MANHATTAN — Cornell University has tapped a veteran city official to head the planning and construction of its $2 billion, 2 million square foot tech campus that will rise on Roosevelt Island over the next three decades, school officials announced Thursday.
Andrew Winters, the new director of capital projects and planning for CornellNYC Tech, comes from the Bloomberg administration, where he was the founding director of the mayor's Office of Capital Project Development.
While with the city, Winters oversaw such projects as building the High Line, revitalizing Coney Island and creating Brooklyn Bridge Park. He also directed the city's role in the World Trade Center rebuilding.
"Andrew’s record of leading complex projects in New York City is unparalleled," Cathy Dove, vice president of CornellNYC Tech, said in a statement.
"His ability to deliver projects on budget and on schedule will serve Cornell well as we grow our footprint in New York City and help train the next generation of tech leaders."
Cornell is expected to begin construction for its first building in 2014, an eco-friendly academic space slated to open in 2017. The campus, which will be home to some 2,500 students and nearly 300 faculty, will continue to be built out through 2037.
A second building for research and design is also slated for 2017, school officials recently told residents at a town hall meeting. By 2024, Cornell will add a residence hall for faculty, staff and students, and an academic conference center and hotel, which will help the campus host conferences with world renowned guests — which will be open to all, Dove noted.
Another academic building and perhaps two more residences are expected to be built by 2037, officials said.
Roosevelt Islanders expressed traffic concerns during construction for their 147-acre home, which is something that Winters will be addressing in his new role, which he will begin in May.
“The CornellNYC Tech campus has captured the imagination of New Yorkers as a way to elevate our position in the world of technology and to provide a promising new direction for the city’s economy,” Winters said in a statement.
