Renovated Midcentury Modern Eero Saarinen Landmark Hill College House Reopens

October 4, 2017

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Designed by renowned Finnish American architect Eero Saarinen and built in 1960, Hill College House at the University of Pennsylvania has undergone a 15-month, $80 million, LEED Gold-targeted renovation. The internationally recognized landmark will reopen to 500 student residents later this month.

The five-story, 195,000-sf brick residence has undergone a comprehensive renovation, preserving Saarinen’s revolutionary design vision for communal living with multiple public spaces at varying physical and social scales. Originally a women’s dormitory, Hill College House features an allegorical entry bridge over a landscaped “moat” and surrounding spiked metal fence. Student lounges and seminar rooms are built around a vast central atrium that overlooks a dining area on the lower level.

“In this complex and challenging renovation, Mills + Schnoering Architects has designed multiple deft interventions that accumulate into a complete refresh of this important building – one that respects and invigorates Saarinen’s design and the community life it so richly fosters,” said University Architect David Hollenberg.

Mills + Schnoering Architects of Princeton, N.J., led the design and construction team. Specialists in historic renovation, the firm previously worked on Saarinen’s Gateway Arch in Saint Louis, Mo.

“Our approach respects the original Saarinen Hill College House design, preserving its legacy,” said Mills + Schnoering Partner-in-Charge, Michael Mills, FAIA. “Our choices were inspired both by the integrity of the architecture and by the contemporary student experience, with a design meant to balance the two in a welcoming, accessible student residence.”

Features of the renovation design include:

  • Expansion of dining facilities by 50 percent, including major kitchen upgrades.
  • Restoration of the iconic “drawbridge” entrance and landscaped “moat.”
  • Removal, restoration, and refitting of over 400 windows.
  • New furniture and finishes designed to echo the building’s midcentury style and reinterpret

    Saarinen’s bold color palette and furnishings.

  • All new MEP systems and the introduction of air-conditioning.
  • Conversion of all bathrooms to individual restrooms and shower rooms.
  • Installation of LED lighting in the center atrium.
  • New elevator and lift to provide accessibility compliance.
  • Perimeter wall insulation, a new roof, and restoration of two outdoor courtyards.

    Project goals included strengthening the sense of community at the heart of Hill College House’s original design and respecting the historic significance of the building’s materials and details, by maintaining as much fabric and design intent as possible while inserting modern systems and amenities.

 

Hill by the Numbers

The renovated facility includes:

  • 261 student rooms: 206 doubles, 41 singles, 11 ADA singles, and 3 RA singles
  • 5 faculty apartments
  • 15 graduate assistant apartments
  • 161 gender-neutral bathrooms
  • 5,750 sf main dining facility
  • 300 main dining facility seats
  • 1,810 sf of private dining
  • 29,505 sf of social spaces
  • 19 atrium lounges
  • 17 corridor lounges

 


About University of Pennsylvania

The University of Pennsylvania is an Ivy League institution with 12 undergraduate, graduate and professional schools in Philadelphia, serving a diverse community of more than 20,000 students from around the world. Ranked consistently among the top 10 universities in the nation, Penn has a longstanding reputation for excellence. For more information, visit http://www.upenn.edu.

About Mills + Schnoering Architects

Mills + Schnoering Architects, LLC (M+Sa) is a full-service architectural firm with work focused on cultural buildings, public buildings, campus planning and design, and the preservation and rehabilitation of historic structures. The firm has a particular interest in the restoration, renovation, and adaptive use of midcentury modern buildings and sites. The Hill College House architectural team was led by Michael Mills, FAIA, Partner in Charge; Michael Schnoering, FAIA, Managing Partner; Alison Baxter, AIA, Project Manager; and Meredith Arms Bzdak, PhD, Interiors Coordinator and Architectural Historian. For more information, visit http://msarchitectsllc.com.

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