The New York City Council voted today to approve a major expansion of Fordham University's campus south of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.
According to an article in the on-line edition of Crain's by Theresa Agovino, "the vote was practically guaranteed since earlier this month Gale Brewer, D-Manhattan, who represents the Upper West side neighborhood, extracted some concessions from the school to win her support."
"She negotiated to reduce the heights of the buildings that Fordham will erect. She also got the school to agree to build a public atrium on Columbus Avenue and an escalator to lift people to elevated public open space," the article maintained.
"The first phase of the plan," according to the article, "includes construction of a new law school, including a dormitory on its upper floors. The remainder of the initial phase includes a new student center, dormitory and interim public park/plaza on Columbus Avenue. Eventually, the school will build a Graduate School of Business Administration with dormitory space; a Graduate Schools of Social Services and Education with dormitory space; a new space for the Quinn Library; and a Theatre for the Dramatic Arts."
The campus was initially designed to serve about 3,500 students on a site between West 60th and West 62nd Streets and Amsterdam and Columbus Avenues and the expansion, which will take place over about 25 years, will permit it to serve more than 10,000 students.
Despite strong opposition from Community Board 7, which had unanimously voted against the project in January, the City Planning Commission approved the university's plans in April unanimously.
The revised plan approved in April cut 206,000 square feet from the 3 million square foot proposal by lowering some building heights and moving some floor space below ground and eliminated 56 percent of the planned parking spaces.
The expansion will significantly change the ambiance of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts just to the north as the university's site will love a great deal of its substantial open space and sprout six new large towers.
According to an article in the on-line edition of Crain's by Theresa Agovino, "the vote was practically guaranteed since earlier this month Gale Brewer, D-Manhattan, who represents the Upper West side neighborhood, extracted some concessions from the school to win her support."
"She negotiated to reduce the heights of the buildings that Fordham will erect. She also got the school to agree to build a public atrium on Columbus Avenue and an escalator to lift people to elevated public open space," the article maintained.
"The first phase of the plan," according to the article, "includes construction of a new law school, including a dormitory on its upper floors. The remainder of the initial phase includes a new student center, dormitory and interim public park/plaza on Columbus Avenue. Eventually, the school will build a Graduate School of Business Administration with dormitory space; a Graduate Schools of Social Services and Education with dormitory space; a new space for the Quinn Library; and a Theatre for the Dramatic Arts."
The campus was initially designed to serve about 3,500 students on a site between West 60th and West 62nd Streets and Amsterdam and Columbus Avenues and the expansion, which will take place over about 25 years, will permit it to serve more than 10,000 students.
Despite strong opposition from Community Board 7, which had unanimously voted against the project in January, the City Planning Commission approved the university's plans in April unanimously.
The revised plan approved in April cut 206,000 square feet from the 3 million square foot proposal by lowering some building heights and moving some floor space below ground and eliminated 56 percent of the planned parking spaces.
The expansion will significantly change the ambiance of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts just to the north as the university's site will love a great deal of its substantial open space and sprout six new large towers.
Architecture Critic
Carter Horsley
Since 1997, Carter B. Horsley has been the editorial director of CityRealty. He began his journalistic career at The New York Times in 1961 where he spent 26 years as a reporter specializing in real estate & architectural news. In 1987, he became the architecture critic and real estate editor of The New York Post.
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