PS 234 Independence School

 school, 1988_construction

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3-story school completed in 1988. Designed by Richard Dattner, the building is L-shaped, with an exterior perimeter wall enclosing a courtyard on the northern part of the site. The overall design draws on nautical cues, with brick arches, curved corners, and deeply set industrial windows echoes the surrounding 19th century mercantile buildings. The cylindrical turret marks the former river edge and guards the enclosed play courtyard. Classrooms overlook the courtyard to maximize light and views on a site surrounded by high-rise commercial buildings. Children arrive through an entrance gate, cross the courtyard, and enter the school through a turret. Two smaller turrets serve kindergartens on the ground floor. The facade is clad in red brick, with horizontal bands of cream-colored brick joining the arches of the windows, which have stone sills. The interior walls of the building, facing inward onto the courtyard, are clad in cream-colored brick, with longer ribbons of windows. The northern facing elevation has a long outward curve, while the eastern facing elevation is serrated, stepping back gradually to the perimeter wall on the north side.

At the time of its construction, PS 234 was the first new school built by the New York City Board of Education in almost 15 years, and the first public school in TriBeCa. It accommodates 700 children from kindergarten through 5th grade.