ARMSTRONG RUBBER COMPANY BUILDING ARCHITECTURE: MARCEL BREUER'S SUSPENDED HEADQUARTERS

The Armstrong Rubber Company Building at 500 Sargent Drive in New Haven, Connecticut, is one of the most dramatic examples of Marcel Breuer's (1902–1981) late concrete architecture — and one of the most unusual corporate headquarters ever built in America.

Completed in 1970 for the Armstrong Rubber Company, the building features a radical structural concept: a two-story research and development base supporting a five-story administrative block suspended two stories above it, creating a dramatic 17-foot gap between the two masses. The suspended offices appear to float above the laboratories below — held aloft by seven massive cantilevered steel trusses, each weighing 50 tons.

Clad entirely in precast concrete panels with dark tinted glass, the building is a monumental expression of Brutalist architecture — bold, sculptural, and uncompromising. Its design was driven by a practical requirement: the research laboratories needed to be isolated acoustically from the administrative offices above. Rather than simply stacking floors conventionally, Breuer created a building in two distinct parts, separated by a void that dramatically reduces noise transmission while creating one of the most visually striking corporate buildings of the post-war era.

The building's history reflects the turbulent economic changes of the late 20th century. Armstrong occupied it for only 18 years before being purchased by Pirelli in 1988 (leading to its popular nickname, the "Pirelli Tire Building"). Pirelli sold the property in 1999, and the building stood largely vacant for over two decades, facing demolition threats and partial destruction. In 2003, IKEA demolished approximately 64,000 square feet of the low-rise portion to create parking for an adjacent store.

In a remarkable turn, the building was saved and transformed. Purchased by developer Becker + Becker in 2019, it underwent a comprehensive renovation from 2020 to 2022, reopening in May 2022 as Hotel Marcel — the first Passive House-certified hotel in the United States and the first net-zero energy hotel in the country. The building now generates all its own energy through rooftop and parking lot solar panels, representing a dramatic second life for a modernist landmark that many had written off as obsolete.

The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2021.

  • Written by Gavin Paisley, director & model-maker at Chisel & Mouse based in East Sussex, England.
  • Last updated: 19-Feb-26.

Photograph by Kenneth C. Zirkel.

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What is the Armstrong Rubber Company Building?

In 1966, the Armstrong Rubber Company — a major American tire manufacturer — approached New Haven's mayor, Richard C. Lee, with a proposal to build their new headquarters at a prominent site near the intersection of Interstate 91 and Interstate 95. Mayor Lee, who was pursuing an ambitious vision to make New Haven "America's model city," agreed to facilitate the land purchase on one condition: the company must hire a world-renowned architect.

Armstrong chose Marcel Breuer, the Hungarian-born Bauhaus master who had become one of America's most celebrated modernist architects. The company originally proposed a conventional low-rise structure, but Mayor Lee pushed for something more ambitious — a building of eight to ten stories that would serve as an architectural landmark.

Breuer responded with a design that was anything but conventional. Rather than creating a simple vertical office tower, he proposed splitting the building into two distinct masses:

  1. A two-story base containing research and development laboratories — industrial spaces with heavy equipment, testing facilities, and machinery
  2. A five-story administrative block containing executive offices, meeting rooms, and corporate functions

The critical innovation: the administrative block would be suspended two stories above the laboratory base, held aloft by massive steel trusses cantilevered from a central core. This created a dramatic 17-foot void between the two sections — a gap that would provide acoustic isolation (preventing noise from the R&D labs from reaching the offices above) while creating a visually spectacular architectural gesture.

The building was constructed between 1968 and 1970 at a cost of $6.5 million. It opened to immediate acclaim from architects and critics, though its bold Brutalist aesthetic proved controversial with the general public.

Facts panel

Corporate headquarters building (now hotel), Long Wharf district, New Haven, Connecticut. Designed 1967–68, constructed 1968–70.

