Amherst College, Campus Framework Plan

Amherst, MA

Campus Planning Campus Planning Education Planning & Urban Design

Amherst College, Campus Framework Plan: 2441 Amherst SEAerial Proposed Rend01

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Client

Amherst College

Size

160 acres

A comprehensive and evolving vision for Amherst College’s campus guides its growth while preserving the historic character and natural beauty that define it.

For more than a decade, BBB has worked with Amherst to create a Framework Plan that balances respect for the College’s 19th-century campus with a forward-looking approach to community, sustainability, and design. Initially rooted in the transformative Greenway Project—the largest expansion in Amherst’s history—the Plan has evolved through extensive engagement and continues to inform decisions from large-scale capital projects to targeted space improvements.

Amherst College, Campus Framework Plan: Campus Framework Plan

Amherst College, Campus Framework Plan: Merrill Diagram Purple

Amherst College, Campus Framework Plan: Merrill Diagram Orange

An integrated sustainability framework uses energy modelling and ecological management strategies to identify the conservation measures and targets that will underpin campus growth over the next generation. The Framework Plan provides a flexible roadmap that integrates landscape, architecture, and infrastructure, shaping new opportunities for gathering, learning, and living as Amherst approaches its bicentennial.

Amherst College, Campus Framework Plan: Beyer Blinder Belle, Amherst College, September 15, 2024

GREENWAY LANDSCAPE

Transforming a formerly fragmented edge of campus, the Greenway—designed in collaboration with MVVA—reimagines a 12-acre hillside as a continuous landscape of connection and recreation. The design integrates restored topography, native plantings, and new pathways to create a sequence of intimate spaces and sweeping vistas of the Holyoke Range. Conceived as a dynamic place to embrace and enjoy rather than simply pass through, the Greenway extends Amherst’s tradition of balancing academic rigor with quality of place.

Courtesy of MVVA

Collaboration with BBB, rendering by MVVA

Amherst College, Campus Framework Plan: Amherst Framework Boardwalk Site01

GREENWAY DORMS

In collaboration with the BBB Framework Plan, Kyu Sung Woo Architects designed four small-scale Greenway Residence Halls—totaling 300 beds—that define the Greenway’s upper terrace and enclose a central green courtyard. Their arrangement fosters a strong sense of community and establishes a vibrant residential edge overlooking the valley. Thoughtfully sited and detailed, the dorms harmonize with Amherst’s architectural heritage while embodying contemporary ideals of sustainability and social connection.

SCIENCE CENTER

The 250,000 SF Science Center, designed by Payette in collaboration with the BBB Framework Plan, anchors the Greenway’s southern edge and redefines the academic heart of the campus. Its transparent facades, open gathering spaces, and carefully framed views connect teaching and research to the surrounding landscape. Together with the residences and Greenway landscape, the Science Center reflects the Framework Plan’s integration of architecture, landscape, and community—honoring Amherst’s history while embracing its future.