PRE Students Collaborate with Landscape Architects for Site Construction Class
Students in Cornell’s Program in Real Estate (PRE) are increasingly finding Professor Trowbridge’s Site Construction class to be a key component of their real estate development curriculum. Professor Trowbridge, department chair, said “The complex conversation of rebuilding and development requires an understanding of the essential language of construction. All students in the design fields, including students in Real Estate, find that this class gives them an understanding of these very concepts and equips them to interact in the construction world with confidence.”
Professor Trowbridge has been engaged in planning, design and implementation of works of landscape architecture for more than 35 years. His innovative professional methods and techniques include the most contemporary and best “green” environmental practices and technologies as well as forward looking implementation strategies. He brings these technologies, practices, and strategies into the classroom, influencing the next generation of teachers and practitioners.
According to Tahri Molifua, MPSRE’11, “The course is great. I would highly recommend it for students specializing in development. Professor Trowbridge provides a comprehensive framework for understanding the key issues related to site construction—issues that often determine the financial feasibility and success of a project.”
“Professor Trowbridge has encouraged (Program in Real Estate) students to take the lecture portion of the course in order to really understand the landscape architect’s perspective, yet now some of our students are enrolling in the lab portion of the course as well,” said David Funk, director of the Program in Real Estate.
The course focuses on construction materials and methods, as well as design. The class structure is unique in the sense that while design students make final presentations independently, they also work in teams for the deliverables as the semester progresses. At the completion of the course students can expect to be able to investigate the combination of materials both in terms of the designer’s interests in aesthetics and structural properties, as well as the builder’s interests in assembly and crafting of materials in the field. Students will also become familiar with construction nomenclature and develop skills to execute comprehensive cost estimates, review work for code compliance and draw plans, sections and elevations with the appropriate technical specifications.
What makes the class more interesting is that students will engage in applying contemporary methods and materials such as green roofs, LEED/SITES certification, storm water harvesting, and best practices and technologies. The practical aspect of the class is emphasized through a semester long project in a site typically located in Ithaca. This semester the site is located at the Architecture Quadrangle at Cornell University. The site had buildings which were demolished in 1988. A temporary parking lot exists where the buildings once stood.
Professor Trowbridge is a partner in the firm Trowbridge and Wolf, LLP, Landscape Architects. To find out more about Trowbridge and Wolf, please visit: http://www.twla.com/