School of Architecture faculty Christian Lynch’s firm LYNCH EISINGER DESIGN Architects (LED) is the recipient of a 2025 Design Award of Honor from the Society of American Registered Architects (SARA) for their work in converting two floors of an existing Soho warehouse building into the NYC headquarters for a16z. The design re-envisions the post-pandemic office and represents a return to the physical workplace. The 36,000sf space occupies the entire third and fourth floors and was vertically expanded by first removing 2,400-square-feet of existing floor area and inserting a two-story steel and glass tower, a floating communicating stair, and a double-height, 1,200-square-foot “all hands” gathering space flanked by two suspended bridges – one glass and one wood. The “tower” houses five conference rooms that includes two boardrooms, the largest of which cantilevers over the central stair to the fourth floor. The project features multiple meeting spaces of varying sizes, a podcast booth, anchor offices for private work, and open library-style seating for more collaborative work. The design intent was to create a comfortable, lounge-like atmosphere which was accomplished by including a full-size bar, adjoining lounges, booth seating, breakout spaces, and communal lunchrooms that offer a variety of opportunities for everyday informal gatherings or larger, curated VIP events. Existing materials were restored to highlight the brick facade, timber beams/ceilings and cast-iron columns and new materials were selected to complement the industrial character of the building.
Design team includes Pratt UA Graduates Brian Ching ’23, Marley Olson ’23, Ipek Battal ’23 and Selen Bas ’20.
