Thoughtful Architecture
News and insight from the architects and designers at Think!
February 2026
St John’s Episcopal Hospital
Think! Architecture and Design has recently completed a 47,000 sq ft new ambulatory care facility for St John’s Episcopal Hospital in Far Rockaway, Queens. Read more
Lisette Wong - Crain’s Sustainability Leader
Lisette Wong, Associate Principal at Think! has been recognized by Crain’s as a New York Business Notable Leader in Sustainability
Financial close for 570 Eldert Lane
The finance closing has been achieved on a new 196,000 sf, 213 unit affordable housing development at 570 Eldert Avenue in Cypress Hills, Brooklyn.. Read more
Art in Affordable Housing
Bridge Rockaway, the Think! designed, newly opened affordable housing development in Brownsville, Brooklyn is the unlikely site of a permanent art exhibit. Read more
St John’s Episcopal Hospital Ambulatory Care Center opens in Queens
Think! Architecture and Design has recently completed a 47,000 sq ft new ambulatory care facility for St John’s Episcopal Hospital in Far Rockaway, Queens.
Designed to reimagine how outpatient and behavioral health services are delivered, this new facility relocates out-patient care facilities from the main hospital building and consolidates previously dispersed programs into a single, purpose-built home. Rising four stories over a cellar, the building brings together radiation oncology, primary care, infusion treatment, and behavioral health services in an integrated yet carefully zoned environment.
The facility includes dedicated suites for oncology and primary care with 12 exam rooms, a 2,500 sq ft infusion clinic designed to support patient comfort and efficiency, and a substantial 12,000 sq ft behavioral health component with group counseling rooms and a flexible community outreach space. Thoughtful planning ensures both dignity and accessibility, including a separate but equal entrance and elevator for behavioral health patients, while an internal communicating stair enhances operational flexibility between the behavioral program floors. The result is a highly functional, patient-centered facility that supports clinical care while strengthening connections to the surrounding community.
Art installation opens at Bridge Rockaway
Bridge Rockaway, the Think! designed, newly opened affordable housing development in Brownsville, Brooklyn is the unlikely site of a permanent art exhibit.
Showcasing the work of long-time Brooklyn artist Harvey Wilson, the exhibition features approximately 100 artworks in acrylic and other media throughout the public spaces of the building, with the focus being the main lobby used by all residents. The collection is curated by Jack Esterson, longtime friend of the artist and principal at Think!
Harvey Wilson moved to Brooklyn to attend Pratt Institute in the late 1960s, since then he has become a local legend, known as the ‘Mayor of Clinton Hill’. His vivid paintings and drawings enliven hundreds of homes and institutions in New York City and beyond.
Bridge Rockaway is an award-winning development that co-locates 174 units of affordable and supportive housing with 39,000 sq ft of light manufacturing facilities on the ground floor. The residences include 87 units designated for formerly homeless seniors, veterans, and adults with serious mental illness. The light manufacturing units provide working space to multiple tenants, delivering new economic opportunities and high paying jobs to the neighborhood’s businesses and residents. The development has created a new model for New York City, where this mix of uses has never been achieved before.
Setting precedent appears to be a theme here, as the inclusion of original artwork in affordable housing developments is not something that is regularly accomplished. Wilson’s abstract, colorful and biomorphic work is bringing art into the spaces and lives of people who don’t generally have access to it, hopefully adding to the sense of pride they have in where they now live.
The idea for the exhibit was Jack’s. Having collected Wilson’s work for many years and taking on the management of his oeuvre after Wilson moved into a nursing home, Jack approached The Bridge, the organization that owns and manages Bridge Rockaway, about what he saw as an opportunity to further enhance the living environment for residents.
Lisette Wong recognized as sustainability leader
Lisette Wong, Associate Principal at Think! has been recognized by Crain’s as a New York Business Notable Leader in Sustainability. This recognition celebrates Lisette’s leadership in advancing sustainable practices, driving clean energy innovation and investments to combat climate change and improve the health, resiliency, and prosperity of our city for New Yorkers.
Lisette’s work at Think! focuses on climate action through energy-efficient building technologies and the design of affordable and supportive housing. She is a Phius Certified Passive House Consultant and LEED AP BD+C professional.
Her work emphasizes the creation of urban ecologies that integrate the built and natural environments, fostering social gathering spaces and verdant, interactive landscapes that encourage art and culture and nurture community well-being for the benefit of all in society.
Extending these values into a more pastoral context, Lisette is the co-founder of Merge Stone Ridge, an alternative art space in upstate New York housed within a compound of restored historic barns.
Congratulations to Lisette on this well-deserved recognition!
Think! becomes NYSERDA Early Design Support Partner
The team at Think! is thrilled to have been recognized as an approved partner in New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA)’s Early Design Support program. The initiative aims to drive industry innovation, climate-forward thinking and clean, resilient, carbon neutral multi-family buildings, by providing early stage funding to progress the sustainable elements of a project’s design and construction.
We are excited about the opportunities the support and funding from NYSERDA will provide for our upcoming projects, enabling us to robustly promote carbon-neutral solutions to our clients and partners. We look forward to working with like-minded stakeholders and benefitting future projects from this generous incentive. We would love to hear from you about projects we can work on together that might benefit from this program.
Financial close achieved for 570 Eldert Lane, Brooklyn
Financial close has been achieved on a new 196,000 sq ft affordable housing development at 570 Eldert Avenue in Cypress Hills, Brooklyn. Designed by Think! for a joint venture of Slate Property Group, Thorobird Companies LLC and Bangladeshi American Community Development & Youth Services (BACDYS), the development is transforming a long-underutilized parking lot adjacent to the Grant Avenue subway station into 213 apartments and 10,000 sq ft of community space.
Of the 213 units, 66 apartments will be set aside for formerly homeless residents, with the remaining homes providing low-income families earning between 40% and 80% of Area Median Income (AMI). The development will have studios, one, two, three and four-bedroom apartments. Beyond housing, the project will function as a neighborhood hub. The ground floor community space will be anchored by BACDYS for neighborhood programming. It will also feature an indoor fitness room, a landscaped rooftop and a rear courtyard.
Situated adjacent to Grant Avenue Subway Station, the development was conceived as five interconnected masses, joined together with cores breaking out at angles, revealing double-height lounge spaces that interrupt the corridors and draw in natural light.
The roof of each mass has a purpose, with two roofs dedicated to mechanical and PV respectively, whilst the remaining three cascade from level 8 to 6, designed to be interlinked, occupiable spaces for residents to enjoy.
Subway commuters can walk through the ground level landscape, passing under the building and around two integrated community facilities. A raised residential ground floor delineates public and private space, with an additional rear garden for residents only.
The building was originally designed to be modular, however due to a variety of factors the building was reverted to traditional concrete construction, with some added complexity.
Due to the network of subway tunnels just a few feet below grade, the foundation had to be designed to isolate the building from the vibrations of passing trains through a system of acoustical pads. To reduce the weight imposed on the tunnel, the structural shell is formed of post-tensioned concrete.
To retain the essence of the original modular design, the facade is unitized, and being fabricated in Europe.
Like with so many of our affordable projects, we have designed the building with user experience at its core. We hope to lift the living standards of the building residents with thoughtful and conscientious design.
