University hires firm to revamp campus landscape

In the midst of Princeton's multi-million-dollar construction campaign to change the face of the University, an architecture firm has been hired to give campus landscaping a retro twist.

Quennell Rothschild & Partners - a New York-based landscape architecture firm - is coordinating a series of exterior renovation projects that will take place during the next several years.

The firm is designing and renovating building exteriors and landscaping several areas of campus, using photos and information from the University archives as guides.

According to Peter Rothschild, one of the architects working on the project, the renovations involve several sites on campus, including Hamilton Courtyard, the grounds surrounding Whig, Clio and Murray Dodge, the landscaping near Alexander Hall and Cannon Green.

Under the firm's guidance, walkways will be repaved, overgrown trees and other plants will be removed and new vegetation will be planted.

Rothschild's firm will also be involved in designing the landscaping for the areas near the sixth residential college and the genomics center - both of which are slated to be constructed within the next few years.

Rothschild said it is common practice for landscape architects to research the history of buildings when planning renovation. But he said Princeton's history means the campus has some unique landscaping needs.

"There is a general feeling, and this is supported by President Shapiro, that there should be an historical consistency to the landscaping," Rothschild said.

Some of the landscaping projects, including the one in Hamilton Courtyard, have been completed with the help of University landscapers.

James Consolloy, grounds manager for the grounds and buildings maintenance department, said he approved of the plans to create new landscaping based on older designs.

Consolloy said much of the new landscaping will be modeled off the work of Beatrix Farrand, who designed landscaping for the University from 1912 until 1942.

"She did a lot with Gothic campus landscaping designs," Consolloy said, adding that Farrand sought to provide "a view from every window" through the use of landscaping.

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Consolloy said Farrand's designs were quite aesthetically pleasing, but as trees and other plant life on campus grew, some buildings and other areas became obscured.

"Trees and vegetation grow over time, and that changes the whole appearance. The campus looked very different in the 1920s than it looks today," he said. "The original landscaping designs were very strong. It's something we wanted to go back to."

Rothschild said he, his partner Andrew Moore and several others in his firm have been working to develop the new designs for the different areas of campus they have been contracted to renovate. Several of those areas will involve millions of dollars worth of renovations, he said.

And when more substantial renovations begin, construction subcontractors will be hired to supplement University personnel, he added.

Rothschild's firm may also be involved in some larger campus layout changes, including a possible walkway through campus from Witherspoon Hall to the yet-to-be-built genomics center.

That path is still being discussed by trustees and other planning officials, he said.