Project Information

Restoration Completed 2011
Year Constructed- 1911

Historic Designation- Listed on the National Register of Historic Places

Client

Greenwood Gardens 

Many of the “greenest” structures are not created from scratch; rather, they are “re-created” from existing structures, especially those discovered in oases of greenery. Therefore, taking 22 private acres and reinventing and rehabilitating them to create a highly welcoming and accessible garden for the public represents sustainability in action. The process of restoring and adapting historic properties for new uses is exactly the “success story” of Greenwood Gardens, a beautifully landscaped estate in the NYC suburb of Short Hills, NJ designed in 1911 by William Whetten Renwick. Greenwood was one of the earliest properties to be designed using exposed concrete as a key material in the buildings as well as in the many retaining walls throughout the gardens. “Reinventing” Greenwood Gardens, required a complex and sophisticated blend of site and building analysis and restoration including designing facilities and access for visitors and renovating the public and office spaces in the house.