NYCHA Housing Murphy

Our Design approach aims to enrich the unique character and address the specific needs of the Murphy residential property. The residents living in this Bronx housing development have created strong bonds of community. The landscape design will give these communities a place to celebrate these bonds and to form new ones, to gather, to interact, to be active and to restore.

The design for all sites within Murphy will secure the perimeters, and open up the sites’ interiors for residents to enjoy their landscapes. New and enhanced amenities will give residents places to be active as well as places that allow them to simply sit, watch others, and enjoy the tranquility of nature. Activating spaces for people helps to generate a safe and supported environment.
Coherent designs that are tailored to people’s needs and their ways of living will cultivate a sense of ownership and care for the space. This helps to builds healthy and meaningful bonds between people and their environment that are sustainable for the long term.

A design language of rounded organic forms softens the spaces within the site and invites a fluid circulation throughout the landscape. Rather than being separated by fences and walls, a variety of flexible and programmed spaces are integrated into the landscape. Amenities include children’s playgrounds, water play, vegetable gardens, adult fitness areas, as well as picnic tables, benches and community gathering spaces.

The landscape design builds upon adjacencies to communal interior spaces, such as a Community Center. A flexible events and gathering space is located adjacent to the Murphy Community Center. The community center is a resource for the building residents that can offer a variety of beneficial programming that tie into the landscape. Our community partner will develop and manage programming here. Compatible uses may include a lending library, after-school tutoring program, senior programming, or a children’s theater.