Media Advisory: Lead architect for Jacobs School building at UB to discuss new facility’s design

BUFFALO, N.Y. — The public is invited to explore the design and development of the new Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences building at the University at Buffalo with Kenneth Drucker, design principal of HOK, the global design, architecture, engineering and planning firm that designed the school.

Drucker will deliver a public lecture at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 31, in 403 Hayes Hall, UB South Campus. The event is free and open to the community.

The new 628,000-square-foot, eight-story building is one of the largest new developments in the City of Buffalo in decades.

The design of the Jacobs School building required complex decisions to accommodate the university’s pedagogical and research goals, including the creation of a true academic health center that grows UB’s presence in downtown Buffalo while promoting more collaboration with partner institutions on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus. The Jacobs School brings 2,000 faculty, staff and students to downtown each day.

HOK was selected by UB in 2012 after winning an international competition to develop the best design concepts for the new Jacobs School building. Drucker, FAIA, serves as design principal for HOK’s New York City and Philadelphia practices.

Drucker will address how context-sensitive design led to a building that pays homage to Buffalo’s architectural legacy while making a bold design statement for the city’s future.

The design features two L-shaped structures linked to create a light-filled glass atrium that includes connecting bridges and a stairway. Serving as the building’s main interior “avenue,” the atrium is illuminated by skylights and two glass walls.

In a nod to the city’s architectural history, the Jacobs School is clad in nearly 30,000 terra cotta panels, a high-performance rain-screen cladding system that contributes to the building’s LEED Gold certification.

The project also involved the integration of an underground transit station — the NFTA’s Allen Street Metro station — and the creation of a new northern gateway to the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus and downtown Buffalo.

Through open learning environments, the new Jacobs School building promotes collaborative interactions among faculty and students. The atrium is core to the building’s design as well as its promotion of a sense of community and collegiality.

Drucker will also address the building’s network of connections to the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus’ clinical care anchors, including the Buffalo General Medical Center, the John R. Oishei Children’s Hospital, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center and UB’s Clinical and Translational Research Center.