NYC Department of Citywide Administrative Services

Pioneering government coworking space

The New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS) provides a suite of services to the nation’s largest municipality, which employs more people than many state governments. In addition to providing technology and human resources support, DCAS manages, leases and purchases city real estate and public buildings. To support future needs around mobility, collaboration, energy efficiency, density, and employee wellness and retention, they sought to rethink their office. PLASTARC was engaged to help DCAS set new standards for a government workplace, including recasting a floor of the century-old Municipal Building as a coworking space for city agencies.

Our pre-design research guided DCAS in developing a holistic view of their own needs. Combining qualitative and quantitative sources, we synthesized data that was previously fragmented across agencies, gleaning new insights from existing sources. We also supported DCAS in developing a concept for an office space that could serve a still-emerging subset of city employees. Our research informed Urbahn Architects design for the agency’s FutureOffice, a coworking-style space that offers diverse space types, shared resources and community management to a range of employees from across the municipal government.