awards

Achievements in Downtown Economic Development Recognized

Achievements in Downtown Economic Development Recognized 1644 925 DMR Architects

Downtown New Jersey announced the winners of their Excellence Awards, which recognizes projects, programs and individuals for their impact on downtown economic development. This year, two friends and clients of DMR will be among the honorees, including:

Mayor John P. Labrosse, Jr., City of Hackensack

Individual of Excellence – Public Official

Since 2011, the City of Hackensack has undergone a tremendous renaissance, illustrated by more than $1 billion in private investment, 4,000 new residential units, with another 2,000 on the boards, and many sophisticated infrastructure, outdoor space, zoning, funding, and connectivity efforts. This level of success would not have been possible without the clear vision and dedication of Hackensack Mayor John Labrosse. During his nearly ten-year tenure as mayor, John Labrosse has demonstrated a tremendous commitment to the redevelopment of downtown Hackensack. Elected to the Hackensack city council in 2009 and becoming mayor in 2013 when the city’s redevelopment efforts were in its infancy, Mayor Labrosse has remained the City’s elected leader through its most significant stages of redevelopment.

“The remarkable redevelopment success in Hackensack would simply not have been possible without the clear vision and commitment of the city’s municipal team, led by Mayor John Labrosse,” said Francis Reiner, PP, LLA. “All you have to do is look around Main Street: the rising buildings, attractive streets, art, culture and overall vitality are all due to his unparalleled dedication.”

Borough of Dunellen Pop-Up Park

Honorable Mention for Excellence in Placemaking

In the summer of 2021, the Borough of Dunellen implemented the first of several community revitalization and placemaking efforts of the mile-square borough – a pop-up park located along the main commercial corridor of North Avenue. Reflecting the importance of public space and placemaking initiatives, the low-cost, high-impact project brought to life an under-utilized parking lot in the heart of the downtown. Located near businesses, the train station, and Borough Hall, the temporary place provided space for residents and visitors to sit, relax, engage with their community and take part in special programming, such as yoga classes, musical performances, Coffee with a Cop, and programming in support of the arts, the library and local businesses. Through community support and corporate sponsors, the Dunellen Pop-Up Park engaged hundreds of residents and visitors and more than 15 local businesses and organizations.

“Through the pop-up park, hundreds of residents and visitors who may not have otherwise spent time downtown last summer were able to connect with neighbors, businesses, and organizations; and most importantly, experience the great downtown atmosphere of Dunellen. The project was made that much more special because of the heart of Dunellen, our community of volunteers, who brought this project to life,” said Mayor Jason Cilento.

For more information on the other award winners or the May 24 award ceremony, please visit the Downtown New Jersey website.

Lloyd A. Rosenberg Honored with NJBIZ ICON Award

Lloyd A. Rosenberg Honored with NJBIZ ICON Award 789 444 DMR Architects

We are excited to share that our President & CEO, Lloyd Rosenberg, was among the honorees this week at the 2019 ICON Awards presented by NJBiz.

Lloyd is the driving force behind the phenomenal growth and success of DMR Architects, a firm with New Jersey roots, strong relationships with the business community and a passion for advancing the facilities and communities where we live. Lloyd founded the firm in 1991, and continues to lead the firm today as President & CEO.

When Lloyd founded DMR Architects, it was a three-person operation with no office, no staff and no clients. Originally committed to designing exclusively educational facilities, over the years, Lloyd steadily added expert talent and responsibly diversified the firm’s capabilities, resulting in a firm today that employs a staff of 40, consistently ranks among the top architectural firms in the state, provides a diverse range of services and completes an average of 100 projects a year across all market sectors. For its entire history, DMR has called northern New Jersey home, with all employees working from the office’s sole northern New Jersey location and the majority of the firm’s projects being located within the state.

Lloyd was a leading architect who enjoyed a more than 25-year, award-winning career with plenty of professional highlights prior to the founding of DMR. The physical environment of his professional work ranged from projects close to home to around the globe.

Despite a storied career prior to the firm’s founding, Lloyd’s greatest career accomplishments have come during the last 28 years, where he has grown DMR Architects into the team it is today, a thriving professional service firm that employs a uniquely qualified staff; architecturally serves all market sectors; and has also positioned itself as a leader in pioneering redevelopment planning and sophisticated sustainable design services. As part of a strategic and responsible diversification program, today the DMR team also includes professionals with backgrounds in economic development and community outreach, municipal government, real estate, project finance, engineering, and land use, as well as in-house general counsel, positioning the firm as a team that provides unparalleled services to its clients.

