The New Angelos Law Center

The new John and Frances Angelos Law Center opened on April 30, 2013. The facility, which began construction in August 2010 on a UB-owned parcel at the intersection of N. Charles Street and Mt. Royal Avenue, is a transformative building for the UB campus and an architectural landmark for central Baltimore. It received both public and private support.

• Project Facts and Funding

  The $114.3 million, 190,000-square-foot law project at North Charles Street and Mt.
  Royal Avenue was completed in April 2013 and provides a new, innovative learning
  space for the UB School of Law. The 12-story law center includes 15 classrooms, 29 large- and small-group study spaces, a 32,000-square-foot library and a 300-seat moot courtroom and event space. The building also houses all of the school’s clinical services and law-related centers. Over the past three years, the building has created 1,231 jobs, generating more than $174 million in economic activity.
  
  The facility is named for the parents of School of Law alumnus Peter Angelos, LL.B. '61; he gave $15 million as part of UB‘s successful effort in raising $22 million in private funding.

• Leading Donors

  UB School of Law alumnus Peter Angelos, LL.B. '61; the Whiting-Turner Contracting Co.;
  Sayra Wells Meyerhoff, J.D. '78, M.S. '04, and Neil Meyerhoff; Jana Howard Carey, J.D. '76, and James H. Carey; The Abell Foundation; and Renée Bronfein Ades, J.D. '00, are among the leading private donors for the new law center.

• Project Design

  The University of Baltimore selected Behnisch Architekten of Stuttgart, Germany, in
  partnership with Baltimore's Ayers/Saint/Gross to design the John and Frances Angelos
  Law Center following an international competition. The firm has worked in both the
  public and private sectors and has completed many award-winning projects, a
  number of which have become recognized as cultural and architectural landmarks.
  Behnisch is known as an international leader in environmentally aware design.
  
  UB President Robert L. Bogomolny called for a pathbreaking building that will provide a strong foundation for those activities that are central to the School of Law's mission: community involvement, public interest, diversity.

  "As an educational institution, we envision a building whose design teaches critical lessons about how to create and sustain healthy urban environments," Bogomolny said. "As an institution committed to excellence, we envision a signature building whose materials reflect the quality of our aspirations."

  Of the winning design, Bogomolny said, "Stefan Behnisch has articulated an initial concept for our new law center that is truly forward-thinking. Stefan's ideas about sustainable design and his creativity in responding to the evolving needs of higher education place him in the forefront of 21st-century architecture."

• Timeline

  The project's timeline is as follows:
  
  - Contract awarded to architect - January to February 2009
  - Design phase; selection of contractor - February 2009 to May 2010
  - Construction - June 2010 to late 2012
  - Opening - April 30, 2013

• School of Law Background

  The University of Baltimore School of Law produces many of Maryland's leading lights throughout the legal community—practitioners, judges, public defenders, prosecutors, scholars, and community and civic advocates. Alumni account for 30 percent of Maryland's circuit court judges, 34 percent of Maryland's district court judges and more than one-third of Maryland's elected state's attorneys.

• Points of Interest

  - central atrium featuring natural light, greenery, zones for quiet contemplation and group interaction
  - below-grade garden and seating area with a water feature
  -green roofs and terraces featuring natural plantings and trees
  - 300-seat moot courtroom and event space
  - 15 classrooms, all with advanced technology
  - 29 large- and small-group study spaces
  - home to all of UB's clinical services and law-related centers
  - 32,000 square foot library
  - cutting-edge technologies for heating and cooling
  - rainwater capture and re-use

• A Commitment to Green

  The building’s overall intent is to capture and spread as much natural light as
  possible while also carefully controlling the use of natural resources. The new law center is designed to be one of the greenest buildings in Baltimore and in the metropolitan region, using revolutionary equipment for heating and cooling, rainwater capture and re-use, and advanced classroom technology. The building incorporates a number of remarkable features including a rainwater harvesting system that captures and repurposes runoff and reduces overall water use; a green roof, terraces and a sunken garden that incorporate native and adapted plants; a dedicated system to manage fresh air through automated windows in offices, classrooms and open spaces, which is tuned to maximize the flow of clean air,
  reducing energy needs during high-use periods in good weather; and nonemergency
  lights that automatically shut off after business hours. During the three years of building and construction, the project partners recycled at least 50 percent of construction materials.
  
  Current plans call for a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating of platinum—which would make UB's one of the first law schools in the country to have this status. The building's LEED rating will be determined by the U.S. Green Building Council, which will validate the innovative and environmentally aware techniques and materials used to create the new law center.

• The Build Up: A Newsletter on Law Center Construction

  UB's electronic newsletter, The Build Up, covered the construction of the Angelos Law Center. Check it out.

News

The University of Baltimore School of Law: A Vision for the Future (pdf)

Message from the President (pdf)