A new athletic facility embraces an urban aesthetic while contributing to the most versatile building on campus

NYU John A. Paulson Center

photograph of below-grade squash courts area featuring dark walls with geometric lighting

Client: New York University
Location: New York, NY
Size: 120,000 SF
Team: Kieran Timberlake, Davis Brody Bond

Services: Architecture
Additional Services: Space Planning
Status: Completed 2022

Located in the center of NYU’s campus, the John A. Paulson Center is a multi-functional high rise that offers dozens of new classrooms, performing arts spaces, community gathering areas, housing, dining, and state-of-the-art athletics and recreation facilities. In 2014, Kieran Timberlake, Davis Brody Bond, and Sasaki partnered to design the 735,000 square foot campus landmark facility, and Sasaki was engaged as the sports architect for approximately 120,000 square feet of new athletics and recreation space to replace the existing Coles Gym facility.

Nowhere in the country is the value of space greater than in the condensed center of New York City. In light of this, Sasaki made the most out of every square foot to deliver a facility that allows NYU to run its robust athletic programs. The athletics and recreation space includes a campus fitness center, a large exercise room, a 4-court competition gymnasium with a dedicated volleyball gym, an elevated jogging track and NCAA regulation basketball and volleyball courts, a 6-lane swimming pool, a dedicated fencing room, wrestling room, varsity performance weight room, sports medicine suite, 12 varsity team locker rooms, squash courts and 3,500 square feet of general cardio and weight-training space.

photograph of main entrance at NYU Paulson Center on 181 Mercer Street

Entrance to John. A Paulson Center on 181 Mercer Street

Weight training space for the general student body is accessed directly from the lobby entrance

Students can access the athletic space via the Paulson Center’s main entrance on Mercer Street, situated at the southern boundary of NYU’s campus. The campus fitness center, large exercise room, and administration offices have direct access from the lobby, while the remainder of the athletics and recreation programs are placed below grade.

photograph of stairway leading down to Athletic Facility at NYU Paulson Center, featuring glass wall and wood panel sides

The new athletic facility is accessed via the main stair from the lobby

photograph of main lobby at NYU Paulson Center

A light-filled lobby welcomes students to the 735,000 square foot mixed-use building

Embracing the NYC Urban Aesthetic

Sasaki intentionally reflected the fiber and activity of the NYC streetscape in the design of the athletic facility. Bold graphics, dark ceilings, and vibrant connections between spaces are employed to provide an atmosphere that embraces the building’s urban context. A majority of spaces are located underground with no access to natural light. Rather than counter that with bright colored walls and lighting, the team took on a different approach and embraced the conditions with dark colors and graphics that complemented the spatial ambiance using NYU’s signature violet and purple school colors. Extensive glass walled connections between spaces and light wood used for furnishings and wall lockers provide a counterbalance to the darker tones.

photograph of person walking in locker room corridor beside six lane swimming pool

Dark colors reflect NYU’s signature palette while embracing the site’s below-grade context

Community and Connection through Athletics

Sasaki partnered with Kieran Timberlake to realize an exciting new urban campus destination for the NYU community. Replacing an underutilized and outdated athletic space that previously existed on the site, the new Sasaki-designed athletic and recreation spaces now serve a wider range of sports use than any other building on campus.

A six-lane swimming pool exists on the lowest level of the building

photograph of locker room corridor with glass walls providing transparency to jogging track

The design emphasizes transparency and connections between spaces

Emphasizing transparency, lightness, connection, and common spaces, the Paulson Center’s design gracefully accommodates its many uses while optimizing interactions among visitors. By moving circulation to the building’s perimeter and through the building’s common areas, the design encourages connections between students and faculty, athletes and artists, residents and the greater community.

photograph of digital graphics showcasing histroy of NYU athletics

Digital and printed graphics express the legacy of NYU as a leader in athletics and student engagement

photograph of weight training room housed in glass doors

Large glass walls between corridors and recreation spaces inspire connectivity and interaction

Sustainability

The design adopts sustainable measures to reduce water consumption, carbon emissions, and the amount of waste generated through construction and everyday use. The building tracks a LEED Gold rating and supports NYU’s Climate Action Plan. A CoGen plant located on NYU’s campus offers a renewable energy source, heat, and water to the entire Paulson complex, significantly reducing emissions and pollutants.

Completed in 2022, the new athletic facility at the Paulson Center offers NYU a vibrant new destination for community, culture, and wellness.