Parsons Students Make a Splash
Design students are accustomed to long hours in classrooms and studios, refining their craft. But for ten students of the Design Workshop, Parsons’ acclaimed design/build program, this summer is an exercise in hands-on construction.
A team of graduate architecture students at Parsons is hard at work on Splash House, an enhancement of the Highbridge Pool and Recreation Center in New York City’s Washington Heights neighborhood. One of 11 city pools built in 1936 through President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration and commissioned by Robert Moses, the new pool pavilion will allow the center to operate recreation programs open year-round while welcoming a large number of pool-goers.
The project represents the first of a five-year initiative between NYC Parks & Recreation and the Parsons Design Workshop to identify and implement improvements in public spaces across the city. Construction on Splash House will wrap up at the end of August, and the new pavilion will debut for swim season 2012.
For more information and to follow the team’s progress, visit the Splash House website.