The project’s mission was to develop a long-term plan that would address the space needs of Columbia students, faculty and administration at a location within Manhattan, while fostering smart, sustainable growth that also benefits the City and local community. During the 1990s, the University needed nearly 2 million sq. ft. of new academic, research and residential space at all campuses, but by the year 2000 there were practically no available sites for development close to existing Columbia buildings.  Unlike some urban universities, Columbia wanted new facilities to be located in a contiguous campus setting accessible from the other campuses in order to create a new academic community and encourage interdisciplinary collaboration among the University’s many schools and programs.  The final challenge was that this development project needed to be large enough to address Columbia’s expansion needs for the next 30 to 50 years. The goals were certainly ambitious, given the dense development in most Manhattan’s neighborhoods.

Mr. Wiener undertook the following work in collaboration with the development team:

• Identified and analyzed alternative sites; defined the Manhattanville project area
• Developed a physical master plan, infrastructure plan and phasing strategy with design by Renzo Piano Building Workshop and Skidmore Owings & Merrill
• Drafted zoning text and maps for a Special Manhattanville Mixed-Use District in collaboration with the NYC Planning Department
• Negotiated agreements with the City and State for public sector actions required to implement the plan, including transit and traffic upgrades, park and streetscape improvements, enactment of a redevelopment project plan and designation of a redevelopment district by the Empire State Development Corporation
• Worked with environmental consultants to write Draft and Final Environmental Impact Statements required for all public approvals
• Served as liaison with the local Community Board and stakeholders on planning issues

This work involved hundreds of meetings between Columbia, public agencies, the local community and other stakeholders over approximately 5 years.

In May 2009, New York State granted the final public approval for the University’s plan. The state approval process followed the December 2007 vote of 355 by the New York City Council approving the rezoning of the project area from light industrial to mixed-use academic purposes. Columbia also successfully negotiated a community benefits agreement with the West Harlem Local Development Corporation that will support an expansion of educational, cultural, health care and civic programs involving the University and the local community.

The plan includes more than 6.8 million square feet of space for teaching, research, underground parking, and support services. It features new facilities for civic, cultural, recreational, and commercial activity. Its improved, pedestrian-friendly streets and new publicly accessible open spaces will reconnect West Harlem to a new Harlem Piers waterfront park, with operating and maintenance expenses funded by Columbia. After many years of adhoc growth, Columbia now has a carefully considered, transparent, and predictable plan that will create a new kind of urban academic environment that is woven into the fabric of the surrounding community.