The master plan for more than a quarter of MIT's campus posed an exciting planning and urban design challenge.

According to Project Manager Jim Purdy, "We created interior and exterior spaces for people to frequently meet face-to-face. Since visibility promotes collaboration, the design called for lots of windows into labs and classrooms. Our third aim was to create 'buildings that could learn.' Most successful MIT buildings let programs scale up or down over time."

The plan resulted in one million sq.ft. of building development, and a system of pathways, lobbies, and open spaces that bring people together and support the interchange of ideas.