MLK Plaza brings 167 units of affordable housing to the Bronx

Magnusson Architecture + Planning recently completed work on MLK Plaza, a 13-story, 167-unit affordable residential building in the Bronx. The development includes 25 studios, 57 one-bedroom units, 60 two-bedroom units, and 24 three-bedroom units. 100% of the apartments will be affordable to very low-income renters.

MLK Plaza residents will have access to recreation and community rooms, a rear patio, and a gym on the seventh floor with an adjacent outdoor terrace. The gym and terrace are part of active design interventions to encourage physical health. Their location on the seventh floor is midway between the top and bottom floors to encourage residents to use the stairs. The stairwells also incorporate active design principles such as double height landings and windows for natural light and views.

Exterior MLK Plaza Photo credit: Miguel de Guzman / ImagenSubliminal.

The exterior features dark gray brick as a nod to the neighborhood’s industrial past. Metal panels with a gold hue were also used on the exterior to provide a bright counterpoint to the brick. A fully-glazed double-height corner lobby is framed by diagonal columns. The lobby provides natural daylight to the ground floor during the day and creates street-level illumination at night. One of the lobby’s walls includes a mural of MLK.

The development was designed to achieve LEED Platinum.

MLK Plaza terrace Photo credit: Miguel de Guzman / ImagenSubliminal.

MLK Plaza unit interior Photo credit: Miguel de Guzman / ImagenSubliminal.

MLK Plaza exterior lobby Photo credit: Miguel de Guzman / ImagenSubliminal.

MLK Plaza fitness center Photo credit: Miguel de Guzman / ImagenSubliminal.

MLK Plaza terrace Photo credit: Miguel de Guzman / ImagenSubliminal.

MLK mural Photo credit: Miguel de Guzman / ImagenSubliminal.

One of the hardest decisions multifamily developers and their design teams have to make is what mix of amenities they’re going to put into each project. A lot of squiggly factors go into that decision: the type of community, the geographic market, local recreation preferences, climate/weather conditions, physical parameters, and of course the budget. The permutations are mind-boggling.

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