A Picture Preview of the 9-Acre Climate Hub Coming to Governors Island

A solar canopy would connect the two new wooden buildings of the planned New York Climate Exchange on Governors Island. At center is the two-and-a-half story building for meetings and at right the structure that will house the hub's research and education functions. Beyond it is Liggett Hall, to be partially converted to student and faculty housing. Illustrative rendering by The New York Climate Exchange and Skidmore, Owings & Merrill

The look of the planned $700 million New York Climate Exchange at Governors Island came into sharper focus this month with the release of schematic designs for the campus to come. Also known as a “Climate Hub,” the Exchange will be a center for climate research and education, job training and workforce development, and special events.

Two of the three buildings that are part of the campus—a research and education facility, and a meeting center—would be connected by a curvy solar canopy that powers all the energy for the research and education building. They would be constructed of mass timber, a type of wood that helps reduce the structures’ carbon footprint. 

The third building is the historic Liggett Hall, a former military barracks that will be partially converted to accommodations for students and faculty. Four acres of new public open space is also part of the plan.

The hub, intended as a “living model” for sustainable, energy-saving design, is being planned by a consortium of academic institutions, private companies and others, headed by Stony Brook University. The group was named the winner in a two-year request for proposals process. Skidmore, Owings & Merrill are the architects.

Now in its design phase, construction of the project is expected to begin around the fall of next year, with completion in 2029. 

This month, representatives from the New York Climate Exchange gave a presentation to Community Board 1’s Waterfront, Parks and Cultural Committee on the latest concepts for the hub, including the renderings shown here, which are not final.