Vol. XIX No. 8
May 2004
65th St. Redevelopment Given a Green Light
Juilliard Building to Undergo Major Expansion

By IRA ROSENBLUM

After months of hanging in uneasy suspension, a plan to redevelop West 65th Street has won unanimous approval from the 12 organizations that comprise Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. The project, which will dramatically alter 65th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue and the adjoining public spaces on the street and plaza levels, will cost $325 million and take about three years to complete, with construction expected to begin in the spring of 2006 and last until January 2009. (However, work on the Juilliard building is expected to be finished in the spring of 2008.) According to Lincoln Center officials, it is the first in a series of construction projects that will be undertaken at the performing arts complex over the next decade.

An architectural model of the 65th Street redevelopment plan, designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro (Photo by Lisa Yelon)

For more images of the redevelopment plan, go to the Slide Show: Lincoln Center Changes.

At a press conference on April 13 to unveil the conceptual design for the renovation, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg said that when President Dwight D. Eisenhower broke ground for Lincoln Center in 1959, it was a symbol of American creativity and architectural excellence. "It was also at the heart of a transformation," the mayor said, "a trailblazing catalyst for the redevelopment of the Upper West Side. Today, 45 years later, we begin a new transformation, with the dynamic and dramatic redesign of West 65th Street, one that will turn it into a veritable 'Street of the Arts.'"

The plan, designed by the architectural firm Diller Scofidio + Renfro, in conjunction with Fox & Fowle Architects; L'Observatoire International, Inc.; Cooper Robertson & Partners; and 2 X 4, aims to transform 65th Street from the dingy and somewhat forbidding thoroughfare of today into a wider, light-drenched block where performing artists, students, tourists, and neighborhood residents can interact, making it "a more welcoming destination for the five million visitors to Lincoln Center each year," said Bruce Crawford, the chairman of Lincoln Center.

Architect Elizabeth Diller said that the design—a kind of "architectural striptease"—embraces the spirit of the center's original 1960s architecture. "We imagine a Lincoln Center that is more Lincoln Center than Lincoln Center," she said as she guided observers on a computerized virtual tour of the remodeled street. "Rather than replace the image of this cultural icon with one alien to it, we propose to amplify its most successful features and fulfill its unrealized potential."

The street itself will be narrowed, eliminating one car lane, while at the same time, the sidewalk on the south side will be widened, making it safer for pedestrians. Several key Lincoln Center organizations that reside on 65th Street and that account for half of its operating budget—among them The Juilliard School, Film Society of Lincoln Center, Lincoln Center Theater, and Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (whose home is Alice Tully Hall)—will gain prominent street presence with impressive street-level entrances, transparent glass facades replacing the drab, thick slabs of concrete, and dramatic lighting. Instead of traditional directional signs, "light mats" of etched glass will be set in the sidewalks. A narrow, translucent footbridge that will allow sunlight to spill onto the street below will replace the existing 65th Street overpass. A widened staircase just west of Avery Fisher Hall will lead up to the North Plaza; across its risers, scrolling L.E.D. text containing programming information will be displayed.

The Juilliard School building is the largest component of the plan and will undergo significant changes. The main entrance to the building, which was designed by Pietro Belluschi in the late 1960s, will be on street level. The now solid travertine base will be opened up, with a transparent new facade revealing the Juilliard Theater and lobby and framing a sweeping staircase that will connect the ground floor with an upper, light-filled student lounge. Also planned is the incorporation of several high-technology graphic displays, providing the public with information about the hundreds of concerts and other presentations offered annually by the School.

The renaissance of 65th Street will link Juilliard to Lincoln Center in a more clear and open way, and give the School a greater sense of openness.
All in all, Juilliard will gain approximately 40,000 square feet of additional space. The upper floors of the eastern facade will protrude out toward Broadway in a triangular overhang above Tully Hall; inside it, a new dance studio with a large picture window will be visible to the outside. There will also be a new black-box theater, orchestra and jazz rehearsal studios, a music technology center, new classrooms, offices, and practice rooms, a writing and speaking center, and a conference room, as well as an expanded area for the Juilliard library and archives, and a faculty lounge.

