ASU SkySong is an innovation center designed to help companies grow by providing business services and programs offered or facilitated by Arizona State University.
Designed by New York-based architectural design practice, FTL Design Engineering Studio, SkySong is a mixed-use project consisting of 1.2 million square feet of office, research and retail space, and a hotel/conference center at full build-out. In addition to the commercial space, SkySong will include multi-family residential units.
Anchored by an iconic 120-feet tall tensile shade structure designed in collaboration with New York-based Pei Cobb Freed and Partners- architect for the campus buildings- the campus is built around a densely landscaped grand boulevard. The sculptural PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) tensile structure is the center piece for the overall development.
The SkySong shade structure is lined with shops and restaurants at the ground floor, with offices above. The setback at the upper level, as well as the articulation of the ground floor retail, provides a lively interface with the street.
The shade structure is envisioned as a vital civic space surrounded by ethnic restaurants, cafes, bookstores and shops. SkySong shade structure anchors the central plaza, offering shade and a place for gathering and the lively interaction of tenants, visitors, students, and neighbors. The area beneath is designed to be the crossroad of the project and the symbolic center of global enterprise for the region.
Built with flexibility in mind, the buildings are designed to accommodate any tenant’s space needs whether small start-up companies, expanding businesses or regional operations. Located at the intersection of Scottsdale Road and McDowell Road on a 42-acre campus, the center has abundant and redundant power and robust bandwidth capabilities to integrate state-of-the-art digital infrastructure into flexible office and research space.
SkySong has achieved US Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-Silver certification. SkySong is the largest, privately-funded LEED certified project in Arizona.
Oriented around shaded and landscaped pedestrian scale boulevards with street-level retail, public gathering places, open spaces, water features and bike paths, SkySong is designed to serve the needs of businesses, research and technology, industry and academia while building vital networks between university innovations, regional progress and the global technology industry.
