As designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP in collaboration with the Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Partnership, The Mortimer B. Zuckerman Research Center features a strong emphasis on energy-efficiency and environmental sustainability. Built by Turner Construction Company under the direction of Memorial Sloan-Kettering's Facilities Department, it is expected to be among the first research buildings in the country to receive certification from the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System, a benchmarking standard developed by the U.S. Green Building Council that evaluates the environmental performance of buildings.
Original, permanent art installations are also a unique part of the design of the facility. They include imagery in the glass of the "interaction staircases" throughout the building, using mirrored surfaces and silk-screened glass; a distinctive "sculptural ceiling" in the Cyber Lounge (a central gathering place for researchers); and other commissioned artwork for the connecting seven-story structure in what will become the permanent lobby of the research center.
"As a member of the Board, I have been impressed and inspired by the vision that led to the creation of this beautiful and functional research building," said Mortimer Zuckerman. "And, as someone who has seen both the suffering cancer causes and the hope each new advance brings, I am determined to do what I can to accelerate the pace of progress and to help the Center's extraordinary scientists and physicians achieve their crucial goals."
The commitment to establish the Mortimer B. Zuckerman Research Center, through the MBZ Charitable Trust, comes at an important time for Memorial Sloan-Kettering, which recently announced plans to double the goal of its successful capital campaign to $2 billion and to extend the fundraising initiative by an
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Contact: Christine Hickey
mediastaff@mskcc.org
212-639-3573
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
10-May-2006