Inspired by the elegant apartments on Broadway and Riverside Drive, the new 110th Street Columbia apartment building and K-8 school, designed by Beyer Blinder Belle architects, will blend into historic Morningside Heights.

Construction of the new University faculty apartment building and the Columbia University School for grades K-8 is expected to begin at the southeast corner of 110th Street and Broadway in November. Demolition of the existing two-story building begins this month, followed by site excavation. The 12-story building will be open for occupancy in fall 2003.

As construction nears, ongoing meetings with representatives from the University and construction management firm are keeping area residents informed on construction planning and progress.

Over the past year and a half, University administrators and staff have consulted with area residents in planning and designing a new building that would be a contribution to the neighborhood in both form and function. More than 50 meetings with community groups and residents either hosted or attended by the University provided forums where design comments and construction concerns of neighborhood residents could be heard and addressed. The University also presented information about the project at two public meetings of the Board of Standards and Appeals (BSA). The BSA approval was required for the zoning variances that would allow the University to design a shorter building with features contextual to Morningside Heights architecture, and better space for retail, residential living and state-of-the-art elementary education. The variances were endorsed by area community boards and approved by the BSA this summer.

"While we recognize that there are many concerns about this project, we have, from its inception, consulted with the community not only on design, but on a broad range of issues, and I think we have been able to respond to many of the concerns and suggestions in a positive way," said Emily Lloyd, executive vice president for administration. "We believe the result is a better building--one that will contribute to the architectural fabric of Morningside Heights and be an asset to the community. I know that many of the community residents who were involved feel, as we do, that this project shows our commitment to balance our institution needs with the concerns of our neighbors."

With 27 apartments on the 6th through the 12th floors and a K-8 school with a gym and outdoor playgrounds on the second through the 6th floors, the 167,00 sq. foot building will help the University respond to the need for both additional housing to recruit and retain faculty and for better school choices in the neighborhood, which have both been growing issues among faculty. The building will also contain ground floor space for a grocery store and the Chase Manhattan Bank, a tenant currently on the site. D'Agostino's Market, a tenant of the old building on the site, which closed this August, has been asked by Columbia to return to the new building upon its completion.

A design that complements Morningside Heights

Beyer Blinder Belle architects, renowned for developing buildings that bridge classic historic preservation with creative contemporary design, were hired to develop a distinctive building inspired by the elegant apartment buildings on Broadway and Riverside Drive.

"By shaping and sizing the building appropriately, one of the most difficult and often most contentious elements in new building became a non-issue. The result is a building that in height, bulk, setback and materials, refers to those around it," said Jack Beyer, of Beyer Blinder Belle architects, who noted that in addition to reduced height and the addition of historic façade features, the school's learning space, centered around classroom "clusters," was greatly improved through building variances.

Building architects used vertical and horizontal elements in the design, rosy-colored brick playing off limestone bands and lines of windows of differing sizes, to help pick up the distinctive design of Morningside Heights buildings and to visually differentiate between the building's three distinct functions. Retail, the elementary school and residential living are each reflected in the design, but blend together as parts of the whole.

Bringing better safety and services to a neighborhood in transition

Through ongoing dialogue between Columbia and neighborhood residents, the University identified current problems and helped bring positive changes to the area surrounding the block while planning for the building was underway. Columbia petitioned the Department of Transportation to improve the timing of the traffic lights at the intersection of 110th and Broadway to make it safer. The University dedicated a townhouse adjacent to the site to be preserved as housing for non-Columbia affiliates from the neighborhood when renovation is complete. And with the closure of D'Agostino's Market this summer, a University shuttle began to run regularly between the 110th St. site and D'Agostino's at 91st and Columbus Avenue to accommodate D'Agostino's grocery shoppers during construction. Even with the Columbia University School's opening two years away, planning and preparation included the decision to stagger drop off and pick up times for elementary students to ease potential traffic congestion.

A new elementary school with curricular innovation and space to neighborhood

In addition to allocating both seats and financial aid for neighborhood children, the Columbia University School will offer both after school and summer programs open to non-Columbia affiliates. Approximately half of the 650 students will be the children of Columbia faculty and professional staff, with the balance coming from the larger community.

An innovative "lab school," the Columbia University School will integrate new learning technologies with more traditional instructional and curricular approaches to create a challenging, creative and nurturing educational experience for students from diverse economic, ethnic, racial, social and cultural backgrounds. A University Advisory Committee, including Columbia faculty and administrators, has been formed to contribute to the School's planning and policy development and to suggest ways that the University and the K-8 school can be closely connected.

The Columbia University School will be a lab school where newly developed curriculum, learning strategies and resources will be implemented and later shared with local public schools. This new collaboration between the School and area public schools will supplement ongoing programs with New York City public schools already underway in a number of University departments and schools.

"We see this as a genuine lab school where materials developed will then be shared with the public schools," said Assistant Provost Gardner Dunnan, who will head up the school when it opens fall 2003. "In order to be successful we must be a true lab school, with a student body that reflects the diversity of New York City, and we will be."

Neighborhood residents who seek information on the project's construction can contact Columbia's construction helpline at 854-2595 or email projx@columbia.edu

Parents seeking information about the Columbia University School, can contact Assistant Provost Gardner Dunnan at 854-2516 or gpd6@columbia.edu