Work continues on the design of the new Arts Union, Carleton’s spectacular new facility on the site of the old Northfield Middle School.

The project’s architects, Meyer Scherer & Rockcastle, have begun consideration of the public spaces in the building, as well as the exterior of the new structure that will replace the dilapidated 1950s building along the park.

Current designs call for the new building to feature a combination of the same type of stone seen throughout the campus—on the Chapel and on Burton and Davis Halls, for example—and glass. The architects have proposed a design that ties the building to the other portions of the Middle School, relates to the campus as a whole, and is sensitive to its placement next to Central Park. A complete landscape design is being created as well.

Current renderings of the exterior have been posted on the Arts Union web site. We invite your comments through the feedback form provided on the Contact page.

Additionally, renderings of the building’s atrium have also been added to the Plans & Designs section of the web site. The College envisions this atrium as a lively community space, filled with activity. Most importantly, it will be a space where the college and the community can truly intersect.

Under the current schedule, construction will begin in mid-2009, and the Arts Union will be open by the Fall of 2011.

We value your input in this exciting project and hope you will take the time to share your thoughts with us.