New Tents and Outdoor Seating Amenities Meet Demand for Outdoor Dining and Community Use

A large, white tent outside of Dodge Hall that has students sitting underneath it.

With 160,000 square feet of green space on the Morningside campus, the Columbia community is accustomed in the best of times to enjoy spending time outdoors.  To help encourage the use of outdoor space – now more important due to the pandemic – Campus Operations installed new outdoor tents and seating amenities throughout the Morningside campus. 

The new initiative addresses increased demand from the Columbia community during the pandemic for outdoor spaces to support dining, studying, and academic use.  As outdoor seating has been growing in popularity in recent years, it seemed natural to Campus Operations to continue efforts in expanding outdoor seating to adapt to the community’s unique needs.

Students sit at benches alongside Revson Plaza.

Outdoor seating installations began in June 2020 with new seating areas created at the International Affairs Building terrace, Revson Plaza, and East Campus, and additional seating placed at existing locations at Mudd, Havemeyer, and Fairchild.  Recognizing the importance of having comfortable outdoor seating amidst the park-like setting of campus, Campus Operations wanted to provide a space that would allow the community to reconnect with nature. The new furnishings are intended to serve the environment, rather than dominate it, and complement the landscape architecture.  Seating is available to use year-round. 

In Fall 2020, Campus Operations began erecting outdoor tents at Ancell Plaza, Dodge Plaza, Fairchild Plaza, Furnald Law, and Hamilton Lawn to facilitate small gatherings.  These tented areas provide access to a mix of lawn and hardscape areas that can be used for small classes, social gathering, dining spaces, and leisure that adhere to New York State Department of Health guidelines. 

A large, white, outdoor tent on Furnald Lawn.

Community tenting at Dodge Plaza and Fairchild Plaza could be used daily from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. and without prior reservation.  Tented spaces at Ancell Plaza, Furnald Lawn, and Hamilton Lawn could be reserved by schools and departments during the day, and open to the Columbia community outside of reservation hours.

In addition to the tented areas, the Morningside campus’s other outdoor spaces remain available for open-air community use, including South Lawn, Philosophy Lawn, Van Am Quad, and more.  The Grounds team has made numerous grounds improvements in recent years and will continue to maintain these spaces to encourage passive recreational use.