Master Plans

NASA Glenn Research Center opened the Research Support Building in July of 2022 in Cleveland. Designed by TEN Arquitectos and ASA as a vibrant nexus of interaction and innovation, the two-story, 64,000-sf facility provides collaborative engineering suites, open and private offices, conference rooms, and training areas. Accommodating approximately 164 employees, the flexible and inclusive development features a communal dining area as well as a 6,000-sf outdoor commons.

The University of Pennsylvania and Longfellow Real Estate Partners are planning to construct a 455,000-sf life sciences center on the Pennovation Works property in Philadelphia. Designed by Jacobs, the project will include three structures providing a total of 387,000 sf of R&D space and 68,000 sf of biomanufacturing space for the production of cell and gene therapies.

Mayo Clinic began construction in April of 2022 on the $134.6 million Integrated Education and Research Building in Phoenix. Designed CO Architects and DFDG Architecture, the 150,000-sf facility will house the College of Medicine and Science and its five schools: the Alix School of Medicine, the School of Graduate Medical Education, the School of Health Sciences, the School of Biomedical Sciences, and the School of Continuous Professional Development.

HYM Investment Group began construction in March of 2022 on a $280 million biomanufacturing hub in Revere, Mass. Designed by Elkus Manfredi Architects, the six-story life sciences facility will offer leasable research environments for biomedical and pharmaceutical companies. Complemented by retail and dining amenities, the structure will feature two double-height floors for GMP production and manufacturing activities.

Kent State University broke ground in March of 2022 on a $72.3 million facility for the Ambassador Crawford College of Business and Entrepreneurship. Designed by Perkins& Will and The Collaborative to act as a new campus gateway, the four-story, 158,400-sf building will feature active learning classrooms, conference rooms, a business theater, a boardroom, a global forum, and a behavioral research hub.

Bristol Myers Squibb is partnering with Alexandria Real Estate Equities to create a 427,000-rsf R&D center in San Diego. Located in the Alexandria Point development, the leased facility will provide core labs for the creation of advanced biopharmaceutical therapies. Housing nearly 600 researchers and staff members, the collaborative building will consolidate employees from several regional campuses into a flexible working ecosystem for discovery and innovation.

The University of California, Davis broke ground in February of 2022 on Aggie Square in Sacramento. Designed by ZGF Architects, the first phase of the mixed-use district is being developed in association with Wexford Science + Technology and GMH Capital Partners, who will finance, construct, and own the facilities. At the heart of Aggie Square, a vibrant central plaza will offer a variety of settings for informal interaction, mobile work, and outdoor gatherings.

The University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health is using data science to improve existing space efficiencies while fulfilling departmental growth and retention goals, reducing leased space, and fueling master planning efforts. Data analytics has become a fundamental tool since facilities staff undertook an extensive data collection and analysis project and applied what they learned to develop space assignment rules and processes.

The University of Redlands is planning to construct the 30-acre University Village adjacent to its existing campus in Redlands, Calif. Moore Ruble Yudell has been selected as the architect and planner for the public-private development, which is being created in collaboration with REACH Redlands LLC, a joint venture of Republic Metropolitan, Creative Housing Associates, and Arteco Partners.

Virginia Tech broke ground in fall of 2021 on the first academic building on its Innovation Campus in Alexandria. Designed by SmithGroup, the 300,000-gsf facility will offer experiential learning environments, maker spaces, flexible multipurpose areas, faculty offices, and research and testing labs for the school's graduate programs in computer science and engineering.

The University of Kansas (KU) faced a daunting challenge: more than 11 million sf of facilities in 150 buildings whose average age was 45 years and a deferred maintenance backlog exceeding $350 million. At the same time, the university’s strategic plan set a goal of increasing research and discovery, and the resulting campus master plan prioritized the need for new research facilities. Realizing that goal while addressing the existing challenges could have taken decades using traditional funding models. The solution? The Integrated Science Building, KU’s $180 million large-scale public-private partnership (P3) for interdisciplinary campus development, which is breaking new ground in funding models, integration, management structure, and fundraising activities. With this initiative, the university took a “great leap forward” in academic and research programs, design decisions, space allocations, programming, and critical infrastructure upgrades, as well as making a bold step with the project delivery.

Ivanhoé Cambridge and Lendlease will break ground in summer of 2022 on a 320,000-sf life sciences facility in Boston. Designed by SGA, the nine-story building will provide state-of-the-art labs, offices, and collaboration spaces for biomedical and pharmaceutical tenants. Offering BSL-1 and BSL-2 research environments, the amenity-rich structure will include a multipurpose ground floor, a parking garage, and numerous outdoor areas.

The Fitzsimons Innovation Community broke ground in August of 2021 on Bioscience 5 in Aurora, Colo. Strategically located next to the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, the 90,000-sf building will enable biomedical and pharmaceutical tenants to manufacture next-generation cell and gene therapy products on a commercial scale. Saunders Construction is the general contractor for the highly flexible facility, which is slated for occupancy in spring of 2022.

Pennsylvania State University broke ground in July of 2021 on the West 1 engineering building in University Park. Located on the West Campus, the 290,000-gsf facility will provide general-purpose classrooms, faculty and administrative offices, and research and teaching labs for programs in aerospace engineering, architectural engineering, acoustics, and civil and environmental engineering. Strategically grouping research programs by theme will dramatically increase the utilization of shared spaces.

There is no question that the pandemic has taken a toll on higher education institutions, but they are planning for a future that includes fully engaged students and campuses bustling with activity. A Tradeline survey of 115 colleges and universities and the architectural and engineering firms that serve them shows they are focused on renovation, modernization, and major new construction of everything from life sciences facilities to theaters; 58 percent reported that they have one or two major projects in the planning or pre-planning stages.