Page 7 - spaces4learning, November/December 2019

driving some discussions about the future of historic structures on campuses today. As Piscuskas puts it, “Colleges and universities are taking a hard look at historic facilities in an effort to optimize ex- isting resources. In terms of budgets, environmental resources, and the importance of campus character, there is good reason to find value in older buildings rather than razing them to start anew.”
Finding such value is one thing. Making it a reality is another. The fact is that the historic nature of much of the high-profile Phil- adelphia campus required a careful balance between a venerable architectural past and a strategic future. Piscuskas explains that the university “has a long and distinguished record of architectur- al stewardship. Rather than freezing its campus in one historical style, it looks for buildings that not only perform, but [also] con- tribute distinction and texture to its beautifully layered campus.”
He continues, “In the case of Perry World House, the historical cottage is part of what makes the building perform: by providing two smaller interior spaces—the lower-floor lounge and the upper-floor conference room—and by maintaining the image of a house as a reg- ister of the site’s residential history.” In a sense, the adaptive reuse project was not about choosing the past or the future, but about em- bracing them both to make something new and relevant.
The building, as Piscuskas says, merges “internal reflection with progressive outreach, so even as it refers to the site’s history by including the historical cottage in its function and form, the building is focused on the future.”
Finding Fresh Purpose for Existing Spaces
Not far from Philadelphia, a very different building has brought a bold new life to an historic building at Haverford Col- lege. There, long-term changes in enrollment and campus build- ings, including the construction of an athletic center and the crafting of a master plan, presented planners with various options for the pre-existing Ryan Gymnasium, housed in a building from around 1900. Campus stakeholders saw in the centrally located building “great potential” and “real opportunity” for a new set of functions, reports David Harrower, assistant director of Facilities Management for Planning and Design.
The campus forged ahead with a project, completed in 2017, that the architect, Minneapolis-based MSR Design, has called “an epic makeover,” which turned the gym into a center for “hands-
Photos Credit Peter Aaron / Courtesy of 1100 Architect
NOV/DEC 2019 7