Replacing a dated sports center with a dynamic, multi-use hub

New York University - John A. Paulson Center

In Greenwich Village, where space is limited and expectations are high, New York University’s (NYU’s) John A. Paulson Center brings academic, residential, and cultural life together in one integrated hub. The 735,000-square-foot (68,284-square-metre) facility replaces the Coles Sports Center with a vertically layered campus connecting students, faculty, and the surrounding community. We partnered with KieranTimberlake and NYU to create to help bring this vision to life.

The building is organized into distinct program “neighborhoods,” each linked by a central commons that encourages interaction across disciplines. Circulation wraps the perimeter, placing classrooms at the core to capitalize on daylight and maintain visual connections to the city. The system supports movement of up to 1,100 students per hour.

As NYU’s most classroom-dense building, the center adapts as teaching needs change. Classrooms are set away from the façade to ease future updates, while flexible layouts, integrated technology, and varied study spaces support different ways students learn.

The Tisch School of the Arts and the Steinhardt Department of Music occupy 210,000 square feet (19,510 square metres) with spaces for performance, rehearsal, and instruction, including a 350-seat proscenium theater and flexible black box venues.

Additionally, two residential towers house freshman residential colleges, integrating living and learning through shared spaces that foster daily interaction.

The project supports NYU’s Climate Action Plan by reducing emissions and water use while leveraging the co-generation plant. Green roofs, bird-friendly glass, and improved pedestrian connections contribute to a more resilient urban environment.

By combining diverse programs within a single structure, the Paulson Center demonstrates how universities can use limited urban space to foster visibility, flexibility, and interdisciplinary learning.