Philadelphia-based Hillier Architecture is the master architect, which is joined by Venturi, Scott-Brown & Associates and Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, which are also based in Philadelphia, and the Cambridge, MA-based Gund Partnership. Philip Dordai, Hillier managing principal, tells GlobeSt.com, "Episcopal wanted signature buildings. A large campus built over time has buildings by many different hands. This is an opportunity to design from a clean sheet of paper and draw from a diverse spectrum of architectural and design philosophies, but also provide some commonality of materials and systems. There will be different looking buildings that work together from an esthetic and operational perspective."
Hillier has responsibility for all documentation. The entire project has an aggregate of 396,295 sf, which includes renovation of four existing small buildings aggregating 23,305 sf. "It's been a very collaborative process," Dordai says, and tells GlobeSt.com that Hillier neither wanted nor had design veto power.
He credits the academy's board with bringing sophisticated input to the process. The determination of which firm designed which buildings was based on each firm's previous works and areas of expertise.
Led by Dordai and Nicholas Garrison, the firm's design principal, Hillier has designed four of the new buildings and is also renovating the four existing ones. New construction includes a 64,130-sf lower school, 33,780-sf middle school, 39,220-sf upper school and 30,170-sf science center. An existing 7,935-sf mansion will be converted to an alumni center; a 695-sf farmhouse will become a facilities office, and a 10,700-sf former dairy barn and 3,975-sf tractor barn will be converted for equipment and administrative uses. "We felt that preserving these quite nice old structures and barns would be a better fit with the countryside than new construction," Dordai says.
Robert Venturi, a 1944 Episcopal graduate, designed the 16,000-sf chapel, using a design he actually created for the academy as his senior thesis while at Princeton University. The chapel is seen as the heart of the new campus, and John Hunter of Venturi, Scott-Brown is the project architect.
Gund previously developed an initial campus master plan before the academy approached Hillier. Led by managing principal John Prokos, Gund has designed the 80,540-sf campus center, which includes a 600-seat, multi-purpose courtyard-style theater, black-box theater, dining rooms, library, visual arts center and art studios.
Bernard Cywinski is principal in charge of BCJ's 109,150-sf athletic center. It will contain a gymnasium, three-court field house, 10 squash courts, fitness center, dance studio, wrestling room and indoor competition pool. Adjacent this building is an eight-lane outdoor track and nine athletic fields.
A group of Episcopal alumni acquired 223 acres in 2001 for $32 million, according to a spokesman for the academy, who tells GlobeSt.com that the school then sold approximately 100 acres to a residential homebuilder. Founded in 1785, the academy has an enrollment of 1,100 male and female students ranging from pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. The new campus is expected to open in fall 2008.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free ALM Digital Reader.
Once you are an ALM Digital Member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking commercial real estate news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical coverage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
*May exclude premium content© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
