The Vietnam Veterans Memorial. The Freedom Tower at Ground Zero. The World War II Memorial on the Mall in Washington.
Some of the highest-profile construction projects in the country have resulted from international design competitions such as the one the University of Baltimore plans to hold for its new law center. University officials are scheduled to announce today that they are working with the Abell Foundation to hold a $150,000 competition to select the architect, landscape architect and other design consultants for a $107 million law center.
University President Robert L. Bogomolny said the competition is a way to attract architects and designers who might not otherwise seek to work on the project and to demonstrate that the institution is serious about obtaining a first-rate design. The 190,000-square-foot building is expected to rise seven or eight stories at the northeast corner of Charles Street and Mount Royal Avenue, making it one of the most visible on the University of Baltimore campus. Orioles owner and UB School of Law alumnus Peter G. Angelos is donating $5 million for the project, the largest private gift in the university's history.
"The purpose of the competition is to get the best possible building for that important site," Bogomolny said. "You want a world-class concept. There are huge talents out there. I am confident that we're going to attract a lot of interest."
Robert C. Embry Jr., president of the Abell Foundation, has long sought ways to raise the quality of the design of new buildings throughout Baltimore. He said he was receptive to the idea of supporting a design competition for the proposed law center because it will be a prominent building in a key city location.
"It's a very visible site on the [Jones Falls Expressway] and across from the train station," he said. "It's the first impression that a lot of people will get when they arrive in the city and come down the Jones Falls Expressway. It ought to be as good as we can make it."
Embry said he envisions the $150,000 from Abell being used to pay three finalists $50,000 each to take part in a competition. He sees the stipends as enticements to bring in highly sought-after designers who might not pursue a project in Baltimore without that level of compensation.
"This is to get people to participate in the competition that otherwise would not," he said. "This is not to pay $50,000 to get the same old thing."
