Industry News

West Virginia University opened the $30 million Blanchette Rockefeller Neurosciences Institute in Morgantown in October of 2008. The three-story, 78,000-sf facility houses technology-rich neuroscience research laboratories and can accommodate up to 100 investigators.

The University of Nebraska Medical Center is constructing the $74 million Durham Research Center II in Omaha. Construction began on the 10-story, 252,179-gsf facility in August of 2006. Featuring 98 technology-rich laboratories, investigator offices, and lab support, the facility will connect to UNMC’s existing Durham Research Center via a covered parkway.

Southern Arkansas University is constructing the $16.7 million University Science and Technology Center in Magnolia, Ark. Slated for completion in 2009, the 64,000-sf facility will house the College of Science and Technology’s departments of biology, chemistry, and physics. The project team includes architectural firm WER and Associates and CDI Contractors, both headquartered in Little Rock.

Washington State University is planning to initiate construction in summer of 2009 on two facilities on its 350-acre Vancouver campus. The $59.4 million, 71,600-sf project was designed by LMN Architects of Seattle. The $42.6 million, four-story Applied Technology Classroom Building will provide instructional spaces, engineering research facilities, and faculty offices.

The University of Minnesota Medical School will construct four biomedical research buildings in Minneapolis. The 56,000-sf Center for Magnetic Resonance Research is slated for completion in July of 2010 and the 120,000-sf Cancer Biomedical Research Building will open in January of 2012. The 120,000-sf Lillehei Heart Building will include the Center for Cardiovascular Repair and is expected to reach completion in July of 2012. The 90,000-sf Infectious Disease and Neuroscience building will open in July of 2013.