This state of the art interdisciplinary research facility and its distinctively terraced site creates a new eastern edge to the core of the campus and terminates a major pedestrian corridor linking the 310,000 s.f. arts and the sciences. The curvilinear mass of the structure responds to the topography and is nestled into a steeply sloping hillside at the base of a woodland preserve. T|G’s landscape design emphasizes the forms of the building and the ecology and hydrology of the site, extending the vegetation of the hillside on to the campus and transitioning the slope with a series of native stone walls interweaved with a dry stream designed to capture, filter and detain runoff from the roof, parking and pavements at the base of the building. 

The plan accommodates complex patterns of through-campus circulation for both pedestrians and bicyclists and provides universally accessible routes across the challenging terrain. Numerous civic spaces provide respite and opportunities for impromptu meetings, collaborations, and quiet places to reflect.