Cornell Law School Academic Center Honored by BSA Design Awards

The Cornell Law School Academic Center was recently awarded the 2016 Education Facilities Design Award by the Boston Society of Architects . The expansion of the Law School included the renovation of the existing 1930s Myron Taylor Hall and the new design and construction of an underground addition. The expansion consists of steel framing supported by concrete foundations. The 54-foot, clear-spanning structure was designed to support a green roof and traffic loading, allowing the University to maintain the use of the existing greenspace.

The renovation of Myron Taylor Hall included underpinning foundations to provide a new sub-grade story at the same elevation as the addition. A monumental staircase was added to the space which now ties together the new and historic spaces without increasing the footprint of the building. To facilitate the design, GNCB also designed and monitored shoring efforts for the multiple upper library stack levels to ensure continued integrity of the historic structure.

The Law School Expansion and Renovation, originally designed to be LEED Gold, is LEED Platinum-certified and provides Cornell with a 170-seat lecture hall and auditorium, faculty offices, classrooms, and a new foyer. The project was completed in 2013.

Architect: Ann Beha Architects

Contractor: Welliver