Higher Education

Central Washington University is building the $64 million Science II facility in Ellensburg, Wash. Ground was broken on the five-story, 120,000-sf project in May of 2014 and completion is expected in spring of 2016. Accommodating the departments of geological sciences and physics as well as programs in math and astronomy, the facility will feature an 80-seat lecture hall and planetarium, an observatory tower, optics and laser labs, an ice core lab, and an acoustic lab with an anechoic chamber.

Bay Path College is building the Center for Graduate Studies in Health Sciences in East Longmeadow, Mass. The $16 million facility will provide classrooms, laboratories, training rooms, faculty offices, conference rooms, and administrative space. Construction began on the two-story, 56,000-sf facility in November of 2013 and completion is expected in early 2015.

The 268,000-sf, six-story Health Sciences Education Building (HSEB) incorporates the College of Medicine and Pharmacy from the Arizona School of Medicine with Northern Arizona University’s physician assistant, physical therapy, and occupational therapy programs into the integrated and interdisciplinary Phoenix Biomedical Campus. A 2-million-sf, 28-acre campus master plan includes a recently constructed 20,000-sf underground vivarium, and several research buildings. To the north is a cancer center, which adds a clinical component.

The master plan for Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) in Portland, Ore., offers valuable lessons in how public-private partnership and well-tended relationships with neighboring developments can overcome significant growth constraints. The university found ways to eke out space and funding for new buildings and programs where little seemed to be available.

Princeton University is building the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment in Princeton, N.J. Designed by Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects of New York as three interconnected structures, the 129,000-gsf interdisciplinary facility will feature a cleanroom, teaching labs, classrooms, offices, a lecture hall, conference rooms, and low-vibration labs for nanotechnology research and imaging. LEED Silver sustainable design certification will be sought for the project, which is slated for completion in 2015.

The University of Rhode Island broke ground on the $68 million Center for Chemical and Forensic Sciences in June of 2014. The five-story, 135,000-sf facility will house teaching labs, research labs, lecture halls, classrooms, offices, an instrumentation suite, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Center of Excellence for Explosives Detection, Mitigation and Response. The project team includes Wilson Architects of Boston and Bacon Construction of East Providence, R.I. Completion is expected in spring of 2016.

Ohio State University is planning a $32 million expansion and renovation of the Veterinary Medical Center in Columbus. The Hospital for Companion Animals will be renovated and a three-story addition will be built to accommodate faculty offices and conference rooms. The 57,000-sf project will include updated clinical, emergency, and surgery facilities.

The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey broke ground in June of 2014 on a $29 million expansion of the Unified Science Center in Galloway Township, N.J. Designed to support STEM programs, the 54,000-sf addition will provide 32 labs, seven classrooms, 40 faculty offices, computer labs, a vivarium, and a greenhouse. The sustainably designed project will feature highly efficient building systems and is expected to open in spring of 2017.

The 2,200-sf gut renovation for organic chemistry labs at Marywood University’s Center for Natural and Health Sciences Building includes three spaces: a 16-student organic chemistry teaching lab with filtering chemical fume hoods (shown above), an eight-student organic chemistry research lab with conventional ducted hoods, and a dedicated laboratory preparation and support space, also equipped with ducted hoods.

Tufts University received permission from the Boston Public Health Commission in June of 2014 to begin operating the Arnold 8 Biosafety Laboratory. Supporting tuberculosis research, the BSL-3 facility is located in the Tufts School of Medicine’s Biomedical Research and Public Health Building. Development of the 1,700-sf lab began in spring of 2012 with construction commencing in February of 2013. The project architect was Shawmut Design & Construction.

The University of Tampere began construction in June of 2014 on a $64 million medical teaching and research building in Finland. The 273,400-sf project is being built by NCC Construction and will provide instructional space, teaching and research labs, and administrative offices. Completion is expected in May of 2016.

Auburn University opened the Magnet Lab in May of 2014 in Auburn, Ala. Housed in the Department of Physics, the facility provides the College of Science and Mathematics with a 6,000-pound superconducting magnet for plasma physics research. Creation of the laboratory was supported by a National Science Foundation Major Research Instrumentation award in the amount of $2.1 million, which includes a 30 percent cost-sharing by Auburn University.

Bristol Community College broke ground on the $27 million Sbrega Health and Science Building in May of 2014 in Fall River, Mass. Designed by Sasaki Associates, the 46,000-sf collaborative facility will accommodate programs in biology, biotechnology, chemistry, clinical laboratory science, dental hygiene, environmental science, medical technology, microbiology, and nursing. The building will include classrooms, teaching labs, offices, and an atrium. The construction manager for the project is BOND.

The University of Buffalo's John & Judith Kapoor Hall, the former Acheson Hall, was completely gutted and renovated, including interior walls and HVAC systems, to bring the building and its technologies into the 21^st century for the School of Pharmacy. The 160,000-sf building was originally constructed as a chemistry building in 1959, with additions in 1962 and 1963.

The University of Minnesota is planning an $85 million renovation of the 87-year-old Tate Laboratory of Physics in Minneapolis. The project will provide modern lecture halls and classrooms, instructional labs, faculty offices, collaborative study spaces, conference rooms, and dedicated space for the Fine Theoretical Physics Institute and the Minnesota Institute for Astrophysics. The building will also accommodate teaching and research programs of the School of Earth Sciences.