In 2015, MBB completed a 10-year, $177 million restoration and renovation of St. Patrick's Cathedral in midtown Manhattan, including the addition of a geothermal heating and cooling system.[2][3] New York Magazine's architecture critic, Justin Davidson, wrote that “The result is so conspicuously glorious that it makes Rockefeller Center look suddenly shabby by comparison.”[4] According to Davidson, “The most impressive tasks aren’t even visible: replacing the entire cooling and heating system and hooking them up to geothermal wells that have been sunk up to 2,200 feet below Manhattan’s asphalt crust.”[4]
In 2025, the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission moved to new offices and public meeting spaces in the historic Home Life Building, renovated by MBB to include a wood-ceilinged hearing room and "pointillist supergraphics of notable landmarks on conference room walls."[5] One critic praised the "light and internal transparency" of the public areas[5] The chair of the commission, Sarah Carroll, said the design "highlights how New York’s historic buildings can be thoughtfully updated to meet modern needs."[5]
In 2021, the firm completed a three-year restoration and renovation of Trinity Church Wall Street, which The New York Times called “a shining example of stewardship.”[6] In addition to restoring the historic interiors and uncovering hidden windows,[7] the project improved the church's accessibility, acoustics and energy performance.[8] According to Traditional Building Magazine, "One of the more innovative designs involves the ADA lift, which is seamlessly tucked behind a pair of movable sedilia chairs on the chancel."[9] MBB also renovated the historic Park Avenue Synagogue in collaboration with Judaica expert Amy Reichert.[10][11]
In 2017 the firm renovated the historic Billie Holiday Theatre in Brooklyn, which U.S. President Joe Biden later called "an incredible place" that is "nurturing a new generation of Black playwrights, performers."[12] Notable education design projects include NYU Abu Dhabi Institute at 19 Washington Square North in New York City; Public School 330[13] in Queens, New York City, built around a glass-enclosed “gymnatorium”;[14] a rooftop athletic center addition to the Grace Church School; an educational green roof at PS 41 Greenwich Village School;[15] and the renovation and expansion of St. Hilda's & St. Hugh's School,[16] where the firm "scrutinized every bit of space from basement to roof to maximize programmatic use."[17]
The firm's 2003 Habitat for Humanity Row Houses in the Bronx were described as "well-designed, dignified and enhancing the urban streetscape" by The New York Times.[18] Another civic housing design, a post-disaster module made of "mold-resistant boating and surfer materials," was selected as a finalist in a 2008 competition organized by New York City's Office of Emergency Management.[19] The firm's design for a net zero energy library in California received an award from the American Institute of Architects, California.[20] Sara Grant, a partner in the firm who works on inclusive design strategies, wrote in a 2023 op-ed, "When we set aside preconceptions about differently abled and non-neurotypical learners, we discover new possibilities."[21]