| March 31, 2009 As a master planner, architect and mother of a then-prospective college student, partner Pamela Rew, AIA, wanted to share her personal and professional experiences from crisscrossing campuses across the region to help institutions gain a deeper understanding of campus planning and the importance of the "Golden Walk." The Golden Walk, the path college tour groups take prospective students and their families to show off their campus, can greatly influence a student's enrollment decision. After experiencing the campuses from the prospective of a parent, Rew brought a new level of insight to her projects, including the design and development of a long-term land use master plan for Drew University. Teaming up with her daughter Margaret, now a Tufts University sophomore and campus tour leader herself, and Drew University official Michael Kopas, Rew talked about strategic planning, process and lessons learned in their presentation, "Walk this Way: The Campus Tour as a Master Planning Tool." The packed room gained unique insights from the combined student, parent/planner, and campus official perspective. Many thanks to Mike Kopas, who did an outstanding job of presenting the university's long-term vision and mission for its campus, particularly as a last-minute substitute presenter for Drew's Margaret "Peggi" Howard. Download a PDF of the presentation. Read about KSS' master planning services. Read more about Pam and Margaret's suggestions for an engaging campus tour. |
| March 18, 2009 The facility, located on a 21-acre site in Greene IDA's Kalkberg Commerce Park, will consolidate the alcohol distribution company's three existing locations in Colonie, Kingston and New Windsor, New York. Empire intends to keep its current workforce intact and offer employment to its 362 associates in Coxsackie, the approximate midpoint between Colonie and Kingston. KSS Architects teamed with design-build firm BBL Construction Services to design a state-of-the-art build-to-suit facility that will utilize sustainable design and construction practices. Currently scheduled for construction completion and in Nov. 2009 and become fully operational in Feb. 2010, the project will apply to become LEED certified by the U.S. Green Building Council. It would be the first building in Greene County to obtain the national standard for high-performance, sustainable development. Read press coverage by The Business Review (Albany). Image courtesy of BBL Construction Services. |
| March 2, 2009 Read more information on how KSS supports team members interested in earning LEED Accreditation. |