Elsewhere on campus, many changes—some subtle, others more dramatic—are planned. The North Plaza will become a bucolic campus green, with a bosk of trees reminiscent of a Parisian park, and a gently sloping, parabolic-shaped lawn pitched toward an elongated reflecting pool with water cascading over its sides. This open 11,000-square-foot lawn, which will be framed by a transparent glass railing and will provide a place for outdoor performances, seminars, film screenings, or simply to hang out, will sit atop a glass pavilion restaurant seating 220. Other retail facilities will include a juice or coffee bar on the southeast corner of 65th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, and a store on the southwest corner of 66th Street and Broadway into which the current Juilliard bookstore will be incorporated.

Both Alice Tully Hall and the Lincoln Center Theater will be given grand, new entrances and lobbies; the Film Society will get two new state-of-the-art screening rooms and an amphitheater-style space for lectures and other educational activities, as well as a new cafe. The Samuel B. and David Rose Building, the home of Lincoln Center, Inc., the School of American Ballet, and the Meredith Willson Residence Hall, among others, will also undergo a redesign, creating a glass-enclosed lobby with improved security. A new pedestrian circulation hub will connect the Rose Building with Juilliard.

Juilliard's president, Joseph W. Polisi, said he is extremely excited about the plan. "It's going to link us to Lincoln Center in a much more clear and open way. The 65th Street renaissance, with the removal of the bridge, will give us a greater sense of openness. We'll be drawn to the North Plaza—the bosk of trees, the meadow roof, which I think will be very popular, and to the attractions on the street level, including the restaurant."

"I have really enjoyed working with the creativity of Diller Scofidio + Renfro," he added. "They have shown a playfulness and respect for the current architecture and the needs of Juilliard. Of course, we all owe a great debt of gratitude to Juilliard's chairman Bruce Kovner for leading this project to its current state."

The construction, which will span two academic years, will cause "significant disruption," the president said. "Portions of the building will be construction sites. Alice Tully Hall will be closed for the 2006-07 season. That said, we've come up with some wonderfully creative swing-space options within the building, and we expect that no one will have to leave the building." The two fifth-floor courtyards will be fitted out and will serve as "the repository for many activities that will be displaced during construction time." Alternative performance spaces for the 50 or so concerts that take place in Tully Hall are being explored, he said. "I'm going to be soliciting the wonderful good will of the community each day during the duration of the construction." The president said that the preliminary interior designs for the Juilliard building will be shown to all members of the Juilliard community this month for their comments. "I hope as many faculty, students, and staff members as possible will participate in this process," Polisi said.

Before actual construction can begin, the entire 65th Street redevelopment plan must undergo a seven-month public review process that will include presentations before local community boards, the borough president, and the City Council. Funding will come from a variety of public and private sources. Mayor Bloomberg reaffirmed the city's financial commitment to Lincoln Center's redevelopment. A fund-raising campaign, called Bravo Lincoln Center, was announced at the April 13 press conference, and, according to Lincoln Center, $17 million has already been pledged. Lincoln Center, the world's largest performing arts complex, contributes more than $1.1 billion annually to New York's economy.

The renovation of the Juilliard building will cost approximately $100 million, posing a significant fund-raising challenge for Juilliard. "With the leadership of our board of trustees, and the generous support of longtime friends and new contributors, plus matching funds as provided in Juilliard's arrangement with Lincoln Center, I am confident that Juilliard will raise the money needed to take advantage of this opportunity to prepare the School to meet the demands of the next several decades," President Polisi said. Lincoln Center will match 20 percent of funds raised for the project, up to $25 million, and 15 percent thereafter. "It's a project we've been researching for several years," the president added. "Economically for Juilliard it's a great opportunity. We are grateful to the leadership of Lincoln Center, Inc. for making this possible."

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