tags: Bell Labs |
Charrette organizers are compiling sketches, presentation boards, etc. from the charrette wrap up on April 13. The concepts were visionary, illustrating a range of solutions that predominately focused on improved performance of the building and incorporating a sustainable restoration scheme that would bring the building into the 21st century with new systems and building elements while preserving its historic and character-defining features. For example, some proposed that the distinctive mirrored exterior walls could be retrofitted with interior glazing.
Additional natural light could be introduced into the original windowless laboratories by means of new light wells; the flat roof and parking lot areas could easily accommodate photovoltaic cells to produce “green” electricity on site, and air could be better circulated. The groups also invented new programs for the building, from high-tech laboratories, healthcare, educational and cultural, to residential with a consensus being to maintain the 472 acres as publicly accessible land.
Watch here for further postings.
April 30, 2008 at 1:03 pm
Spurred on by the work you are leading to consider reuse for the Bell Labs Holmdel site, my daughter and I started to brainstorm possible reuse ideas. We’d like to see a museum and conference center. Ideally, we’d like to attract an existing museum with a large collection or big aspirations. I know that the Museum of Women’s History is vying for a build on the Mall in Washington DC. I wonder what other collections are looking for space. We’d need a draw museum, but we offer huge display spaces, great parking, easy highway access and spectacular grounds. To that, let’s add a conference center - similar to the space already offered at the Garden State Arts Center - a place for large and small catered affairs using the current cafeteria and possible atrium spaces. Again, we have full scale kitchen structure and wonderful space for a banquet for 1000.
This also made me wonder how many other Bell Labs alum might have a reuse concept or even a connection to put our concepts into action. Maybe a contest is of invited submissions are in order…
May our dreams become a new reality.
May 16, 2008 at 2:58 pm
It is a lovely building…do you have any interior shots?