Pursuing a National Historic Designation
above O'Neil Ford (left) and Trinity President James Woodin Laurie look out over the Skyline Campus.
36
TRINITY Summer 2017
Trinity University will seek placement on the National Register of Historic Places to create a historic district for the Trinity campus. The initiative is part of the University’s recently completed Campus Master Plan, which pairs Trinity’s academic mission with its architectural legacy to create a vision that is inspiring, functional, and enduring. Renowned San Antonio architect O’Neil Ford had an early and lasting impact on the design of Trinity’s Skyline campus, located just north of downtown San Antonio. Beginning with a master plan in the mid-1940s, Ford designed most of the campus buildings between the 1950s and the late 1970s. The campus was built on the site of an abandoned rock quarry, and Ford used the site’s unique topography to create the feel of a “low-lying Italian village” that comprised modernist red brick buildings connected by walkways and lush native landscaping. “The result is a campus setting that is unmatched in character among Texas universities and is one of America’s first modern campuses,” President Anderson said. Trinity will apply for designation on the National Register of Historic Places through the Texas Historical Commission. A historic district can afford Trinity a number of benefits, including earning the University tax credits with a potential financial benefit of approximately 20 percent of qualified renovation expenses. As a historic district, the University will preserve the cohesive exterior design of buildings. Except for notable interior features, Trinity will renovate the interiors of the buildings to meet the needs of tomorrow’s students. “Trinity’s campus is truly distinctive in that it is a significant collection of architecturally acclaimed mid-century buildings designed by a single architect,” said Diane Graves, University librarian and chair of Trinity’s Campus Master Plan committee. “We are among a handful of college campuses considering how we preserve our mid-century modern buildings.” Trinity’s Campus Master Planning committee, in partnership with architectural group Page, guided the development of the Campus Master Plan that will have a lasting and positive impact on Trinity. Page is a national firm specializing in higher education. Daniel Kenney FAIA, AICP, a nationally recognized higher education master planner, was Page’s lead consultant on the Trinity project. Lawrence W. Speck, FAIA, Senior Principal at Page and a specialist on the architectural design of O’Neil Ford, also contributed significantly. Architect and historic preservation specialist Stan Graves of the firm Architexas guided the historic district consideration and process.