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Village's Center for Architecture to Expand on LaGuardia Place

By Andrea Swalec | August 2, 2011 2:01pm

MANHATTAN — A Village institution is expanding, and it's not NYU. 

The Center for Architecture — which has displayed exhibits and offered programs on buildings, design and sustainability since 2003 — took over the space next door to its current location at 536 LaGuardia Place on Monday.

Home to the American Institute of Architects New York Chapter and the Center for Architecture Foundation, the center will increase its size by 10 percent by moving into 532 LaGuardia Place, an empty 1,200-square-foot storefront owned by lumber supplier Guy Apicella, according to The Architect's Newspaper.

"This is an historic day for not only the American Institute of Architects, but also for all in New York City who are passionate about architecture and what architects do to create sustainable and livable communities," Margaret O'Donoghue Castillo, president of the New York chapter of the American Institute of Architects, said in a statement. 

The new storefront will be used for special events and conferences. It includes an 800-square-foot basement and a small back garden, which may get an overhaul from the Horticulture Society of New York or the American Association of Landscape Architects, a spokeswoman said. 

The new space will be designed by Rogers Marvel Architects, which designed the airy, modern Mulberry Street Library in SoHo. 

The Center for Architecture is currently showing "Glimpses of New York and Amsterdam in 2040," which envisions both cities half-underwater. Also on view is "Mapping the Cityscape," which explores how maps affect perception of one's environment. 

Like the center itself, the group's annual Architecture Week is expanding. This October — which they have renamed "Archtober" — the center will host a month of programs, exhibitions and activities.