Project Overview

Combining historic preservation and adaptive reuse,Gabellini Sheppard Associates restored the neoclassical office lobby of theformer AT&T Building in lower Manhattan to house new retail spaces and apublic galleria within the designated landmark. This 45,000 square footproject, commissioned by L&L Holding Company, ensures the stewardship andrevitalization of the monumental building, originally designed by architectWilliam Welles Bosworth. Drawing on Gabellini Sheppard's expertise as ahistoric landmark restoration architect, the studio successfully navigated theNew York City Landmarks Preservation Commission review for this designated interior.195 Broadway joins the firm’s extensive preservation portfolio, which includesiconic restorations at Rockefeller Center, such as the Rainbow Room and 45Rockefeller Plaza.

Site Context & Approach

With three entrances on Fulton Street, Broadway, and DeyStreet, the building had previously existed as an urban nexus animated byretail and commercial activity. With careful research and approval from theLandmarks Preservation Commission, the project team created a masterplan topreserve the building's historic character while revitalizing the interiorspaces.

The Lobby & Public Galleria

At the Dey Street office lobby entrance, a restored four-bayentry threshold supersedes the non-historic two-bay system. Raised floors fromthe 1960s are lowered to match their original height, reestablishing visualharmony between the entrance portal and the facing elevator bank.

The non-historic, partial-height glass and metal walls atthe two interior Dey Street pavilions are replaced with frameless,partial-height glass walls to restore and re-open the original view. A publicgalleria connects Fulton and Dey streets, traversing the lobby along its mostspectacular axis, allowing visitors to experience the magnificent forest ofcolumns without having to cross through the office reception or any retailspace. The galleria also restores public access to a marble relief map of theUnited States commemorating the first transcontinental phone line in 1915, a1928 marble sculptural group by American sculptor Chester Beach, and severalengraved tablets and benches, highlighting the building's remarkable historyand craftsmanship for a new generation.

Retail Integration

The northern and eastern sections of the lobby, fronting onFulton Street and Broadway, respectively, are non-intrusively equipped to houseup to three retail tenants. This retail area is minimally partitioned from theoffice lobby via optical, transparent glass panels that preserve the sweepingcontinuity of the hypostyle hall—defined by massive marble Doric columns and ahigh coffered ceiling with patinated bronze and alabaster chandeliers. The newglass panels are suspended from one-half-inch-diameter cables fixed discreetlyto the floor and ceiling, much as the lobby's original retail partition wallswere attached with only slight visible evidence. This cable suspension systemis flexible and reversible; it can be removed or reconfigured if necessary,leaving a mostly invisible trace. In addition, a new stair opening in each ofthe three retail spaces, plus two new ADA elevator openings, enable access tothe lower-level retail spaces without disrupting the building's historic officelobby.

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