Fontaine Hall, Marist College
Poughkeepsie, N.Y.
Perry Dean Rogers | Partners Architects

This building establishes order and orientation to its surroundings

© Richard Mandelkorn

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Overlooking the Hudson River Valley at the north end of the campus, the site for the 32,000-square-foot Fontaine Hall is bounded by a major roadway on the east, parking and the north campus entrance on the north, parking and an academic complex to the south, and low-scale campus residences to the west. The building contains three independent programs: the Humanities Department Dean's suite with 50 faculty offices, classrooms, a "black box" classroom, student gallery, and seminar rooms; the Marist Institute for Public Opinion offices and telephone polling room; and the College Advancement offices.

The site marks a change in orientation in the internal campus circulation system as well as a change in grade, sloping thirteen feet down to the north across the length of the site. There is a beautiful view of the Hudson River below and bluffs beyond through an existing view corridor between two residential housing complexes.

The building is intended to project order and orientation into the campus by reinforcing its latent spatial structure. A narrow four-story bar subdivides the site creating primary west and east exposures and emphasizing the north-south axis. The entrance is marked by a detached "tower" positioned at the campus' high point and visual pivot point as determined from the center of the campus. It also marks a cross-axis extending to the east through the single-story volume of the Marist Institute for Public Opinion. Opposing the apparent monumentality of the west facade, the east elevation breaks down in scale. It displays the building's unique functions: the angled "garden wall" of the MIPO polling room, the trabeated blocks of classrooms and MIPO offices, and the projecting volume of the dean's suite with its southern view to the campus's main entrance. Light monitors project from the roofs introducing top light at critical locations in the building.

Formal name of Project:
Fontaine Hall, Marist College

Location:
Poughkeepsie, N.Y.

Gross square footage:
32,000 sq. ft.

Total construction cost:
$6.9 million

Owner:
Marist College