  • Architect: Marcel Breuer & Associates (New York)
  • Associate architect: Robert F. Gatje
  • Client: Armstrong Rubber Company
  • Designed: 1967–68
  • Constructed: 1968–70
  • Completed: 1970
  • Cost: $6.5 million
  • Original name: Armstrong Rubber Company Building
  • Also known as: Pirelli Tire Building (1988–1999, during Pirelli ownership)
  • Current name: Hotel Marcel (since May 2022)
  • Original size: 183,000 square feet
  • Current size: Approximately 107,100 square feet (following 2003 partial demolition by IKEA)
  • Structure: Two-story R&D base + five-story suspended administrative block separated by 17-foot void; seven 50-ton cantilevered steel trusses support upper floors from central core
  • Materials: Steel frame; precast concrete façade panels; dark tinted glass; exposed concrete core
  • Original configuration: Ground/first floor: research, development, and production laboratories; Third through seventh floors: administrative offices, suspended above laboratories; Top floor (two stories high, windowless): mechanical equipment
  • Address: 500 Sargent Drive, Long Wharf, New Haven, Connecticut 06511
  • Architectural style: Brutalism / Late modernism
  • Dimensions: 36 bays along length, 13 bays at sides; flat roof
  • Armstrong occupancy: 1970–1988
  • Pirelli ownership: 1988–1999 (purchased Armstrong Rubber Company)
  • Vacant period: 1999–2019 (with brief exhibition uses)
  • IKEA purchase/partial demolition: 2003 (demolished approx. 64,000 sq ft of low-rise portion for parking; IKEA store opened July 2004 adjacent to building)
  • Becker + Becker purchase: December 2019 ($1.2 million)
  • Hotel conversion: 2020–2022
  • Hotel opened: May 16, 2022 (165 rooms, operated by Hilton's Tapestry brand)
  • Sustainability features: First Passive House-certified hotel in US; net-zero energy (rooftop + parking lot solar panels generate 700,000 kWh annually); all-electric systems; triple-glazed windows; 14 EV charging stations; electric shuttle
  • Listed: Connecticut Register of Historic Places (2000); National Register of Historic Places (2021, National Register #100006186)
  • Freestanding structure: Three-story concrete sign structure (northeast corner, built concurrently with building, originally for Armstrong signage, contributes to National Register listing)
  • Public reception: Voted "ugliest building in Connecticut" by residents (Business Insider 2018); praised by architects and preservation groups; Financial Times "Architecture to see in 2023"

Architect: Marcel Breuer

Marcel Lajos Breuer was born 21 May 1902 in Pécs, Hungary, and died 1 July 1981 in New York City, aged 79. He was one of the most influential architects and designers of the 20th century, known equally for his revolutionary furniture design and his monumental concrete architecture.

Bauhaus years (1920–28)

Breuer enrolled at the Bauhaus in Weimar, Germany, in 1920 at age 18, studying under Walter Gropius. He became a master of the carpentry workshop in 1925 and taught at the Bauhaus until 1928. During this period, Breuer revolutionized furniture design with his use of tubular steel — creating iconic pieces including the Wassily Chair (1925, named after his friend Wassily Kandinsky) and the Cesca Chair (1928), both of which remain in production today and are in the permanent collections of major museums worldwide.

Breuer's furniture philosophy — emphasizing industrial materials, functional clarity, and minimal ornamentation — would later translate directly into his architectural approach.

Emigration and Harvard (1937–46)

Breuer left Germany in 1928, practiced in Berlin, then fled the Nazi regime in 1935, moving first to England and then to the United States in 1937. Walter Gropius, who had become chair of the Harvard Graduate School of Design, invited Breuer to join the faculty. Breuer taught at Harvard from 1937 to 1946, profoundly influencing a generation of American architects including Philip Johnson, I.M. Pei, and Paul Rudolph.

During this period, Breuer and Gropius collaborated on several residential projects in New England, developing a modernist domestic architecture adapted to the American context — the "Breuer houses" that combined modernist principles with wood construction and regional materials.

Concrete period (1946–76)

After leaving Harvard in 1946, Breuer established his own practice in New York. From the early 1950s onward, he became increasingly focused on large-scale concrete architecture — civic buildings, institutional complexes, and corporate headquarters that used concrete's sculptural potential to create monumental, expressive forms.

Robert F. Gatje (1927–2018) joined Breuer's office in 1953 and became his closest collaborator for over two decades, serving as associate architect on most of Breuer's major projects including the Armstrong building. Gatje's 2000 memoir Marcel Breuer: A Memoir provides the most detailed account of Breuer's working methods and design philosophy.

