Building Proposal Reviewed by City

A proposed University building on Mt. Auburn Street--compared by some to the Carpenter Center because of its unconventional design--entered the city's formal approval process last night.

Harvard Planning and Real Estate (HPRE) made the case that the building--which will house the main offices of Harvard University Libraries--can make an artistic statement while remaining on an appropriate scale.

The angled bronze and stainless steel wire mesh and glass facade is the defining feature of the structure, designed by Austrian architect Hans Hollein, dean of the Vienna Academy of Arts and a recipient of the prestigious Pritzker Prize for architecture. His designs are known for fitting into the aesthetic and historical settings of a city, but at the same time, are considered fairly radical.

Hollein has previously designed only two buildings in the U.S.

HPRE presented the building to the Harvard Square Advisory Commitee, which is comprised of architects, local residents and members of the business community. The committee's decisions are non-binding recommendations given to the Cambridge planning board.

Last October, Hollein travelled to Cambridge to hear community concerns.

"We believe we've addressed every issue that's been raised," said Scott Levitan, the director of University and commercial real estate for HPRE.

Hollein was not present at last night's meeting, but Leland D. Cott, a principal in the local firm working with Hollein on the project, gave the main presentation. Cott has previously worked on the both the University and Memorial Hall restorations for Harvard.

Cott said the Hollein project would be "the best new building to be built in the Square in my lifetime."

The presentation was complemented by a large model of Harvard Square and a number of photo-realistic computer renderings of the building in its 90 Mt. Auburn St. location, next to the Fox Club and the J. Press building. A planned video walk-through simulation was stymied by the lack of a VCR.

Cott emphasized that the scale and bulk of the building was appropriate for Mt. Auburn Street.

"This building is contextual, but not the same," Cott said.

But the design stands out too much for some committee members, particularly Chair Phoebe Mason Bruck, who questioned the need for something so different.

"I think it's inappropriate," she said in a post-meeting interview. "The fact that Harvard brought a prize-winning architect from Vienna is not important from our point of view."

But even detractors did not dispute the strucure's inherent strengths, mainly that it will open up the block, allowing access to an interior courtyard from both John F. Kennedy and Mt. Auburn Streets.

"It's extremely tasteful and the materials are elegant," Cott said.

Some advisory committee members said they did not like the building, but would not necessarily officially oppose it.

"It's something to get used to," said committee member and former mayor Sheldon Cohen.

Jinny Nathans, president of the Harvard Square Defense Fund, praised the openness of the building as paying tribute to librarians.

"They normally make us work underground," said Nathans, also a librarian.

Cott said he thought the meeting was successful in appealing to committee members' open-mindedness.

"People used to laugh at this building when they saw it," he said.

As to whether the advisory committee will eventually give a positive recommendation to the planning board, Bruck said, "There seems to be a more positive response than I would have thought."

HPRE continues the process April 5 in a meeting with the Cambridge Historical Commmision, which will review demolition of the 50-year-old building currently on the site.

But this review may not prove to be much of an obstacle. According to Cott, a note in Historical Commission files reads, "What is this crummy building doing on a beautiful street?"

--Staff writer Zachary R. Heineman can be reached at heineman@fas.harvard.edu.