Mount St. Mary's University
Emmitsburg , Maryland

Ayers/Saint/Gross was asked to provide Mount St. Mary’s with a 108 bed residence hall to be occupied in time for their 2007 bicentennial celebration.

The residence hall was sited is in accordance with ASG’s Final Master Plan, and will be located on what is currently a parking lot with a 40 foot grade change. The building is sited in this location for its adjacency to the heart of the campus and to recapture this prominent site for active use. The building forms a “U”, creating a central quad, and is rotated to capture the pedestrian flow to and from the main campus. Accordingly, the grade of the quad meets the level of the adjacent central campus.

The scale of the architecture will be sensitive to the adjacent rural residential neighborhood. In addition, this approach will be in harmony with the site’s natural setting which includes woodlands and a stream. The plantings leave the center of the residence hall complex free for active use, and add trees and shrubs at the edges to transition between the residence hall and the surrounding woodlands and neighborhood.

The landscape design guidelines established by Ayres Saint Gross in the master plan were used to guide this residential development so that it connects seamlessly to the main campus. The guidelines include a site material palette, site furniture and a plant palette.

Completion: 2007
Size: 7.5 Acres
Cost: $300,000