Major works from this period include:

  • UNESCO Headquarters, Paris (1953–58, with Pier Luigi Nervi and Bernard Zehrfuss) — established Breuer's international reputation
  • St. John's Abbey Church, Collegeville, Minnesota (1958–61) — dramatic folded concrete structure
  • IBM Research Center, La Gaude, France (1960–62) — Y-shaped plan
  • 945 Madison Avenue, New York (originally named Whitney Museum of American Art) (1963–66) — inverted stepped form in granite-faced concrete, Breuer's most famous building
  • HUD Building (Robert C. Weaver Federal Building), Washington, D.C. (1963–68) — massive precast concrete office building
  • Armstrong Rubber Company Building, New Haven (1967–70) — one of his last major works
  • Atlanta Central Public Library (1977–80, completed after Breuer's death)

Breuer's concrete buildings are characterized by:

  • Bold sculptural massing
  • Expressive structure (making engineering legible as architecture)
  • Heavy, monumental forms that convey permanence
  • Textured surfaces (board-formed concrete, precast panels)
  • Deep shadows and dramatic overhangs
  • Cantilevered elements that appear to defy gravity

Philosophy

Breuer saw architecture as sculpture experienced in space. He believed concrete could achieve both monumentality and refinement, and that modern architecture should express the structural logic and materials of its time rather than imitating historical forms.

He famously stated: "Architecture is not a private affair, even the house is a matter of social importance." His buildings were designed to make powerful public statements — about institutional values, corporate identity, or civic ambition.

Breuer retired in the mid-1970s and died in New York in 1981. His furniture remains iconic and in continuous production; his concrete buildings remain controversial but are increasingly appreciated as important expressions of post-war architectural ambition. Several have been demolished, making the survival and adaptive reuse of the Armstrong building particularly significant.

The suspended structure: how it works

The Armstrong Rubber Company Building's defining feature is its suspended structure — a two-part composition with a dramatic void between the masses.

The two-story base

The lower portion of the building contains research and development laboratories on the ground floor and first floor (originally called the second floor in the building's numbering). These were industrial spaces requiring:

  • Heavy equipment
  • Testing machinery
  • High ceilings
  • Acoustic isolation from administrative functions above
  • Direct vehicle access for loading/unloading equipment

The base extends to the rear of the site, originally creating a much larger footprint than the suspended offices above. (Most of this base was demolished by IKEA in 2003.)

The five-story suspended block

The upper portion contains administrative offices on what were originally numbered as the third through seventh floors. These floors house:

  • Executive offices
  • Meeting rooms
  • Conference facilities
  • Corporate departments

The top floor is two stories in height and originally had no windows — it was designed purely as a mechanical equipment floor containing HVAC systems, electrical systems, and elevator machinery.

The void

Between these two masses is a 17-foot gap — empty space with no floor, creating a dramatic visual separation. The suspended administrative block appears to float above the laboratory base.

This void serves multiple functions:

  1. Acoustic isolation — preventing noise and vibration from the industrial R&D labs from reaching the quiet administrative offices above
  2. Visual drama — creating one of the most striking architectural gestures in American corporate architecture
  3. Flexibility — the design allowed two additional floors to be added into the void in the future if the company needed more space (this was never done)

The structural system

The suspended block is held aloft by seven massive steel trusses, each weighing 50 tons. These trusses are cantilevered from a central concrete core containing:

  • Elevators
  • Stairwells
  • Mechanical shafts
  • Primary structural support

From these trusses, the steel-framed floor plates of the administrative block are suspended downward — the floors literally hang from the trusses above rather than being supported from below. This was one of the first buildings in which floor framing was suspended from overhead cantilevered trusses rather than supported conventionally from underneath.

The building's steel frame is expressed in the façade through:

  • Heavy concrete columns visible at the base
  • The void itself, which makes the structural separation legible
  • The visual mass of the suspended block, which clearly reads as a separate element held aloft

Photograph by Kenneth C. Zirkel.

Materials and façade

The building is clad entirely in precast concrete panels — factory-made concrete sections that were transported to the site and assembled. This construction method allowed for:

  • Precise fabrication and quality control
  • Consistent modular units across the entire façade
  • Rapid on-site assembly
  • A monolithic appearance despite modular construction
  • Reduced on-site concrete work

The concrete panels were designed to provide sun protection and visual depth through their articulation — each panel has a deep reveal that creates strong shadow lines across the façade.

The windows are dark tinted glass set in aluminum frames. The glass is deliberately dark, receding visually so that the concrete structure dominates the façade. This creates a strong contrast between solid (concrete) and void (glass), with the solid clearly dominant — a characteristic of Brutalist architecture.

