Albany Hive Wins Three Prizes at 2025 SEGD Awards

Albany Hive received three awards at the 2025 SEGD Global Design Awards, which honor design excellence that connects people to place through storytelling, meaning, and impact. Since 1987, the SEGD Global Design Awards have celebrated innovative projects shaping how people engage with the built environment. This year, SEGD received 284 entries from 151 firms, with 30 projects ultimately selected for awards. “Winning projects highlight the breadth of our community—from deeply researched approaches that prove design’s impact beyond beauty, to work that advances equity, sustainability, and a more connected world,” said SEGD CEO Cybelle Jones.

Albany Hive (“the Hive“) is a collaboration between 518 SNUG, Albany & Troy Lions Club, Albany Victory Gardens, Bridge Tha Gap, the City of Albany, Grateful Villages, Rensselaer School of Architecture, Stantec, The Urban Conga, and Van Alen Institute.

This uplifting new shared space on a city-owned alley at Quail St and 1st St in the city’s West Hill neighborhood. Co-designed with West Hill residents, the Hive reflects the alley’s function as a community hub, buzzing with locally-led activities. Six beehive-inspired sculptures in vibrant blue and yellow will include built-in seating elements and polycarbonate panels to host community-made artwork. They’re paired with new planters and swales that help absorb rainwater and an enhanced pathway with improved lighting, access, and drainage.

At the 2025 SEGD Awards, the Hive received three honors:

• Sylvia Harris Award, recognizing designs that exemplify an unerring commitment to improve the civic experience—advancing social impact through community engagement, equity, and accessibility
• Life-Centered Design Award, honoring one project that demonstrates exceptional leadership in advancing environmental stewardship, equity, and human well-being through design—embodying SEGD’s commitment to a more sustainable and inclusive world
• Merit Award, acknowledging artful conception and creative solutions in experience design projects

The jury noted that “The Hive is well-deserving of the Sylvia Harris Award, designed by and for the community and brought to life by vibrant programming which catalyzes change in the low-income neighborhood. The design is also thoughtful with a modular system, allowing for a great range of activities to take place on these platforms.”

They added, “The Hive is a testament to the power of community organizing and local leadership in communities where quality design is often deprioritized. This project demonstrates the best use of resources, personifying ‘a lot with a little’—resulting in a high-quality place and design. This project is worthy of the Sylvia Harris Award for its clear social impact, the physical transformation of the site, and the integration of cultural and natural beauty for the community.”

Congratulations to our Hive coalition for this well-deserved honor!