Union Square Condominium

This massive, 17,000 square foot green roof atop Beth Israel Hospital in Manhattan’s Union Square vicinity, is a welcome addition for tenants who live in the four Zeckendorf residential towers surrounding the site. Considered to be one of the city’s most important projects of the 1980’s condo boom, the building was a pioneer in the revitalization of Union Square Park. When it was time to replace the original membrane in 2011, the condo board decided to keep its cutting edge reputation and protect the waterproofing with a green roof and to take advantage of a significant tax abatement available from the city of New York to help cover the cost of installation. Soil depths range from 2”-21” and allow for a rich planting palette that includes shrubs, herbaceous perennials, trees, and a succulent groundcover mix inoculated with mosses. Along with an incredible 270 cubic yards of growing media, the trees, shrubs and perennials reduce the building’s energy consumption and protect the membrane while increasing property values through beautification. Despite its private location, the real benefit of this green roof is that it functions for the greater good of the city as a whole, mitigating stormwater run-off that negatively affects flooding issues, including in the busy Union Square Metro station below the building.