Lloyd has played a role in overseeing thousands of design and construction projects while leading DMR, a volume of work that represents hundreds of millions of dollars in construction. Among these projects are many that have had a great impact on the landscape of New Jersey, including the State’s first nature museum; the first school for the blind and the first LEED certified public school; Bergen County’s first brewery; the rail station that first brought train service to the Meadowlands; and the new Frank J. Gargiulo Campus, the $150 million vocational/technical high school in Hudson County, one of the most technologically-advanced schools in the country. The thousands of other projects completed under Lloyd’s direction include sophisticated healthcare facilities, elementary schools, luxury lofts, downtown master plans, police stations, parks, modern offices, academic facilities, sports complexes, renovations to an elementary school forced to close following Superstorm Sandy and construction oversight of the much-anticipated American Dream project.

Lloyd is involved and hands-on, with an everyday presence and involvement in the functions of the firm. He is a supportive leader dedicated to the professional growth of employees, empowering them to take on new responsibilities, expand their capabilities and immerse themselves in the business community, without fear of failure.

DMR Honored with CIANJ Environmental Leadership Medal

DMR Honored with CIANJ Environmental Leadership Medal 789 444 DMR Architects

On April 26 DMR was among those to receive a 2019 Environmental Leadership Medal from the Commerce and Industry Association of New Jersey (CIANJ) at its celebration of environmental leadership in the business community. The inaugural awards program celebrated environmentally-friendly companies that have demonstrated leadership in sustainability. DMR was honored in the category of green leadership, which recognized the firm for having a commitment to sustainability at the management level.

DMR has been at the forefront of sustainability and sustainable design in New Jersey for more than 15 years. The firm was one of the earliest to embrace LEED certification, with the first of its professionals receiving certification in 2003. This commitment led to the creation of a Director of Sustainable Design position, one that is still fulfilled by the same person, a Partner of the firm, today. The firm also designed Carlstadt Elementary School, the first LEED Silver public school in New Jersey and the first LEED certified building in Bergen County, a catalyst to a portfolio of LEED certified buildings that now includes five Gold, Silver and Certified level projects, with several more on the boards to receive certification in 2019.

Pictured above, from left to right, are Francis Reiner, CIANJ President Anthony Russo, and Lloyd Rosenberg.

Gargiulo Campus Honored with LEED Project of the Year Award

Gargiulo Campus Honored with LEED Project of the Year Award 789 444 DMR Architects

The Frank J. Gargiulo Campus, the new, 350,000 square foot high school that opened its doors in September 2018, has won the LEED Project of the Year: Schools Award from the United States Green Building Council New Jersey Chapter (USGBC NJ).

The vocational-technical high school is an icon for sustainability, equipped with wind turbines, geothermal heating, 27,000 square feet of solar panels and 20,000 square feet of green roofs. Beyond these unrivaled sustainable features, in line with the project-based learning curriculum of the school, a sustainability curriculum was developed surrounding the school’s features. In addition, educational signage throughout the facility, dedicated ecology events throughout the year, a strict commitment to recycling and a green cleaning contract all contribute to the development of life-long sustainable champions within the four walls of the facility. The project is anticipated to receive LEED Gold certification this year.

The project was an intense collaborative effort and included a team of numerous professional services and construction firms, with DMR serving as the architect of record and LEED specialist. The school, part of the Hudson County Schools of Technology system, is home to High Tech High School, KAS Prep and Hudson Technical.

All LEED Project of the Year award winners will be honored at an event on May 22 at the Hyatt Regency in New Brunswick.

Hackensack PAC Historic Preservation Award

Hackensack PAC Honored with Historic Preservation Award

Hackensack PAC Honored with Historic Preservation Award 789 444 DMR Architects

On May 10 the DMR Architects-designed Hackensack Performing Arts Center received the 2018 Bergen County Historic Preservation Award for the adaptive reuse of the former Masonic Temple at 102 State Street. Bergen County Executive James Tedesco III and the Board of Chosen Freeholders presented the award to the City of Hackensack during the program.

The purchase and rehabilitation of the Masonic Temple was one of the first projects that the City of Hackensack embarked on after adopting its Downtown Rehabilitation Plan in 2012.

“The repurpose of the Masonic Temple into the Hackensack Performing Arts Center was a watershed moment that resulted in attracting dozens of real estate developers to invest in Hackensack’s revival,” Mayor John Labrosse said. “Since then, DMR’s creativity and ingenuity can be seen all over Hackensack from the new traffic patterns to the new open spaces and residential communities coming online every day.”

“Hackensack continues to be the textbook case of what can be accomplished when the City, the County, and private entities work together,” said Francis Reiner, PP, LLA. “We’re proud and appreciative that The Bergen County Historic Preservation Society has recognized our collaborative work to resurrect the Masonic Temple into the center of Hackensack’s artistic renaissance.”

The project maintained the look and feel of the 140-year-old building, while bringing it up to modern safety and accessibility standards, which included reinforcing its below-ground footings and foundation to accommodate the shift from its original use as a meeting hall on its first floor, to its new use as a 224-seat theater space and stage on its second floor. It also included a new gallery space on the first floor that shows work from local and regional artists as well as new bathrooms, heating and cooling systems, sprinkler systems, ramps, and an elevator.

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