Design Guidelines
In the interest of compliance with the Master Plan, all new construction and renovation at the university will be reviewed by the University Architect for compliance with the Master Plan, design intent and suitability for the campus. Any new design will also be reviewed by the Architect for compliance with the intent of the university administration and the policies of the Board of Regents.
Any exceptions to the policies, Plan and intent of the governing bodies has to be approved by the Architect. Whenever such design contravenes the Plan in a substantive manner, approval by the administration or by the Board of Regents will be sought as appropriate.
The following are guidelines for designers designing on campus. Further refinement of the guidelines will follow in future years. The intent of the guidelines is not to prescribe design vocabulary, but rather to guide designers in the spirit in which the university wishes to develop the campus so as to achieve visual cohesion and an environment conducive to intellectual and moral excellence.
Guidelines:
It is the purpose of the Master Plan and a function of the University Architect to assure that the university is developed along an unified plan. However, it is not the purpose to have an uniformity of style. A variety of textures and styles will assure a stimulating and educational experience to NMSU students and staff. Within the following guidelines, designers are encouraged to be creative and harmonize their vision of the campus with the existing buildings.
The Main Campus is developed on a grid pattern, and unless a clear justification is provided to site a building differently, the grid will be maintained.
A Southwest look is preferred for new buildings.
Kent Hall is considered a successful building for its Southwest look, arches, use of outdoor space and simplicity of proportion and appearance.
Natural and nature-friendly outdoor environment is seen as conducive to life at the university.
Earth colors are successful on NMSU campus and add to a relaxed and natural ambience.
Earthen berms add to a visual articulation of horizontal surfaces, hide parking and increase the comfort level of the campus users.
Building height will be kept to three stories unless a higher building is required by land limitations.
Depth of setbacks will vary with the nature of the surrounding buildings. Generally speaking, buildings will follow the line of the faces of buildings on the same side of the street. When buildings face pedestrian malls, distances from the curb lines will not be excessive to permit a visual enclosure of the mall. When a building faces automobile traffic, the setback will accommodate a sidewalk, bicycle path and a strip of grass.
The established roof covering is a red roof tile or material appearing to be a red roof tile. In the case of a flatter roof a narrow band of red tile is acceptable. In no instance will roof be flat for rainwater drainage reasons.
On some buildings, such as the College of Business and Economics, red bands or stripes were incorporated into the face of the buildings. A designer is encouraged to consider using them in his design.
Kent Hall, new Library building and the proposed Chemistry building have incorporated colonnades, or loggias, in their design. This feature is considered particularly expressive of the desired style of the Southwest, and could become an unifying feature of the campus.
Walls and gateways have a divisive function and should be included in a design cautiously. However, they do have a significant impact on definition of space and can be used effectively in design of outdoor space.
Low, yellow rock walls have become a standard feature of NMSU campus and their use is encouraged where appropriate, particularly where a large area needs to be defined, where there is a change in elevation, and on University Avenue.
Stationary and flowing water, if used judiciously, is an attractive feature in this arid climate. Because water can be recirculated, therefore not wasted, it is only the energy cost to run a water pump and maintenance cost that needs to be considered when contemplating inclusion of such a feature in a design.
Outdoor green spaces and a shadow network have become a priority design consideration in outside areas and landscaping building surroundings. There will be three levels of landscaping on campus.Arid areas, desert vegetation landscaped area requiring little irrigation, and green oasis, intensively irrigated, providing shade and zones of relief, from the dry climate.
Malls are the pedestrian routes around the campus. Every new structure will have to consider its relationship to the Mall network. It is the intent that there is the spine network of major Malls, also internal Malls in each cluster. Each cluster will have its own character of mall surfaces to allow for differentiation in character of each cluster, but this individual texture will be harmonized with the rest of the system.
Articulation of horizontal surfaces is an important part of the landscaping concept. Variety of visual stimulation can be achieved by choosing plants of various heights and textures, by creating berms and hollows in the ground, and by creating vistas and treating surfaces to various textures.
Orientation on campus can be achieved by appropriate signage but also by creating clusters of buildings, treating Mall surfaces to different textures, opening vistas, etc. Campus maps will be on kiosks in strategic locations. Both the kiosks and the building signs, although they need to be unified, will permit a variation to reflect the character of the building.
It is the purpose of the future design on campus to subject each outdoor space to an intensive development. To illustrate the concept of intensive development, the concept of a Japanese garden is appropriate.