New Campus Glasgow Ltd has finalized the shortlist of 5 architect-led design teams who will develop a £300 million integrated campus over 2 sites for the 50,000 students and 2,000 staff of Glasgow’s 4 city center colleges – Central, Metropolitan, Nautical and Stow.

Still in the running – and down from a long-list of almost 50 teams who submitted pre-qualification questionnaires- are the following:

*Archial (formerly SMC Group)
*Atkins (with Michael Laird Partnership)
*BDP
*Hopkins (with Bennetts)
*RMJM (with Frank Gehry)

The brief for the successful team will be for a design that delivers on a number of fronts:

-      Impact: create buildings on a scale and style that inspire, enhance profile, and make a positive contribution to Glasgow’s urban landscape
-      Cost: whole life value for money, good use of space, efficient
-      Functional: easy to access, easy to navigate, fit for purpose
-      Flexible: future proofed – able to grow, contract and adapt
-      Sustainable: environmentally, socially and economically
-      Deliverable: buildable and managed in a manner that protects  ‘business as usual’during the development period.

The co-location project will see existing college buildings demolished, sold on or refurbished.  New buildings are planned on existing college sites: City Campus on north Cathedral Street – current home of Central and Metropolitan’s old ‘Food Tech’ building; and Riverside Campus on Thistle Street and the Clyde – current home of Glasgow College of Nautical Studies.’

The 4 colleges will share premises and services across the two sites and continue business as usual during the construction period which will begin in 2011.  The successful architect-led design team is due to begin work in June 2009.

// The Project
New Campus Glasgow is the ambitious plan hatched by Glasgow’s 4 city centre colleges – Central, Metropolitan, Nautical and Stow – to develop a world class learning facility designed to deliver a 21st century curriculum.

The biggest construction project in the sector in Europe, it is a £300 million development.  Building work is due to start in 2011 and last 4-5 years.  The business case is scheduled to be presented to the Scottish Funding Council (the body that distributes funding to Scotland’s colleges and universities) in March 2009.

New facilities will be developed over two integrated sites at City Campus (Cathedral Street) and Riverside Campus (Thistle Street).  The supercampus will be home for 50,000 students and 2,000 staff, developing Glasgow’s city centre learning quarter.

For further information visit the campus’ website.