University architect to retire in June

From the modern curves of the Lewis Science Library to the gothic arches of Whitman College, Jon Hlafter ’61 has left an enduring aesthetic vision for the University’s campus.

These and other projects will serve as reminders of Hlafter’s efforts to coordinate architectural projects at the University. After 40 years of working for the University, Hlafter will step down this month as University architect, a position which he has held since 2004, gradually phasing out his commitments during the next several months.

“It’s a loss with his retirement,” Executive Vice President Mark Burstein said. “The University architect is the steward of the design of the physical spaces. [Hlafter] has been the lead connection with every architect and landscape architect who has worked on campus for the last 40 years.”

Since his appointment as director of physical planning in 1968, Hlafter has played a significant role in shaping the University’s appearance and ambiance. During his tenure at Princeton, the University grew from roughly six million square feet to more than nine million square feet.

As University architect, he was responsible for communicating with architects and local officials, as well as for support in developing the University’s 10-year Campus Plan, which was released in full last month.

A replacement has not been chosen yet, but administrators are conducting the final round of interviews, Burstein said.

Hlafter will return to work in April and May in hope of easing the transition for his successor. This advisory role, he said, will allow him to spend more time traveling, enjoying his grandchildren and perhaps resurrecting his love for watercolors and sketching.

“I always look forward to new things and change, and I would love to be involved in that,” Hlafter said, explaining his regret that he will not be as heavily involved in upcoming projects like the Arts and Transit Neighborhood. At a university like Princeton, he said, new fields and new activities will always inspire new architectural projects.

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Among the architectural projects which Hlafter has facilitated are Whitman College and the Lewis Science Library, which President Tilghman has called the “capstones” of Hlafter’s career at Princeton.

They reflect “his insistence that its buildings, vistas, and walkways are of the highest quality,” she told the Princeton Alumni Weekly.

Such a statement is “very kind,” but it is impossible for him to choose a particular project as the most significant, Hlafter said.

His favorite projects have been the ones that continue Princeton’s great historical architectural legacy.

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“From the earliest days, Princeton has hired outstanding architects of their day to design buildings that represent American architecture and architecture for education,” he said. “The kinds of project I enjoy working on the most are those where we’re working on an earlier building and updating and rebuilding it for today,” such as the renovations of East Pyne and Prospect House.

Such endeavors highlight what Hlafter sees as his role as a facilitator of other individuals’ creativity.