Piloted in the Staten Island borough of NYC, the Luis Lopez Playground Comfort Station is the first modular prototype designed by NYC for parks and is an AIANY Design Awards 2026 winner, chosen by New York’s chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) as a winner in the Government category. The comfort station restroom was designed, fabricated, and installed as part of a pilot project to employ modular construction as a faster, more cost-efficient delivery method for NYC Parks. Modular construction was also chosen to minimize disruption to the adjacent public park while still meeting stringent NYC building codes.
Based on the current NYC Parks Standard Public Restroom Design for conventionally constructed public restrooms, the comfort station takes advantage of the efficiencies associated with modular construction, providing a durable, comfort station that can withstand abuse, vandalism. It includes two restrooms along with a maintenance space and is designed for year-round use. The steel-frame structure is clad with a pattern of glazed blocks in a variety of colors while a green roof enhances environmental performance.
The modular prototype provides a pathway to efficiently update NYC’s public spaces by providing them with thoughtfully designed and cost-effective comfort station.
PROJECT TYPE
GMP Collaborative Design Build
DESCRIPTION
Public Restrooms - Prototype Model NYC Parks
OWNER
NYC Parks
ARCHITECT
100 Architect
DELIVERY METHOD
Bid-Design-Build
CONSTRUCTION COST
$3.8 million
SIZE
800 sq. feet
Piloted in the Staten Island borough of NYC, the Luis Lopez Playground Comfort Station is the first modular prototype designed by NYC for parks and is an AIANY Design Awards 2026 winner, chosen by New York’s chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) as a winner in the Government category. The comfort station restroom was designed, fabricated, and installed as part of a pilot project to employ modular construction as a faster, more cost-efficient delivery method for NYC Parks. Modular construction was also chosen to minimize disruption to the adjacent public park while still meeting stringent NYC building codes.
Based on the current NYC Parks Standard Public Restroom Design for conventionally constructed public restrooms, the comfort station takes advantage of the efficiencies associated with modular construction, providing a durable, comfort station that can withstand abuse, vandalism. It includes two restrooms along with a maintenance space and is designed for year-round use. The steel-frame structure is clad with a pattern of glazed blocks in a variety of colors while a green roof enhances environmental performance.
The modular prototype provides a pathway to efficiently update NYC’s public spaces by providing them with thoughtfully designed and cost-effective comfort station.
