Brooklyn's Progress Express
July 2009

In Conversation with…
Richard Meier, FAIA
Managing Partner, Richard Meier & Partners Architects, LLP

Progress Express: Why did you decide to take part in what became On Prospect Park?
Richard Meier: Sheldon Gordon, a friend of mine, asked if I would be interested in being the Architect for this project.  As soon as I saw the location I knew it was an extraordinary opportunity. The site is adjacent to Prospect Park, with the Brooklyn Library, the Brooklyn Museum and the Brooklyn Botanical garden all within immediate reach.  Where else would you want to be in Brooklyn?

PE: What was the process of designing it like?
RM: The process of the design was very straightforward given the richness of the context.   The challenges were the nature of the 3-sided site and the zoning regulations which require setbacks in places where one would rather not have them.  The building in some ways is an exercise in what you can do under archaic New York City zoning laws.

PE: As Brooklyn has experienced a cultural and economic renaissance, does your first project there hold any special significance?
RM: I love to work in New York City.  Prospect Heights is very much a New York City neighborhood, which is to say it’s one of a kind in a city full of different neighborhoods. You’re not going to find anything like this area of Brooklyn in any of the five boroughs.  The idea of contributing somehow to the identity of Prospect Heights and connecting all the marvelous places on Eastern Parkway with the residential portions and the promenade on Vanderbilt Avenue is significant to me.

PE: As you have designed many types of projects in New York City, how does your recognizable style fit into the physical and historical landscape here?
RM: The style acknowledges the scale of the surrounding buildings and the shift of that scale as it relates to Eastern Parkway, much as it does with the neighborhood around Perry and Charles Streets and the West Side Highway and Hudson River in Manhattan.  I believe that the style is crafted from the clear recognition of what is there and the vision of what can be there.

PE: What kind of impact does the neighborhood have in your residential projects?
RM: I think the more critical question is what impact my residential projects have on the neighborhood.  In most cases the neighborhood was there first.  That’s where we start.

PE: What types of projects have been some of your most rewarding to design?
RM: I have been fortunate to work on many different types of projects and I think any architect would agree that it is always rewarding when one sees a design built.

PE: What can thoughtful architecture accomplish?
RM: Thoughtful architecture has the ability to enhance one’s appreciation of space, light, the environment and one’s living and working conditions.  Good architecture substantiates the spaces that we exist in and move through.

PE: Do you think more value is placed on high design today than in years past?
RM: I do.  High design is no longer a lofty concept; there is an awareness on a broad scale that wasn’t there until recently.

PE: Do you anticipate that the structures you build will change over time as people and developers come and go?
RM: I’ve been able to return to most of my buildings over time and have been gratified to see that in almost all cases they seem to be better and better.

PE: What has become most important to you when designing?
RM: My primary concerns are the building’s relationship to its context, its contribution to the public realm, and how the spaces one is creating heighten an awareness of a particularly important place.