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The Greyson
The Greyson, a sleek, L-shaped tower reaching 29 stories in height on the corner of Cottage Street and Homestead Place in Jersey City, New Jersey, involved a close collaboration between DeSimone’s structural and façade teams.
The 560,000 structure splits at its base to articulate two distinct but architecturally unified volumes further defined by distinct façades. The glass façade at the perimeter Cottage Street-facing volume undulates in an accordion-like, sawtooth pattern—creating bay-like windows that maximize views of the Manhattan skyline, while the façade of the second volume incorporates an interlocking metal panel grid along Homestead Place Extension.
| Client | Handel Architects |
|---|---|
| Architect: | Handel Architects |
| Size | 29 Stories | 325 Feet (99 M) tall | 560,000 SF (52,026 SM) | 622 Units |
| Office: | New York |
| Completion: | 2026 |
Creating the serrated edge effect that defines the Cottage Street tower involved formidable, complex engineering challenges for our structural engineers, including non-standard, custom floor plates at every level, and the intricate direction of structural load paths at the sharp, angled corners to create a continuous load path across slab edges. Close collaboration with our façade and building envelope consultants enabled our team to carefully coordinate the slab design at triangular slab edges where heat pump openings conflicted with column support.
In order to ensure optimal glass curtain wall performance, our façade experts engaged in a performance mockup in a lab setting. A 25-foot-wide, two-story-high section of the glass curtain wall was constructed and teams performed tests relating to typical conditions to see how the façade would perform. Our team guided the process, ensuring proper curtain wall configuration in the final structure. Additional challenges included the need for complex custom geometric joints for the serrated design and advanced thermal breaks and waterproofing, as well as mitigating the risk of increased exposure to wind, rain, and temperature changes related to the undulating folds of the perimeter.
The Greyson offers 622 residential rental apartments across the two-volume tower, along with shared amenities, and 44,451 SF of office space across a three-story, metal-framed base of the Cottage Street volume, and 3,823 SF of ground floor retail along Homestead Place Extension. The tower’s suite of luxury amenities, including a rooftop pool—the highest in Jersey City—as well as landscaped areas, a gallery, a speakeasy, and more.
