University of Rochester | Landscape Master Plan

The University of Rochester’s Riverside and Medical Campuses were both substantially developed from greenfields in the 1930s and 40s. Overlooking the Genessee River, the Riverside campus was laid out by Charles Platt and the Olmsted Brothers with beaux-arts landscape typologies and eclectic architectural styles. This landscape master plan provides a blueprint for transforming static campus spaces into hubs of social activity, living teaching-collections and biodiverse habitats. Rather than through radical transformation, it accomplishes this through subtle incremental shifts in landscape typologies. Rochester averages 77 inches of snow per year. For the University of Rochester, where the academic year nearly coincides with the “snow year,” this presents both a challenge and an opportunity. The master plan calls for campus landscapes that “lean-in” to Rochester’s weather celebrating the winter experience with lighting, unique plant selections and selective campus hearths. Snow removal is an essential operation for the campus so the master plan also integrates snow storage area and developed operations guidelines to limit the volume of salting in order to protect the Genessee River’s water quality.