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Vol. LXII, No. 19
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Wednesday, May 7, 2008
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Vol. LXII, No. 19
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Wednesday, May 7, 2008
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Ron McCoy, the Princeton graduate alumnus who has been selected as the new Princeton University architect, envisions the 10-year Campus Plan he will oversee in terms of how it “resonates with the traditional.”
In an interview Monday, Mr. McCoy mentioned campus buildings that embody the balance he has in mind, among them Rafael Vi–oly’s Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics and Michael Dennis’s Bloomberg Hall, “another good blend of the contemporary with the traditional.” He also singled out the recently completed Whitman College designed by Demetri Porphyrios as “a remarkably well done contemporary in the collegiate Gothic mold.”
Mr. McCoy admits to a proprietary fondness for the Lewis Thomas Laboratory, having served as the project architect when he was with Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates of Philadelphia. He joined Venturi after receiving his master of architecture degree from Princeton in 1980 and working as a project designer with Princeton architect Michael Graves.
Currently the university architect at Arizona State University and a professor in its School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, Mr. McCoy will succeed Jon Hlafter, who retired after 40 years at Princeton. His appointment will be effective this summer.
A sketch of Mr. McCoy in action is provided by a recent article in the Chronicle of Higher Education describing him as “the one person at Arizona State who can look at all the puzzle pieces — the hodgepodge of existing structures and spaces, the flashy new buildings by different architecture firms, the lush new landscapes by various designers—and try to make sure they all come together into places that look and feel and work like campuses.”
According to Michael McKay, Princeton’s Vice President for Facilities, to whom Mr. McCoy will report, “it was absolutely clear to all of us who met Ron that he has the experience, intellect and approach we were seeking in the person who will fill this critical role. One of the key attributes necessary in this position is to be able to make decisions based on over 260 years of campus evolution while understanding how those decisions affect -- and will be viewed by -- future generations.”
As University architect, Mr. McCoy will be responsible for working closely with others to implement the University’s new 10-year Campus Plan and to execute the 10-year capital program. He will have a key role in matters of aesthetics and the preservation of the University’s architectural heritage, including leading the process of selecting other architects and consultants. In addition, he will play a major role in representing the University in relationships with the Princeton Regional Planning Board and other public regulatory authorities.
Another quality that complements the University’s concept is the leading role Mr. McCoy played in sustainability initiatives at ASU, where ten new buildings have been awarded Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification under the rating system developed by the U.S. Green Building Council.
Since 1985, Mr. McCoy has maintained his own practice with his wife and partner, Janet Simon. The couple has one son, who will be attending Princeton Day School.
Mr. McCoy is prepared for the climate shock involved in moving from the desert to New Jersey, and although he and Ms. Simon have not yet begun house-hunting, they are aware of the wet-basement issue in Princeton. An article in Sunset magazine suggests that they achieved environmental harmony at their home in Paradise Valley. The southern side of their long, narrow concrete-block house faced Camelback Mountain but a wall cut off the view and the gardens were planted with non-natives — mostly oleanders and struggling palms. “There was no sense of living in the desert at all,” according to Ms. Simon. With the help of a Phoenix landscape architect, they got rid of the wall and the non-native vegation, added desert milkweed, ocotillo, and golden barrel cactus, so that the landscape seemed to be growing up around them. “It’s like being hugged by the desert,” said Ms. Simon.
Lush summertime Princeton will provide another, greener challenge.