Environments by Design
Abstract
This case study examines how Fordham University Lincoln Center in New York City, an urban higher education institution, has adapted and evolved to respond to the challenges of urban society and the changing demands of global urbanization. This case study offers the urban university as a research model to study and examine the challenges and corresponding solutions that face cities.
The Fordham Lincoln Center campus was developed in the 1950’s through the urban renewal efforts led by Robert Moses. Intended to be an economic revitalization policy, this urban renewal program often relied on slum clearance and relocation of the city’s poorer residents. The goals and principles of this program were reflected in the original design of the Fordham University Lincoln Center campus.
In 2007, Fordham revised its master plan and submitted it to the New York City Planning Commission. Two architectural firms, I. M. Pei and Partners and Kevin Hom Architects, were engaged to implement the first phases of the plan which addressed the needs of an aging facility. Fordham sought to expand the academic program, address the changing urban design agenda of the city, and respond to the impacts of technological innovation and the climate crisis.
This presentation discusses the solutions applied and comments on similar challenges faced today by other universities in cities in the United States and around the world and on the potential long-term impact that the Covid pandemic will have on cities and the operation of university campuses.
This study is presented by Kevin Hom the principal designer of Kevin Hom Architects, which is a leading practice in the design of university facilities, and who is also a faculty member and former Dean of the School of Technology and Design at the City University of New York.
Kevin Hom, founder of Kevin Hom Architects, is recognized as a national leader in the advancement of design and better use of space at major colleges and universities. His professional practice is a design firm with education facility projects throughout the United States. The firm’s designs have received numerous awards for both its university and community center projects. In 2017, Mr. Hom was elevated to Fellow of American Institute of Architects which is highest honor the AIA bestows one of its members. From 2011-2019 Kevin Hom served at City University of New York as Dean of the School of Technology and Design. Presently, he is an Associate Professor in the Department of Architecture. Internationally, in 2019 Professor Hom taught urban design as a visiting Resident Professor in the graduate division at the Polytecnico di Milano in Milan, Italy. In 2020, he was named a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Bologna to teach sustainable design. He has lectured at numerous universities including University of San Paulo, City University of London, Technical University of Berlin, Columbia University, UCLA, Pratt, New York University and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. Kevin Hom is a graduate of Columbia University where he received his Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering and Master of Architecture degrees.
1:30 pm - 3:00 pm
Thursday 17th June, 2021