Despite being one of the lead designers of the University Medical Center at Princeton’s soon-to-open Plainsboro campus, architecture firm RMJM no longer operates in Princeton. The firm has left its offices at 500 Alexander Park, leaving New York City and Washington, D.C., as its only American offices.
The Scotland-based firm first moved to town in 2007, when it acquired Hillier Architecture — then a 300-employee firm — for $30 million. For about two years the joined firms went by the name RMJM/Hillier until it finally dropped the Hillier name.
RMJM become the eighth-largest architecture firm in the world, but its presence in Princeton quickly frittered away after it dropped the Hillier name. By 2010 the company reported 90 employees at Alexander Park; by 2011 that number had dropped to 30.
Today 500 Alexander Park is dormant. Bob Hillier, who started a new architecture and planning firm, J. Robert Hillier, at 190 Witherspoon Street, said he has no plans to move back to Alexander Park. But Hillier did say that his firm is helping RMJM’s efforts to rent the building to new longterm tenants. RMJM has two years left on its lease. Hillier said “There is a lot of interest in the building.”
Hillier also said that RMJM has consolidated its operations to New York, “where they are doing projects from around the world.”
RMJM did not return calls for information.
#b#RMJM#/b#, 500 Alexander Park, Princeton. Peter Morrison, CEO. www.rmjm.com
