Tamara Sabler

The proposed new location of St Ann’s Warehouse, a venerable theater company in the Brooklyn neighborhood of DUMBO, lies a few blocks away from the converted spice-milling factory at 38 Water Street that was its original home. DUMBO is currently being redeveloped to create more waterfront access and public green spaces, as well as to increase street activity and local businesses. Several new bike paths are proposed in the area and present opportunities for further integration of the elevated transportation structures that give this neighborhood its name.

In order to increase and invite circulation to the new site of St. Ann’s Warehouse, I propose adding a protected bike lane to the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, which would create a direct connection between greater Downtown Brooklyn and DUMBO. The bike ramp and wall of the BQE wrap around the Warehouse and its surrounding plaza, while the western edge of the site becomes a small public park and a new entrance to the F-line York Street station. The subway access structure is blended into the landscape, created by the bike-ramp, through a sloped path that accesses the roof garden, acting as an extension of the public space. Below this ramp are bike racks, providing a sheltered area to store bicycles, which is not present in the area. My proposal is intended to enhance the site through public activities and to engage the public with theatre and music, independent of a theatergoer or a pedestrian passing by.