Cornell Tech Moves Forward

Cornell Tech is a $2 billion, four-phase, 12-acre campus master planned by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, with buildings in the first phase designed by Morphosis (The Bloomberg Center), Weiss/Manfredi (The Bridge at Cornell NYC Tech), and Handel Architects (Residential Tower), and an open space designed by James Corner Field Operations. The first phase of the campus is due to open in 2017.

The Bridge broke ground on June 16, the day after former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced a $100 million donation for campus construction (the building designed by Morphosis will bear the name of his two daughters, Emma and Georgina). According to Cornell, the Bridge "will be a first-of-its-kind building that will house an ecosystem of companies, researchers and entrepreneurs who are focused on catalyzing innovation and the commercialization of new products and technologies." Weiss/Manfredi's design "is a crystalline incubator with river-to-river views and ... a three-dimensional crossroads," according to partners Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi.

Plans for Cornell Tech's residential building were announced the week before, focusing on the school's assertion that "it will become the first high-rise residential building in the world built to Passive House standards ... the strict international building standard that drastically reduces energy consumption while creating a healthier and more comfortable living environment." New York City has seen a growing trend in Passive House construction, but most of has centered on single-family homes and low-rise apartment buildings. The Passive House residential building will contain 350 residential units on 26 floors.