The Department of Architecture, which has shared space in the College of Engineering since the 1970s, recently moved into a new dedicated building on 13th Street, doubling space for the department to 50,000 square feet.

The building is the first to be completed as part of Temple's 20/20 framework for campus development.

"We always longed for our own space, and a year ago suddenly it was announced that we would get our own building," said Brigitte Knowles, Tyler School of Art senior associate dean for the Deptartment of Architecture. "We were in a state of absolute shock because we had no clue that this was going to happen."

Knowles believes the new space will help attract new students and allow the department to grow, with new programs such as undergraduate programs in Facility Management and Architectural Preservation, a pre-professional undergraduate degree in architecture and a graduate-level professional degree program in architecture.

The building was designed specifically to accomodate future architects, with features that include exposed airducts, plumbing pipes and lights.

"For architecture students it's important to see structure, important to see plumbing pipes and air ducts, but it's also important to see the pattern of life as it moves through the building," said Knowles.

The move will benefit engineering students as well. Steve Lengkeek, assistant dean of finance and operations for the College of Engineering, says members of the college are "relieved" to have the additional space.

"We had an independent study done and we were short about 27,000 square feet compared to our peer institutions, so with architecture's move, we're basically right where we should be," he said. "Our program in the last five years has grown by 50 percent and we were just maxed out. It's a win-win for both programs."

The Department of Engineering is working with the university on how to configure the additional space. Lengkeek hopes the new bioengineering department can occupy the new space by late summer or fall.