From Residence to Research: Adaptive Reuse Lessons at Mount Sinai
2025 Lab Design Conference speaker—Tak Wing Louie, AIA, LEED AP, senior project architect with HOK
When Mount Sinai set out to transform a 60-year-old nurse residence into a state-of-the-art Center for Artificial Intelligence and Human Health, the project team quickly learned that adaptive reuse in New York City is both a formidable challenge and a critical opportunity. At the 2025 Lab Design Conference, Tak Wing Louie, AIA, LEED AP, senior project architect with HOK, shared the complexities, compromises, and lessons that defined the four-and-a-half-year transformation of the 12-story, 72,000-sf building.
“This [project] is from a residential building to the dry, functional computational lab,” Tak Wing explained. “The challenge that we had to go through was quite a bit, because the zoning and the building codes for residential buildings are very different from business.”
The facility now houses biomedical informatics, data science, and artificial intelligence research groups—disciplines central to Mount Sinai’s vision of advancing diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. But getting there required difficult decisions, creative strategies, and a willingness to test the limits of reuse.
The case for adaptive reuse
Mount Sinai originally considered demolishing the building, but the dense Upper East Side site left no margin for expansion. Tak Wing said, “Any renovation job, especially gut renovation, is very challenging. It’s almost double the effort of building a brand new building.”
Why take on the extra difficulty? For Mount Sinai, reuse was both practical and strategic:
Space constraints: No swing space existed on campus to relocate occupants during a rebuild.
Zoning and real estate pressures: Starting from scratch risked triggering further setbacks, losing floor area, or prolonging approvals.
Sustainability: Reuse minimized embodied carbon, aligning with Mount Sinai’s broader decarbonization goals.
Tak Wing acknowledged the difficulties but affirmed the decision: “In New York City, you cannot always find industrial zoning within the city. You have to be thinking about all the office business that you can have right now. And I think [with] the majority of the building stock, you have to learn this.”
Key challenges and solutions
1. Floor-to-floor heights
The most persistent challenge was floor-to-floor height. With existing slabs limiting ceilings to just over eight feet, every inch counted. “We only have eight-foot-seven,” Tak Wing said. “Any offset, you lose the space and then it’s for nothing.”
Solution: Careful coordination of risers, low-profile access flooring, and exposed mechanicals maximized usable space. Even small details—such as junction box placement—were scrutinized to avoid losing unnecessary inches.
Takeaway: On adaptive reuse projects, establish a rigorous coordination process early to prevent cascading conflicts from tight clearances.
2. Structural load capacity
Originally designed for residential use, the building’s 40 psf live load rating was insufficient for modern office and lab needs. “Fortunately, the existing building is 60 years old. All the partitions are masonry, and really heavy,” Tak Wing said. Without taking all the interior partitions, he added, “we can upgrade it to 50 pounds per square foot.”
Solution: Removing masonry partitions and adopting lightweight framing restored capacity. Structural load tests, GPR scans, and reinforcement strategies ensured safety and compliance.
Takeaway: Conduct structural due diligence early and plan for reinforcement; assume original documentation may be incomplete or unreliable.
3. Infrastructure integration
Converting residential risers and systems for commercial research use was nearly impossible. “It’s almost impossible to work with all the existing risers,” Tak Wing said. “We should not rely on any utilities that are 60 years old.”
Solution: The team stripped the building to its core, replaced risers, and rerouted critical hospital oxygen and nitrous oxide lines that ran through the basement.
Takeaway: In older adaptive reuse projects, expect to replace rather than reuse critical MEP infrastructure—and budget accordingly.
4. Accessibility and code compliance
Changing occupancy type triggered mandatory upgrades. Tak Wing said, “Once you do the full conversion, you have to be triggered that the whole building will be fully accessible.” Unfortunately, he cautioned, some of them will not be compliant. For this project, “we did have to go to the mayor’s office to get the variance,” he added.
Solution: Variances were secured for elevators and stair egress. Where possible, creative redesigns—such as switching stair door placement—helped extend travel distances within code tolerances.
Takeaway: Build variance applications into the project timeline. Know which compliance gaps can be creatively addressed and which require formal approvals.
5. Limited laydown and construction logistics
The 5,500-sf floorplates and lack of a loading dock constrained construction. “There’s not much you can do to store any material,” Tak Wing noted. “It takes two years to figure it out, because they don’t have any swing space in the campus.”
Solution: Just-in-time delivery and temporary modular swing space were considered, though ultimately deemed too costly. The building was fully vacated for construction.
Takeaway: On urban adaptive reuse projects, anticipate staging limitations and factor logistical complexity into both schedule and budget.
Unexpected discoveries
The project also highlighted how older buildings conceal surprises. “We don’t have any structural drawings,” he said “Basically, we did a lot of surveys, a lot of scanning, point cloud, the whole nine yards.” Yet even with due diligence, issues surfaced: deteriorated parapets, asbestos-containing materials, hidden incinerator shafts, and inadequate façade anchors.
Each discovery demanded flexibility. For instance, when asbestos was found in unexpected locations, construction slowed for abatement. Similarly, when façade anchors were deemed unsafe, replacement became non-negotiable.
Takeaway: Build contingencies into both time and budget. Surprises are the rule, not the exception, in adaptive reuse.
Lessons learned
By the project’s completion, Tak Wing identified several core lessons applicable to future adaptive reuse efforts:
Do thorough due diligence —including GPR scans, test pits, load tests, and façade inspections—before committing to scope.
Expect variances —code compliance for older structures will rarely align with new-use requirements.
Plan for infrastructure replacement —utilities, risers, and systems from mid-century buildings will almost never support modern research needs.
Budget for surprises —from asbestos to structural reinforcements, hidden conditions can quickly escalate costs.
Prioritize clear communication —with stakeholders, engineers, and contractors, given the complexity of coordinating tight spaces and nonstandard solutions.
Looking forward
Despite the obstacles, the project delivered a modern, collaborative dry-lab environment tailored for computational research. Collaborative zones, flexible offices, and maker spaces now support Mount Sinai’s growing AI initiatives.
Was it worth it? Tak Wing believes so. He joked, “I think I learned a lot, because right now, anything that you forward to me, I think I can handle it at least. I know what not to do.”
For other institutions weighing adaptive reuse, the Mount Sinai project offers a clear message: it may not be the easiest path, but it can deliver lasting value. With proper planning, creative problem-solving, and a tolerance for complexity, even outdated residential buildings can become cutting-edge research hubs.
The 2026 Lab Design Conference is heading to Orlando, FL, on May 11–14! Explore how adaptive reuse and community-driven development are shaping the future of lab planning. Get updates on the agenda, networking events, workshops, and lab tours at https://www.labdesignconference.com/.
