Syracuse University is one step closer to selecting a world-class partner to conceptualize, design, and construct the new National Veterans Resource Complex (NVRC). The NVRC Selection Committee, made up of faculty, staff, students, and design professionals, recently reviewed the qualifications of 28 of the world’s foremost architecture firms. After careful consideration, the Selection Committee has selected three finalists to advance to the final round of the competition. The finalists are: Adjaye Associates; SHoP; and Snohetta. Notably, each of these firms is among the seven finalists currently vying for the opportunity to design the Obama Presidential Library in Chicago.
Directing the design competition on behalf of Syracuse University is Martha Thorne, dean of the IE School of Architecture and Design in Madrid. Thorne also serves as the executive director of the Pritzker Prize—the architecture award equivalent to the Nobel Prize.
“The three finalist firms and their teams are outstanding,” says Thorne. “I have no doubt they will propose ideas that go beyond traditional academic buildings and make the NVRC a pioneering facility that will contribute to the University, as well as the broader community.”
A first-of-its-kind, multi-use facility, the NVRC will serve as the enduring home of the University’s Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF), which has served more than 48,000 veterans and military families. The NVRC will offer state-of-the-art vocational and educational programs designed to advance the economic success of the region’s and the nation’s veterans and military families. The structure itself will include classroom spaces to accommodate local and national veteran-focused programming, along with a conference center and roughly 1,000-seat auditorium suitable to host community activities, lectures, and national convening events and conferences. The facility is also expected to include gallery space exhibiting the University’s storied legacy of serving America’s veterans. Designed as a LEED-certified facility and constructed in accordance with Universal Design practices, the NVRC will be an inclusive facility that welcomes and accommodates veterans and visitors with disabilities.
As part of the design competition process, the selected firms will collaborate with the School of Architecture to present lectures – about their firms and their past work – to the campus community. These lectures are tentatively scheduled to take place in March, and will be open to the general public.
The firms will return to campus in April to present their final proposals to the Selection Committee. The winning firm will be announced in May.
Related Stories
| Aug 9, 2016
Top 70 University Engineering Firms
AECOM, WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff, and Jacobs top Building Design+Construction’s annual ranking of the nation’s largest university sector engineering and E/A firms, as reported in the 2016 Giants 300 Report.
K-12 Schools | Aug 4, 2016
First Look: New Sandy Hook Elementary School blends safety and nature
The new Sandy Hook Elementary School has been carefully designed with state-of-the-art safety measures to keep students safe.
| Aug 1, 2016
K-12 SCHOOL GIANTS: In a new era of K-12 education, flexibility is crucial to design
Space flexibility is critical to classroom design. Spaces have to be adaptable, even allowing for drastic changes such as a doubling of classroom size.
| Aug 1, 2016
Top 80 K-12 School Construction Firms
Gilbane, Balfour Beatty, and Core Construction head Building Design+Construction’s annual ranking of the nation’s largest K-12 school sector construction and construction management firms, as reported in the 2016 Giants 300 Report.
| Aug 1, 2016
Top 60 K-12 School Engineering Firms
AECOM, Jacobs, and STV top Building Design+Construction’s annual ranking of the nation’s largest K-12 school sector engineering and E/A firms, as reported in the 2016 Giants 300 Report.
| Aug 1, 2016
Top 100 K-12 School Architecture Firms
DLR Group, Stantec, and Huckabee top Building Design+Construction’s annual ranking of the nation’s largest K-12 school sector architecture and A/E firms, as reported in the 2016 Giants 300 Report.
University Buildings | Jul 22, 2016
Fast-growing UC Merced will double in size by 2020
The state’s Board of Regents has approved a $1.34 billion plan that would add nearly 1.2 million sf of new space.
Education Facilities | Jun 1, 2016
Gensler reveals designs for 35-acre AltaSea Campus at the Port of Los Angeles
New and renovated facilities will help researchers, educators, and visitors better understand the ocean.
Education Facilities | Apr 22, 2016
Developers announce updates for Schuylkill Yards, Philadelphia’s new innovation hub
Drexel University's $3.5 billion project will have mixed-use buildings, residential spaces, and educational and research facilities.
Education Facilities | Mar 28, 2016
Steven Holl wins invited competition to design Rubenstein Commons
The new Rubenstein Commons will be a 20,000-sf structure at the center of the campus for the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, N.J.
