New York architecture studio DFA has imagined a series of latticed apartment towers for Manhattan's Pier 40, which would be able to remain above water in the event of rising sea levels.
DFA's conceptual proposal involves constructing a complex of housing, recreational and commercial facilities on the square-shaped Pier 40. The structure extends 250 metres over the Hudson River and currently houses car parking facilities and a popular football field.

By adapting the existing pier ? which was built in 1962 and fallen into disrepair ? the architecture studio is offering several responses to current issues in New York City, including a lack of affordable housing and resiliency to flooding due to climate change.
"We see so many projects going up in New York that are quick, chart-driven responses to serious problems," said DFA founding principle Laith Sayigh. "These short-term resolutions will not safeguard the city from rapid changes in the environment or protect future generations of people."
The concept envisions 19 cylindrical high-rises, wrapped in golden net-shaped window frames and planting. These would house a total of 450 living units, which would be sold at price points from affordable to luxury.
Ranging from 96 to 455 feet (29 to 138 metres) tall, the towers would be set in 11 clusters that the architecture firm based on analysis of the pier's structural base ? comprising thousands of steel H-pile girders reinforced with concrete and sunk into the...