Built in 1892, 3537 Locust Walk is located near the intersections of Locust Walk and 36th Street in the heart of the University of Pennsylvania Campus. The site is an existing three-story semi-detached masonry building situated between two other historically significant masonry buildings: Sweeten Alumni Center (SAC) to the east, and Phi Kappa Sigma Fraternity to the west. Henson Architecture partnered with Studio Joseph Architects to carry out the renovation and expansion of the existing building, which included rerouting the existing egress, upgrading the building’s systems, and renovating the historic building envelope.

As is the case with all contemporary additions to historic buildings, we at Henson were challenged with the dichotomy of new versus old. Our design provides a sense of cohesiveness that addresses the building’s existing conditions; such as a lack of accessibility, issues of code compliance, and operational inefficiencies. Our goal was to make sure that the contemporary building addition would contrast with the existing fabric in the most respectful way.

Along with Studio Joseph, Henson received a number of awards for the restoration of this project including the 2019 AIANY Design Award of Merit; read more about it here.