Built to Succeed: New York University

New York University (NYU) has chosen Washington, D.C., as the location for its arts/science program, which will be housed in a new 75,000-square-foot build-to-suit facility at 1307 L Street N.W.

The D.C. branch, to be completed in August 2012, will be a mixed-use facility targeting LEED gold certification with space for academic programs, support staff, lobbyists and student residence halls.

Five floors of residence halls feature four-person suites, provided with shading and privacy through an energy-efficient external screening system. The design team wanted to create equitable living spaces despite the challenges of this narrow, 60-foot-wide site.

A balcony runs along the building facade outside the reading room, visually separating the residence halls from the academic areas below. The balcony, along with an interconnecting staircase running from the first-floor student lounge to the academic areas, helps characterize the building as an institutional space thriving with public activity.

Hickok Cole Architects (Washington, D.C.) is architect for the project.