Viewed from the air and the courtyard of The University of Scranton's Mulberry Plaza, designed by Sasaki Associates, Watertown, Mass., which received honorable mention from the 2002 BSA/AIA NY Housing Design Awards Program.

06/5 - Architects Recognize The University of Scranton Mulberry Plaza Resident Apartments

The Boston Society of Architecture (BSA), the largest branch of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), recognized The University of Scranton's Mulberry Street Plaza residential facility in its 2002 Housing Design Awards Program.

The student apartment housing units, designed by Sasaki Associates, Watertown, Mass., received honorable mention from the prestigious design awards program that annually honors design excellence.

Mulberry Plaza consists of four townhouse units, accommodating 141 upperclassmen. Each three-story, 1000 square foot townhouse provides a mix of duplex and flat-style apartments with from one to six bedrooms.

The residential facility was constructed in 2000 by Sordoni Construction Services, Forty Fort.
LeMessurier Consultants, Cambridge, Mass., served as structural engineer, along with H.S.A. Associates, Scranton, as the mechanical electrical and plumbing engineer and Ceco Associates, Scranton, as civil engineer.

The BSA Web site listing the winners for the 2002 BSA/AIA NY Housing Design Awards Program noted the projects honored were "exciting, skillful examples of the design profession at its best."

The jurors' comments regarding the university's Mulberry Plaza stated: "the planning concept is a strong one. (T)he unit composition is clever, and the design imagery seems to be consistent with the university's character."

The jurors' also called Mulberry Plaza "a very gritty, tough design marked by high-quality construction…The buildings reflect a design clarity and point of view that some of us found stark but appropriate for the nature of its monastic use."

Mulberry Plaza, located on the corner of Mulberry Street and Madison Avenue, will be featured in a future issue of BSA's quarterly magazine ArchitectureBoston.

Awards will be presented at the annual BSA awards dinner in the fall.