
Profile

PHOTO BY MARK SELIGER
With degrees in both Architecture (B. Arch.) and Historic Preservation (M.Sc.), Joseph Pell Lombardi established his firm in 1969 as one of the first to specialize in restoration, preservation, adaptive re-use and contextual new buildings. With offices in New York, France and Hungary, the Office of Joseph Pell Lombardi has served as architect for over 1,000 projects worldwide.
His practice ranges from preservation projects, as in the conservation of a 12th century château in Andelat, France to large-scale adaptive re-use projects such as Liberty Tower, an early 20th century 33-story Gothic skyscraper in New York City’s Financial District converted to residential use. As both architect and principal, Mr. Lombardi’s 1978 conversion of Liberty Tower introduced residential use to lower Manhattan.
He has conserved and converted to residential use over 200 commercial buildings in Manhattan and has conserved and restored over 200 houses throughout the world. Current projects include conversion to residential use of a Midtown Manhattan tower, nine commercial buildings in SoHo and NoHo being converted to residential use and the creation of a new contextual residential tower on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.
Mr. Lombardi owns many of the projects in which he is involved. He is the owner of the National Historic Landmark, Armour-Stiner (Octagon) House, the only Roman temple form, domed octagonal house in the world and the first property to have been sold into private ownership by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. He also owns and is conserving several other major historic homes including Château du Sailhant, an early medieval château-fort in the Auvergne region of central France and Alfheim Lodge, a rustic, storybook lodge in the mountains north of New York City. Two of his homes, the Armour-Stiner (Octagon) House and Château du Sailhant, are seasonally opened to the public as house museums.
Joseph Pell Lombardi served on the Venice Committee of the World Monuments Fund and was Chairman of the World Monuments Fund Founders Society. He has served on many boards including the New York City Historic House Trust, the New York City Historic Districts Council, the National Trust for Historic Preservation – Lyndhurst Advisory Council and the Zoning and Historic Preservation Committee for the Alliance for Downtown Manhattan. He is a member of Scenic Hudson and the Society of Architectural Historians.
Joseph Pell Lombardi has received numerous awards including:
1989 The National Trust for Historic Preservation Certificate of Appreciation;
1990 Victorian Society in America Preservation Award;
1991 Preservation League of New York State Achievement Award;
1993 New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission Certificate of Merit;
1993 City of New York, Department of General Services Professional Service Award;
1995 Municipal Art Society of New York Preservation Award;
2010 Irvington Historical Society – Restoration Honor Recognition;
2017 La Médaille Paul Harris Fellow – Rotary club de Saint-Flour, France;
2019 La Médaille, d’argent du Tourism – Française Ministère De L’Europe et des Affaires Étrangères;
2022 Lucy G. Moses Preservation Award – The New York Landmarks Conservancy
Numerous articles have been published about his work and for many years he has given an annual lecture at Yale University’s School of Architecture.
Containing architects, preservationists, architectural historians and construction and code specialists, the Office of Joseph Pell Lombardi, Architect guides restoration, preservation, adaptive re-use and contextual building projects from initial inception to completion, including economic feasibility studies, historic analyses, budget preparations, condition reports, forensic investigations, construction drawings, specifications and construction administration.
To obtain appropriate approvals and certifications, the Office of Joseph Pell Lombardi, Architect, works with local, regional and governmental agencies throughout the world including the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, the New York City Department of City Planning, the New York City Board of Standards and Appeals, the United States National Park Service, State Historic Preservation Offices (SHPO), The French Conservation Régionale des Monuments Historiques (CRMH) and the Hungarian National Board for the Protection of Historic Monuments (OMvH).
All rights reserved, Joseph Pell Lombardi Architect, 2022