Brooklyn Steel – Music Venue Conversion
From the foundation to the production grid to the outside facade, McLaren Engineering Group was part of the music venue conversion of Brooklyn Steel. To minimize escaping sound that could disrupt the neighborhood, McLaren engineered a custom green roof for this adaptive reuse project. The team also designed a new moving stage that allows the space to adapt to different sized crowds.
McLaren provided structural and geotechnical engineering services for the conversion of this industrial site into a 1,800-person music venue at 319 Frost Street in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The renovation increased the load of the foundation elements more than the 5%, so a geotechnical report was required. To save cost, McLaren limited the geotechnical investigation to the impacted 8,000 square feet.
Several unique features were engineered for this dynamic venue, including:
New Green Roof and Acoustic Treatment
Minimizing the sound emitted outside the venue was a concern. The existing masonry walls proved to be great at absorbing sound, but the existing thin metal deck roof was a weak point. Multiple concepts were considered, and ultimately team decided to construct a new green roof over the existing roof. The new 10,000 square feet roof acts as an “acoustic lid” above the venue portion of the building, as the vegetation mass on the green roof dampens the sound. New York City Building Code has restrictions on raising the height of existing buildings but has allowances when adding a green roof.
