N.Y. Condominium Solves the Parking Challenge

By Jim Ryan, Sentry Protection ProductsThe address “110 Livingston Street” has been a famous New York City address for as long as living New Yorkers can remember. Originally built in 1925 to house the Benevolent Organization of Elks, it became the high profile headquarters of the New York City Board of Education featured on education news reports throughout the latter half of the 20th Century. Today, however, that address equates with luxury condo living in the center of Brooklyn’s cultural scene.While the condo conversion’s attractive glass and steel addition to the original 12-story building is a welcomed Brooklyn skyline addition, the story of what has happened below ground is also quite remarkable. Where there once was a boiler-rich basement, there is now a 225-car mixed-use garage for both the condo residents and public-parking patrons.  This unique basement-to-parking-facility conversion can be credited to the vision of New York developer Two Trees Management Company, and its use of Concrete Wrap, strap-on collision protectors, on steel beams throughout the former basement.Ariel Azria, general manager of Two Trees’ Park-Kwik subsidiary, explains that on-site parking is integral to the value of the 300 residences above and the entire development project. “Garages in New York are very financially rewarding, and they’re a good investment,” she says.Park-Kwik is required to spray all the steel I-beams with fireproofing, Azria explains. “This fire-proofing has a very unattractive appearance, somewhat like popcorn. We knew we wanted something that looked more professional, was pleasing to the eye and also able to cushion the blows from any impact between cars and beams.”The firm used Concrete-Wrap because it could be cut to fit to various I-beams in the facility and has a belt to wrap on. “We saw that it would help us protect cars from the paint scratches that would otherwise occur if the cars had to park next to the unprotected fireproofing layers,” says Azria.The Concrete Wrap Square used in the 110 Livingston facility is composed of impact-resistant integral-skin polyurethane material engineered for automobile garages and other settings where vehicle protection is a primary concern. It comes in individual sheets that are interlocked to form a square product, giving it the flexibility that many garage spaces need.  Concrete Wrap’s design includes belt recesses connected with a two-in. nylon web strap with an adjustable cinch-buckle. The latest generation of Concrete Wrap continues to improve upon its collision-protection capabilities.  Concrete Wrap is available for both square and round configured columns and is part of a family of collision-protection products offered by Sentry Protection Products.www.sentrypro.comJim Ryan is the general manager of Sentry Protection Products in Lakewood, Ohio.