The façade is organized in a strict modular grid:

  • 36 bays along the building's length
  • 13 bays along the sides
  • Consistent rhythm of concrete panels and windows across all faces

At the base, where the building meets the ground, thick concrete columns are visible — making the structural system legible and emphasizing the weight being transferred to the foundation.

The building has a flat roof — another modernist characteristic, rejecting traditional pitched roofs in favor of pure geometric form.

The design process and Mayor Lee's vision

The Armstrong building exists because of the architectural ambitions of New Haven's mayor, Richard C. Lee, who served from 1954 to 1970 and pursued an aggressive urban renewal program aimed at transforming New Haven into a model of modern American urbanism.

When Armstrong Rubber Company approached Lee in 1966 about building their headquarters in New Haven, Lee saw an opportunity. He agreed to facilitate the land acquisition — a prominent site visible from two interstate highways — on the condition that Armstrong hire a "world-renowned architect."

Armstrong initially proposed a conventional low-rise building. Lee pushed back, suggesting a building of eight to ten stories that would serve as an architectural landmark visible from the highways, announcing New Haven's architectural sophistication to passing motorists.

Breuer responded to this challenge with a design that went far beyond a simple tall building. Rather than creating a conventional office tower, he proposed the suspended structure — turning a functional requirement (acoustic isolation) into a dramatic architectural statement.

The design process involved close collaboration between:

  • Marcel Breuer and Robert F. Gatje (architects)
  • Armstrong's management (who needed to approve the unconventional design)
  • Mayor Lee's administration (who wanted architectural significance)
  • Structural engineers (who had to solve the unprecedented suspended floor system)

The result satisfied everyone: Armstrong got a building that functioned perfectly for their needs, Breuer got to realize one of his most dramatic structural concepts, and Mayor Lee got the landmark he wanted.

Armstrong's brief occupancy (1970–1988)

Armstrong Rubber Company occupied the building for only 18 years — a surprisingly short period given the building's custom design for their specific needs.

The building functioned exactly as intended during this period:

  • R&D labs on the ground and first floors developed new tire compounds and tested products
  • Administrative offices occupied the suspended floors above
  • The acoustic separation worked perfectly — office workers reported the building was remarkably quiet despite heavy industrial equipment operating two stories below
  • The building's prominent location on Interstate 95 gave Armstrong high visibility

However, by the mid-1980s, Armstrong was struggling financially. The American tire industry faced intense competition from foreign manufacturers, and Armstrong was losing market share. In 1988, the Italian tire manufacturer Pirelli purchased Armstrong Rubber Company, acquiring all its assets including the New Haven building.

Pirelli ownership and the "Pirelli Tire Building" (1988–1999)

When Pirelli purchased Armstrong in 1988, the building was renamed the Pirelli Tire Building — the name by which it's still most commonly known, despite this representing only 11 years of its 50+ year history.

Pirelli initially continued using the building for offices and some limited R&D functions, but the company's main North American operations were elsewhere. The building never fully functioned as Pirelli's headquarters in the way it had for Armstrong.

By the mid-1990s, Pirelli had decided the building no longer served their needs. In June 1999, Pirelli sold the property to developers who announced ambitious plans to build a large shopping mall on the site, with Nordstrom as one of the anchor tenants.

The announcement immediately triggered alarm among preservation groups and architects, who recognized the building's architectural significance and feared demolition.

The vacant years (1999–2019): preservation battles

From May 1999 onward, the building stood largely vacant for over two decades — one of the longest periods of abandonment for a significant modernist building in America.

Preservation efforts (1999–2000)

When the threat of demolition became clear, city officials, preservationists, and the New Haven Arts Council's Alliance for Architecture mobilized to protect the building. Their efforts led to the building being listed on the Connecticut Register of Historic Places in 2000.

This listing provided some protection, but not enough to prevent demolition if a developer was determined. Multiple planning inquiries were held as various proposals came forward.

Vandalism and neglect (1999–2003)

The vacant building became a target. In 1999, a vandal broke into the building and stole just $50 worth of copper piping, but caused thousands of dollars in damage in the process.

Preservation groups criticized the building's owners for allowing demolition by neglect — the practice of deliberately allowing a building to deteriorate so that demolition becomes the only economically viable option.

