The Queens Zoo Education Center project expands and modernizes the Zoo’s educational facilities to meet growing program demands. The expansion replaces the 1-story North Barn with a new classroom building and renovates and adds a floor to the South Barn to improve functionality and accessibility. Located at the west end of the Queens Zoo’s domestic area, the project preserves the site’s layout and aesthetic. Exteriors will be clad in red, fiber-cement, vertical board siding with dark bronze and wood details, enhancing the existing barn aesthetic. The North Barn will have a steel and steel-stud frame with wood trusses, while the South Barn retains its existing concrete block and timber framing, with new steel-framed additions. Both buildings will have wood-supported roof assemblies.

The new North Barn will have two classrooms with their own restrooms, a central, shared kitchenette and storage space, as well as a teaching porch. Skylights will enhance natural light, and a flexible partition will allow the classrooms to merge into one. On the first floor of the South Barn, the classroom and toilet rooms will swap places to align the classroom entrance with the approach pathway. The new classroom will include a kitchenette with storage. This level will also house a keeper space, two animal care rooms, and a gender-neutral, ADA-compliant toilet room. A new vestibule at the rear will provide access to new stairs and an LU/LA lift to the second floor. The adjacent silo will be converted into a lactation room for staff and visitors. The second floor will be expanded by shed dormers to accommodate communal spaces as well as open and enclosed offices. These spaces will include a kitchenette, a single-user toilet room, and a lounge area within the silo’s upper level.

Both barns will receive modern finishes, furnishings, as well as upgraded building and fire-suppression systems. Additionally, each will be equipped with new state-of-the-art audio visual/information technology systems complete with networked presentation and audio systems. The project targets LEED Gold certification per NYC Local Law 86. Sustainable strategies include responsibly sourced regional materials, low-flow plumbing fixtures, and energy-efficient systems compliant with the NYS Energy Code. Rooftop photovoltaic arrays at both barns will provide on-site renewable energy.

Client: Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS).
Agency: Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS).
Program: educational.
Size: 1,300 SF (North Barn), 3,000 SF (South Barn).
Team: Structural: Silman. Mechanical: Loring Consulting Egnineers. Civil: Leonard J. Strandberg and Associates. AV/IT/Acoustics: Trinity Consultants. Energy: Steven Winter Associates.