Cornell University has chosen the New York City office of Morphosis Architects to design the first academic building of its planned Roosevelt Island applied sciences campus. Morphosis is expected to deliver a conceptual design in November and a schematic design in March 2013. New York-based Arup will be helping Morphosis develop the building.

Rendering Courtesy of Cornell University

The New York City office of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill designed the master plan that helped Cornell win the competition to build a new applied sciences campus on Roosevelt Island.

Plans call for a 150,000-sq-ft structure to house classrooms and offices. The goal is to produce a net-zero energy-use building, with geothermal heating and cooling and solar power. The building is scheduled to open in the fall of 2017.

“This project represents an extraordinary opportunity to explore the intersection of three territories: environmental performance, rethinking the academic workspace and the unique urban condition of Roosevelt Island,” says Thom Mayne, Morphosis' co-founder and lead architect.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg awarded the $2-billion-plus project, now known as CornellNYC Tech campus, to Cornell and its partner Technion-Israel Institute of Technology last December. The partnership plans to build a 2-million-sq-ft campus for up to 2,500 students and nearly 280 faculty members by 2043. Cornell announced a short list of six architects in late February, which included the New York City office of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, the firm that designed the campus' master plan and helped Cornell win the mayor's competition.