The Hegeman

Residences
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Brooklyn, NY
The Hegeman - exterior
The supportive residence reflects the rhythm and scale of the low-scaled residential streets of Brownsville, Brooklyn. Photography by Rob Cleary.
The Hegenam - exterior detail
Handset brick and a glass façade at the elevator vestibules highlight the daylit corridors within. Photography by Rob Cleary.
The Hegeman - exterior
The scale and rhythm of the streetwall reinforces the integrity of streetscape. Photography by Rob Cleary.
The Hegeman - Lobby
The entry sequence and lobby are designed to enhance the sense of safety and connection with the community. Photography by Rob Cleary.
The Hegeman - apartment interior
Each supportive residential unit has ample daylight and is designed with highly efficient fixtures. Photography by Rob Cleary.
The Hegeman - green roof
The green roof helps to reduce stormwater runoff, cleans the air, and reduces the local urban heat island effect. Photography by Rob Cleary.
Residences
Brooklyn, NY
The Hegeman - exterior
The supportive residence reflects the rhythm and scale of the low-scaled residential streets of Brownsville, Brooklyn. Photography by Rob Cleary.
The Hegeman - exterior detail
Handset brick and the glass façade at the elevator vestibules highlight the daylit corridors within. Photography by Rob Cleary.
The Hegeman - exterior
The scale and rhythm of the streetwall reinforces the integrity of streetscape. Photography by Rob Cleary.
The Hegeman
The entry sequence and lobby are designed to enhance the sense of safety and connection with the community. Photography by Rob Cleary.
The Hegeman
Each supportive residential unit has ample daylight and is designed with highly efficient fixtures. Photography by Rob Cleary.
The Hegeman - green roof
The green roof helps to reduce stormwater runoff, cleans the air, and reduces the local urban heat island effect. Photography by Rob Cleary.
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The Hegeman is a residential community in Brownsville, Brooklyn providing supportive housing and on-site services for low-income and formerly homeless individuals. One of the first projects developed under Breaking Ground’s (formerly Common Ground Community’s) Green Campaign, the LEED Silver certified development emphasizes good health and indoor air quality, restorative and biophilic design, and best practices to lower tenant’s energy costs.

A supportive housing complex incorporating roof gardens, urban farming, and social services as a model to end homelessness.
The Hegeman
The Hegeman massing is split into two parts, connected by the daylit elevator core, to create a building that meets the scale of the Brownsville neighborhood. Photography by Rob Cleary.

Addressing the local architectural context as well as its natural environment, the six story building respects the surrounding neighborhood with its restrained planning, height, and massing. By encouraging restorative connections to nature, the building provides a comfortable, high quality living environment. Views to green space and natural daylight are prioritized, even in below-grade office spaces, and an inner courtyard provides protected green space with room for urban agriculture. Overhead, 3,400 square feet of greenery on the roof cools the building and slows stormwater run-off from the site. The building utilizes an energy efficient, super-insulated envelope, rooftop solar panels for on-site power generation, ultra-high efficiency condensing boilers, and hydronic heating. Individual units are finished with durable, non-toxic materials and Energy Star rated appliances.

The Hegeman is a masonry bearing wall and concrete plank structure using brick masonry as a noble unitized façade material. Resourceful techniques add depth and articulation to the brick face, encouraging light and shadows to play over its surface. This thoughtful yet economical masonry detailing yields a minimal, elegant façade of a quality uncommon in affordable housing.