The Washington University Board of Trustees have approved a $240M transformation of the Danforth Campus east end. The vision mirrors that posted on this site in October of last year (Washington University Set for Major Transformation of Danforth Campus). Groundbreaking is set for spring 2017, with completion planned for spring 2019.
The overall vision remains the same as detailed previously, a 790-space underground parking facility, closing Hoyt and Brookings Drives, adding Weil and Jubel Hall, and creating an expansive multi-use green space. Moore Ruble Yudell will design engineering’s Jubel Hall, and KieranTimberlake is designing Weil Hall, as well as the glass pavilions, a signature style of that firm. The Central Green is designed by Michael Vergason Landscape Architects and McCarthy will manage the project’s overall construction.
Aesthetically, the biggest change is the insertion of two glass pavilions, the Welcome Center and the Hub, near access to underground parking and atop existing Hoyt Drive. According to the university, one will serve as undergraduate admissions and general welcome center, while the other will including dining services, showers, changing rooms, and academic and office space. Missing from the more refined vision are additional buildings for the School of Engineering and Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts.
{overview of east campus vision from previous planning}
{Brookings Hall from the Central Green looking southwest}
{the project includes 790 underground parking spaces – shown here with dotted line}
{parking garage entrances and car turnarounds will be accessed from Forsyth Avenue and Forest Park Parkway}
{two glass pavilions will anchor the north and south of the Central Green}
{underground parking model from previous campus planning}
{early campus planning envisions a more complete east end}
Key components of the plan approved by university trustees are:
- Henry A. and Elvira H. Jubel Hall — Set to house the School of Engineering & Applied Science’s Department of Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science (MEMS), Jubel Hall will offer infrastructure and research facilities that are key to fostering the interdisciplinary nature of engineering.
- Anabeth and John Weil Hall — Weil Hall will be a symbol of the university’s commitment to creativity in the 21st century and will identify the Sam Fox School as a leader in design practice and education. This new front door to the Sam Fox School will express the important roles for art and architecture in a research university and will help guide the future of these disciplines.
- Welcome Center and the Hub: Two new interdisciplinary pavilions framing Brookings Hall — The Welcome Center will offer all visitors a home base for their campus experience and will house Undergraduate Admissions. The Hub, open to the campus and broader communities, will bring together dining, alternative transportation support and academic programming.
- Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum lobby and gallery — An addition on the north side of the Kemper Art Museum will establish a transparent and welcoming entry for the community as well as create additional gallery space to showcase a larger portion of the museum’s renowned collection. The project also will include renovations integrating the Florence Steinberg Weil Sculpture Garden into the landscape of the east end of the Danforth Campus.
- Underground parking facility — A nearly 800-space underground parking garage will allow for the elimination of surface parking and vehicular traffic from the east end of the Danforth Campus, make it possible for the building and landscaping projects to proceed, and ensure a safer and more pleasant experience across campus for pedestrians and bicycle traffic.
- Transformative landscape — The new east end of the Danforth Campus will offer both a welcoming entrance and places to gather and celebrate. Landscaping will honor the historical design of the Danforth Campus and offer an enhanced, tree-lined frame of Brookings Hall while improving pedestrian access into and across the Danforth Campus. The landscape design will bring most of the east end to the same elevation, limiting the need for stairs and ramps and offering a more accessible entrance to the university. At the heart of the new development of the east end of the Danforth Campus will be a beautiful and inviting new campus gathering place, the Central Green.
