Projects

Office Case Studies

Knickerbocker Management
Gladstone Barns
Peapack, New Jersey

The Gladstone Barn project consisted of a rehabilitation and partial reconstruction of a fieldstone and wood barn originally erected in 1829.

The new design called for a 100-percent increase in floor area with office systems throughout as well as state-of-the-art communications equipment and environmental controls. Engineers developed a suspension system that would shore up the windows and walls of the 4,500 square-foot building to allow Torcon to dig more than 20 feet below ground level for a basement beneath the barn's foundation. Where ever possible wood framing and floorings were reused and the original stonework was restored and exposed.

The barn was constructed by a family who originally arrived in the New World in 1773, and whose descendents still occupy a neighboring house. The barn was constructed of mortar and 750 tons of stone. By the time preliminary work began on the project, the mortar had already crumbled away and the only support keeping the building standing was gravity.

The "new" Gladstone Barn houses Knickerbocker Management, a private investment firm founded by Finn M.W. Caspersen, who is the former chairman and CEO of Beneficial Corporation. The rustic façade houses a modern office environment complete with two boardrooms and an elevator.