Town & Gown

As colleges and institutions are confronted by rapid shifts in technology and increasingly blurred boundaries of knowledge, the challenges facing campuses grow more complex. Not only have the interests of universities and society become more intertwined, campuses have developed more complex relationships both with other institutions and the world of private development.

We believe that no university is an island.

no university is an island

Our experience in the world of urban development has shown us how cities and universities can be designed together for mutual advantage. The character that an institution develops is often influenced by its relationship with its surrounding community. In turn, how a campus’ edges are conceived is critical to establishing the institution’s relationship with the city. Our work in dense urban communities like New Brunswick and New York’s East Village has helped institutions like Rutgers University and Cooper Union address complex issues like air rights, transit connections, and student housing, ultimately leveraging the intensely symbiotic relationships between institutions and their surrounding communities.