41 Cooper Square

41 Cooper Square, designed by architect Thom Mayne of Morphosis, is a nine-story, 175,000-square-foot academic center that houses the Albert Nerken School of Engineering with additional spaces for the humanities, art, and architecture departments in the newest addition to Cooper Union's campus in Cooper Square, Manhattan, New York City; there is also an exhibition gallery and auditorium for public programs and retail space on the ground level. The building, originally known as the New Academic Building, stands on the site where the School of Art Abram Hewitt Building was located; the site of the building formerly used for engineering will be leased to a developer once the move has been completed. Construction of the building began in 2006 and was completed in September 2009. The project has been controversial in the East Village neighborhood where 41 Cooper Square is located.