Occasional exhibition uses (2002, 2017)

Despite its vacancy, the building occasionally saw temporary uses:

  • In 2002, it hosted hundreds of artists as part of the annual "City-Wide Open Studios" event
  • In 2017, New Haven-born visual artist Tom Burr utilized the entire first floor for a conceptual art exhibition titled Body/Building

These temporary uses demonstrated the building's potential for adaptive reuse, but no permanent solution materialised.

IKEA purchase and partial demolition (2003)

In 2003, the furniture retailer IKEA purchased the site to build an adjacent store. IKEA announced plans to demolish approximately 64,000 square feet of the building's low-rise R&D base and replace it with 150 parking spaces.

The Long Wharf Advocacy Group — a local coalition — strongly opposed the demolition, arguing for alternatives that would better preserve the structure. The Connecticut chapter of the American Institute of Architects also criticised the plan.

Despite this opposition, IKEA proceeded with demolition in April 2003, destroying most of the low-rise laboratory section while sparing only the portion directly beneath the suspended offices. Critics argued this demolition "disrupted the intended asymmetrical visual balance of the structure" — Breuer had designed the building as a composition of two distinct masses, and removing most of one mass fundamentally altered the architectural composition.

IKEA's store opened in July 2004. The company used the remaining building and its freestanding sign structure to hang massive billboard-like advertisements facing Interstate 95 — an ironic fate for a building designed by one of modernism's masters.

Failed attempts at reuse (2003–2019)

Mall company Westfield America had purchased the site in March 2001, but their plans for a large shopping mall never materialized. The project was abandoned by 2000, and Westfield retained ownership for years without developing the site.

IKEA owned the building from 2003 to 2019, but never found a viable use for it. The company received multiple offers over the years but rejected them, finding none sufficiently promising.

By 2018, the building had been vacant for nearly 20 years — a derelict Brutalist monument slowly deteriorating beside a busy IKEA parking lot.

Rescue and transformation: Hotel Marcel (2019–2022)

In December 2019, Connecticut architect and developer Becker + Becker purchased the 2.76-acre property from IKEA for $1.2 million — a remarkably low price reflecting the building's derelict condition and uncertain future.

Bruce Becker announced an audacious plan: convert the building into a net-zero energy boutique hotel and conference center — the first hotel in the United States to generate all its own energy, and the first Passive House-certified hotel in the country.

IKEA, which had rejected several previous offers, was sufficiently encouraged by Becker's preservation-minded approach and sustainability goals to sell at a price that made the project financially viable.

The renovation (2020–2022)

The renovation, designed by Becker + Becker with interior design by Brooklyn-based Dutch East Design, focused on:

Exterior preservation:

  • New triple-glazed windows (replacing the original dark tinted single-pane glass)
  • Power-washing the concrete façade to restore its original appearance
  • Minimal exterior alterations, respecting Breuer's design

Interior transformation:

  • Complete reconfiguration of the floor plates for hotel use
  • 165 guest rooms distributed across the upper floors
  • Ground floor: lobby, restaurant (BLDG), bar, event space
  • Retention of some original features: granite floor tiles, wall tiles, original staircase, polished granite reception desk

Sustainability systems:

  • Rooftop solar panels + parking lot solar canopy
  • Total solar capacity: 700,000 kilowatt hours per year (enough to cover hotel's needs)
  • All-electric systems (no fossil fuels): heating, cooling, laundry, kitchens
  • Triple-glazed windows for thermal insulation
  • Battery storage system
  • 14 electric vehicle charging stations
  • Electric 14-passenger shuttle

Guest rooms:

  • Contrasting grays and walnut wood
  • Cesca chairs designed by Marcel Breuer (bringing the architect's furniture into his building)
  • Custom modular furniture by Dutch East Design
  • Largest rooms on eighth floor (former executive suites) with kitchenettes and soaking tubs
  • East-facing rooms: views over New Haven Harbor
  • West-facing rooms: views over New Haven skyline

The project cost approximately $50 million (exact figure not publicly disclosed).

Opening (May 2022)

Hotel Marcel opened on May 16, 2022, operated by Hilton's Tapestry brand. The name honors the building's architect.

