The University took a significant step forward in the effort to redesign the College Avenue campus Dec. 13 when University President Richard L. McCormick announced the winner of the contest to undertake the project.
In a press conference on the fall semester's last day of classes, McCormick announced Enrique Norten, principal architect of Mexico City-based TEN Arquitectos would lead the multiyear redesign effort, along with Ignacio Bunster-Ossa of the Wallace, Roberts & Todd firm.
"This was a competition of ideas," McCormick said. "We asked to be dazzled and we were."
The project, called "A New Vision for the College Avenue Campus," was initiated in February of 2005. McCormick worked in conjunction with New Brunswick Mayor Jim Cahill, who was also present at the announcement.
The redesign seeks to change the face of College Avenue, and aims to create a more welcoming and open campus.
The design Norten submitted featured a large, cylindrical glass building, surrounded by sprawling lawns. A building would feature a look out onto the Raritan River, via an underground dining hall with a view. The design also featured houses for visiting faculty.
However, officials said previously it is unlikely any design will be lifted directly. Instead, amendments are very possible.
Originally, 40 different architectural teams were selected to further compete as possible candidates for the position. Out of the 40, five were selected as finalists. The final five were then able to submit their design proposals, which were reviewed by a jury of 15 members, which was comprised of industry professionals and community members, including Cahill. He expressed his happiness in working closely with the University to benefit both Rutgers and New Brunswick.
"Our ability to engage with the University bodes very well for the community," Cahill said. "We are working on rebuilding a 'Town and Gown' relationship between the city and Rutgers."
Norten and Bunster-Ossa also spoke at the conference.
"It is a great honor to accept these responsibilities," Norten said. He was especially drawn to the University by its location and proximity to the Raritan River, he said. One of Norten's main goals is to bring the campus together with the river.
"The opportunity has been there for years," he said.
Bunster-Ossa congratulated both the president and the mayor on their commitment to the project.
The project already has $15 million allotted for its initial phase. First to be transformed are public and pedestrian areas, and the money will allow for dramatic impact in the short term, McCormick said.
Regarding Livingston campus, McCormick said the University will break ground on the expansion to its student center sometime in 2007, but specific plans for the renovation have yet to be announced.
"Livingston has especially high priority," McCormick said. He added that the campus has possibly the most potential of all the campuses in New Brunswick, due to its large quantity of undeveloped space and undeveloped academic climate.
Students should be able to see changes on College Avenue in as early as one year, as the University embarks on one of its largest redesign projects in years.
McCormick's decision to retain a Mexico City-based design firm drew the ire of a few members of the state Legislature.
According to a Dec. 31 article in The New York Times, three state legislators signed a letter to McCormick "to express our outrage" that McCormick did not choose a firm based in New Jersey based in New Jersey or elsewhere in the region.
The legislators, according to the article, wrote, ''While we do not doubt the firm's capabilities to do the work, we object to their selection based on the fact that numerous firms within our state and region are just as capable and would therefore warrant selection instead.''
The letter was signed by state Sen. Stephen M. Sweeney and Assemblymen John J. Burzichelli and Douglas H. Fisher, all Democrats.
University spokesman Greg Trevor said by phone last week that Rutgers respects the legislators' opinions, but will stand by McCormick's decision to have TEN Arquitectos head the redesign project.
While the firm is based in Mexico City, it also has an office in New York City, as well as roots in the region: Norton, the firm's principal architect, teaches at the University of Pennsylvania's Department of Architecture in its Graduate School of Fine Arts.
One of the firms with which TEN Arquitectos will work in redesigning the College Avenue campus is Green Shield Ecology Inc, a Bridgewater-based group specializing in landscape restoration, according to a University statement.
-Joseph Shure
contributed to this article
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