Phone
(903) 583-7500
Project Overview
Gotham West Market is a food hall and hospitality destination in New York City that brings restaurants, bars, and communal gathering spaces together within a high-density urban environment. The project included a large operable opening at the market’s bar and dining area to support service, visibility, and interaction with the surrounding market space.
Renlita engineered a custom Hinge vertical opening system measuring 19’-3 1/4” wide by 10’-5” tall. The glazed system opens vertically above the bar area, creating a broad connection to the surrounding market while preserving usable floor and ceiling space.
The Challenge
Gotham West Market needed a large operable opening that could connect the bar with the surrounding market without sacrificing valuable floor or ceiling space. In a high-traffic hospitality environment, the opening also needed to maintain sightlines and circulation around the bar without placing operating equipment within the occupied space.
Conventional overhead systems would introduce tracks above the bar, while hydraulic opening systems can introduce additional operating noise into a hospitality environment. The project required a system capable of creating a broad glazed opening while keeping its operating path concentrated at the opening itself.
The Solution
Renlita engineered a custom Hinge vertical opening system (formerly the S-2000 Hingeway) for the Gotham West Market bar and dining area. The 19’-3 1/4” wide by 10’-5” tall system uses motorized counterweight operation and incorporates 1/4” clear laminated glass within a black-finished frame and glass capture system.
The Hinge raises vertically at the opening without conventional overhead tracks extending into the occupied bar area. When raised, the system creates a broad connection between the bar and surrounding market; when closed, the clear laminated glazing maintains visibility while providing physical separation between the spaces.
An integrated personnel door within the lower portion of the Hinge provides everyday passage without requiring the entire 19-foot-wide system to be raised. This allows the same opening to provide routine pedestrian access when closed and a much larger connection between the bar and market when the full system is open.
Key Benefits
Clear Views Through a 19-Foot Opening
The Hinge incorporates 1/4” clear laminated glass across the large operable assembly, maintaining visibility between the bar and surrounding market when the system is closed. When raised, the 19’-3 1/4”-wide opening removes the physical separation across the bar area, creating a direct connection with the activity and circulation of Gotham West Market.
Track-Free Vertical Operation
The Hinge uses a motorized counterweight system to open vertically at the bar without conventional overhead tracks extending into the occupied space. This preserves floor and ceiling areas around the opening while allowing a 19’-3 1/4”-wide glazed assembly to operate without placing its door path within guest circulation areas.
Operational Flexibility
The Hinge system allows the bar area to adapt to different service and circulation needs throughout the day. The large opening creates a more connected hospitality environment when raised, while the glazed assembly maintains visibility and separation when closed. This flexibility supports the changing operational requirements of a busy food hall without requiring additional floor space for the opening system.