The hotel immediately received widespread attention as:

  • The first Passive House-certified hotel in the United States
  • The first net-zero energy hotel in the country
  • A successful example of adaptive reuse of Brutalist architecture
  • A vindication of preservation efforts that had lasted over 20 years

Reception and significance

The Financial Times included Hotel Marcel in its "Architecture to see in 2023," praising it as "a striking Brutalist landmark" and a successful renovation comparable to the transformation of Breuer's 945 Madison Avenue building (now serving the Frick Collection).

The project demonstrates that even buildings once dismissed as "ugliest in the state" can find new life when approached with creativity, commitment, and sustainable design principles.

Becker + Becker's project manager, Violette de La Selle, oversaw the complex transformation, balancing historic preservation requirements, hotel operational needs, and ambitious sustainability goals.

National Register listing (2021)

The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2021 (National Register #100006186), shortly before the hotel conversion was completed.

The listing recognizes:

  • Architectural significance as a work by Marcel Breuer
  • Innovative structural system (suspended floors from cantilevered trusses)
  • Important example of Brutalist architecture
  • Role in New Haven's modernist building program under Mayor Richard C. Lee

The listing includes not only the main building but also the freestanding three-story concrete sign structure at the northeast corner — originally built to hold Armstrong's corporate signage, later used by Pirelli and IKEA for advertisements.

Public perception: "ugliest building" to celebrated landmark

The Armstrong building has had one of the most polarized receptions of any American building.

Critical acclaim:

  • Praised by architects and critics from its completion in 1970
  • Connecticut AIA chapter consistently defended the building
  • Preservation organization Docomomo (Documentation and Conservation of Buildings, Sites and Neighborhoods of the Modern Movement) listed it as a significant modernist building
  • National Register listing in 2021

Public criticism:

  • In 2018, Business Insider published a survey identifying the "ugliest building in every US state" — Connecticut residents chose the Pirelli/Armstrong building
  • Local TV station WTNH covered the story, sparking debate
  • The building's heavy concrete aesthetic, blank upper floor, and industrial character never gained popular affection

This tension reflects broader debates about Brutalist architecture:

  • Architects appreciate bold structural expression, honest materials, and sculptural form
  • General public often finds concrete buildings cold, forbidding, or ugly

The successful hotel conversion has begun shifting public perception — the building is now seen by many as a valuable landmark worth preserving, and the sustainability achievements have added a new layer of significance beyond pure architectural form.

Model-maker's lens

The Armstrong Rubber Company Building is architecture as engineering made visible — structure as sculpture, function as form.

  • Focus — the side elevation, showing the suspended upper block floating above the base with the dramatic 17-foot void between them. This is the building's essential idea: two masses, one held impossibly aloft. The void must be legible — it's not merely a recessed floor but empty space.
  • Detail — the rhythm of precast concrete panels creating a strict modular grid across the façade. The deep reveals of each panel creating shadow lines. The dark recessed windows. At model scale, we simplify individual panel joints but preserve the overall rhythm and the crucial relationship between solid and void.
  • How it reads at small scale — extraordinarily well, because the architecture is fundamentally about massing and proportion rather than surface ornament. The suspended block, the void, the heavy base — all of these read clearly at any scale. Simplified, the building becomes even more powerful: two horizontal masses, one floating above the other, separated by emptiness.
  • How to display — best viewed from the the front, where the cantilevers are fully visible and the structural drama is clearest. The building was designed to be seen from Interstate 95, viewed by passing motorists at speed, so it works well when the entire composition is visible at once. Directional lighting emphasises the depth of the void and the shadow lines of the precast panels. Natural or cool lighting suits the concrete's industrial character.

Modelling the Armstrong building is an exercise in understanding Brutalist monumentality and structural expression — how post-war modernists used concrete's mass and structural potential to create buildings that were simultaneously functional problem-solving and bold sculptural statements. The model captures Breuer's concept at the scale of an object you can hold: architecture as structure made visible, engineering as drama, concrete as the material that makes the impossible real.

The building's recent transformation into Hotel Marcel adds another layer to its story — demonstrating that even the most uncompromising modernist buildings can find new life when approached with creativity and commitment to sustainability. The model captures the building at the moment of its architectural conception — but carries forward a story of abandonment, rescue, and remarkable second life.

View the Armstrong Rubber Company Building architectural model

Frequently asked questions about the Armstrong Rubber Company Building

Who designed the Armstrong Rubber Company Building?

Marcel Breuer & Associates, with Robert F. Gatje as associate architect.

When was it built?

Designed 1967–68, constructed 1968–70, completed 1970.

