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Staten Island bathroom wins major architectural award
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Ryan Kailath
Published Jan 13, 2026
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Ty Cole
By
Ryan Kailath
Published Jan 13, 2026
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The American Institute of Architects New York unveiled its 2026 design awards on Monday night, honoring projects of “outstanding architectural design” either in New York or created by New York-based firms.
Some of this year’s winners are predictably high profile: Lincoln Center’s revamped David Geffen Hall, home to the New York Philharmonic, and the long-anticipated Studio Museum building in Harlem were recognized for their transformative design. Several of this year’s awardees signal a broader shift in the profession from “starchitecture” toward socially grounded design.
But the list also celebrates small-scale design, like a humble public bathroom on Staten Island.
The AIANY awards have expanded their scope to recognize not just visual flair but also thoughtful solutions to everyday urban challenges, like peeing in a comfortable and well-designed space.
Here are a few of the NYC standouts from this year.
Lopez Playground Public Restroom, Staten Island
A squat rectangle located across from a Home Depot parking lot in an unassuming corner of Staten Island's North Shore proves that good design doesn't require a massive budget. The tiny restroom looks like it could have been made from a miniature shipping container — which is fitting, considering it’s a modular design developed to enable easy citywide delivery and installation. Don’t be surprised if you see this bathroom dropped into your own neighborhood, with custom brick-cladding to match the local character.
“Exodus and Dance” at Kingsborough Houses, Brooklyn
New York City Housing Authority
Harlem Renaissance sculptor Richmond Barthé showed his work at Rockefeller Center and the Chicago World’s Fair long before the art world had real integration. His first public commission, via the Works Progress Administration, was an 80-foot cast stone frieze designed for the Harlem River Houses, one of the city’s early segregated public housing developments. But the striking relief, which shows Black figures in transit and in motion, was installed at the Kingsborough Houses in Brooklyn, where decades of wear and tear nearly destroyed it. This 18-month restoration required dismantling the entire piece.
The Eliza and NYPL Inwood Branch, Manhattan
Alexander Severin
The Eliza is a new apartment building that towers over its surroundings in Inwood, a block from the Dyckman Street A train station. While it might look like a luxury development, the 100% affordable housing project has 174 units, with a new branch of the New York Public Library on the bottom two floors. There is also a universal pre-K facility on site, operated by the city’s Department of Education.
Frame 122, Brooklyn
Christopher Sturman
Longtime Clinton Hill residents will remember the vaguely fortress-like parking garage on Waverly Place, just south of the BQE. That garage is now a sustainable design success story, an ultra-low-energy “passive house” apartment building called Frame 122 that uses solar power and timber frame construction. And the car garage has been replaced with a bike garage at street level.
Disney NYC headquarters, Manhattan
Dave Burk / Courtesy of SOM Disney
Disney’s newly completed NYC headquarters occupies a full city block in Hudson Square. AIANY gave a “merit award” to the design for the way its setbacks help ease the massive tower into the fabric of the neighborhood. It’s one of the city’s first all-electric commercial buildings, and the jury noted its balance of transparency and solidity, with floor-to-ceiling glass offering sweeping views, while stone accents and green terraces provide warmth and texture.
Davis Center at the Harlem Meer, Manhattan
Richard Barnes
The new Davis Center at the Northeast corner of Central Park replaces the old Lasker Rink and Pool, and it’s open to the public year-round: as a pool in the summer, skating rink in the winter and green space in between. The low building, clad in natural materials, integrates cleanly into the landscape; you might not realize you’re standing on a building’s green roof when you approach from the south. The AIANY award recognized the new center for restoring civic value to this less touristy corner of the park.
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staten island
Ryan Kailath
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