First NYTEL switch building adapted for multiple tenancy.

Peninsula Counseling Center (PCC), a Woodmere, NY United Way Chapter, recently needed space to expand its community services and approached their neighbor, New York Telephone, at 108 Franklin Place. NYTEL installed computerized switching equipment and became the landlord of 12,000 square feet of space previously occupied by their telephone operators.

A deal was about to happen, but, first NYTEL and PCC had to resolve complex security & technical concerns.

When executive director Herbert Ruben of PCC contacted Hal Dorfman Architects, their office jumped into action, scheduling a meeting with the asset manager responsible for NYTEL's facility to integrate their complex security and environmental conditions with the requirements of the new tenant, As the architectural project manager responsible for the conversion of the old Taft Hotel in NYC, they are not strangers to integrating clients with very different programs into one building sharing common elements.

Peninsula Counseling Center's new out-patient facility design requirements had to serve six different counseling groups within its own space. NYTEL demanded total security both during construction and after tenant occupancy. Doffman designed the PCC space after needling in a new elevator and stair core between NYTEL's $30 million switch and its chemical battery room. They also specified a layer of sheet metal to be installed within the demising partition for security on low cost. This satisfied both the landlord and tenant's post occupancy needs.

Construction phase concerns were handled at a Method of Procedure meeting. The general contractor, Waco Management of Lynbrook, NY, devised a phased construction schedule which allowed access to the tenants space while maintaining security to the telephone switch.

After solving these complex problems, functional issues such as shared fire egress stairs, computer controlled heating and cooling systems and a common parking area fell into place. Hal Dorfman Architects, in addition to designing the interior layout and structural changes, created a new separate entrance which gave Peninsula Counseling Center its own street identity. PCC will be providing outpatient programs to residents of Nassau County. The expected occupancy is May of this year.