Why is it called the Pirelli Tire Building?

Armstrong Rubber Company was purchased by Pirelli in 1988, and the building was renamed the Pirelli Tire Building. Pirelli owned it from 1988–1999. The building is now Hotel Marcel, but "Pirelli Tire Building" remains the most common name.

What is the suspended structure?

The building is divided into two parts: a two-story R&D base and a five-story administrative block suspended 17 feet above it, held aloft by seven 50-ton cantilevered steel trusses. The void between the two masses provides acoustic isolation and creates dramatic visual impact.

Why was it vacant for so long?

After Pirelli sold the building in 1999, it stood vacant for over 20 years due to unclear ownership, failed redevelopment plans, and the difficulty of finding a viable use for a large, architecturally uncompromising building.

What happened with IKEA?

IKEA purchased the site in 2003 and demolished approximately 64,000 square feet of the low-rise laboratory section to create parking for their adjacent store, which opened in 2004. IKEA owned the building until 2019 but never found a use for it.

What is Hotel Marcel?

The building was purchased by developer Becker + Becker in 2019 and converted into a 165-room hotel that opened in May 2022. It's the first Passive House-certified and first net-zero energy hotel in the United States.

What is net-zero energy?

The building generates all its own electricity through rooftop and parking lot solar panels (700,000 kWh annually), eliminating the need for fossil fuels.

Is the building listed?

Yes. Connecticut Register of Historic Places (2000) and National Register of Historic Places (2021).

Who was Robert F. Gatje?

Robert F. Gatje (1927–2018) was Marcel Breuer's closest collaborator from 1953 onward, serving as associate architect on most of Breuer's major projects including this building. His 2000 memoir Marcel Breuer: A Memoir provides detailed accounts of their work together.

Can I visit?

Yes. The building operates as Hotel Marcel (Hilton Tapestry Collection). The lobby, restaurant, and bar are accessible to the public. You can also stay in one of the guest rooms, many of which feature Cesca chairs designed by Marcel Breuer.

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Sources and further reading

  • National Register of Historic Places — "Armstrong Rubber Company Building," National Register #100006186 (listed 2021), nomination form available at https://portal.ct.gov/-/media/DECD/Historic-Preservation/06_About_SHPO/State-Review-Board/sept-18-2020/Armstrong-Rubber-Co-Building-NR.pdf
  • Wikipedia — "Hotel Marcel" at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotel_Marcel
  • Architectural Record — "A Marcel Breuer Classic Is Reimagined as a Net Zero–Energy Hotel" (2022) at architecturalrecord.com
  • Isabelle Hyman — Marcel Breuer, Architect: The Career and the Buildings (Harry N. Abrams, 2001) — comprehensive monograph, pages 268–269
  • Robert Gatje — Marcel Breuer: A Memoir (Monacelli Press, 2000) — by Breuer's longtime associate
  • Architectural Forum — July/August 1969, page 95, available at https://usmodernist.org/AF/AF-1969-07-08.pdf (original publication contemporary with construction)
  • The New York Times — C.J. Hughes, "The View/From New Haven; As a Business Sets Up, A Group Takes Steps To Preserve a Landmark" (January 26, 2003) at nytimes.com
  • CNN Travel — Adeline Chen, "This revived architectural landmark could be the first net-zero hotel in the US" at cnn.com/travel
  • Financial Times — Edwin Heathcote, "Architecture to see in 2023" (December 28, 2022) at ft.com
  • Vogue — "In New Haven, a Landmark Brutalist Building Becomes America's First Fossil Fuel-Free Hotel" (July 26, 2022) at vogue.com
  • Hyperallergic — "Placing Pieces of Local History in an Empty Marcel Breuer Building" (August 10, 2017) at hyperallergic.com
  • Business Insider — Leanna Garfield, "The ugliest building in every US state, according to people who live there" (2018) at businessinsider.com
  • The Architect's Newspaper — "The retool of an aging Marcel Breuer showstopper takes the high road" (May 7, 2021) at archpaper.com
  • Daily Nutmeg — "Checking It Out: Hotel Marcel" (August 11, 2022) at dailynutmeg.com
  • New Haven Register — multiple articles 1999–2022 documenting the building's history, vacancy, and hotel conversion (archives available via NewsBank)
  • Hotel Marcel official website — hotelmarcel.com (includes history and sustainability information)