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GOREN GROUP

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NOVO FOUNDATION AND GOREN GROUP ANNOUNCE THE WOMEN’S BUILDING INTERNATIONAL DESIGN COMPETITION



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE NOVEMBER 18, 2015

OPEN CALL FOR AN ARCHITECT TO TRANSFORM A FORMER WOMEN’S PRISON INTO HOME FOR THE GIRLS’ AND WOMEN’S RIGHTS MOVEMENT


NoVo Foundation and Goren Group today launched The Women’s Building International Design Competition, a global search to identify an architect or team of architects to transform the former Bayview women’s prison in New York City into The Women’s Building, a home for the global girls’ and women’s rights movement.

The Women’s Building will serve as a hub for social justice leaders working to ensure that all women and girls can live free from violence, poverty, and discrimination. More than a just a work place, it will be a vertical neighborhood, designed to foster serendipitous interactions, build partnerships, create networks, and grow sustainable solutions. The final program for the building will be developed in consultation with the girls’ and women’s rights community.

Goren Group, a woman-owned and operated real estate development and investment company, will be developing the property on behalf of NoVo Foundation. The building was originally designed in 1931 as a YMCA for merchant sailors and is characterized by its distinctive masonry work, terra cotta detailing, and nautical references. Goren Group and the design team will work closely with New York’s State Historic Preservation O ice to preserve and restore historical elements of the building.

The Women’s Building International Design Competition will be a two- stage competition. The first stage is an open Request for Qualifications from architects, who will be invited to submit information online. Minority and women architects are encouraged to apply.

From the submitted qualifications, a Selection Committee composed of leading architects, members of the girls’ and women’s rights movement and other industry professionals will review initial submissions and recommend a limited number of finalists. These finalists will be invited to submit a conceptual design proposal for the building, based on a preliminary program provided by NoVo Foundation and Goren Group. Finalists will receive a stipend for their work in the second stage of the competition. The competition winner will be announced in June of 2016.

RFQ Online Registration deadline is January 6, 2016.

To register and for more information, visit: http://womensbuildingnyc.org

For potential media partners who are interested in presenting competition information, please contact us at: [email protected] or [email protected]

ABOUT NOVO FOUNDATION

The NoVo Foundation is dedicated to building a more just and balanced world. Founded in 2006 by Jennifer and Peter Buffett, NoVo has become one of the largest private foundations in the world to support initiatives focused explicitly on girls and women. It also works to advance social and emotional learning and promote local living economies. Across all of its work, the NoVo Foundation supports the development of capacities in people—individually and collectively—to help create a world based on mutual respect, collaboration, and love.

ABOUT GOREN GROUP

Goren Group is a registered WBE woman-owned and operated real estate development and investment company devoted to making buildings that create change and foster community. Founded in 2007 by Lela Goren, Goren Group develops complex, significant and historic buildings with entrepreneurial finesse and an unwavering commitment to social engagement.