Higher Education

A proposed office-classroom development at San Jose State University is being postponed due to an economic crunch. The $380 million, 5.5-acre project  would have included commercial office space and 250,000 sf of adjacent classrooms, laboratories, and staff offices. In an attempt to convert its valuable downtown land into superior staff and student facilities, SJSU would have leased on-campus office space to finance further construction. The university has hired Alameda, Calif., firm SRM Associates as a consultant for the project's future development.

The University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill is planning to develop a 1,000-acre site as a satellite campus. The mixed-use development will contain commercial, research and institutional space as well as housing for faculty, staff, and students. Accommodating 25,000 employees and housing up to 3,000, the project will feature additional facilities for research in genomics and bioinformatics.

Washington University is planning to develop its Hilltop campus and School of Medicine with new buildings for education, research and patient care. The $1 billion project includes a $35 million biomedical engineering facility, the Uncas A. Whitaker Hall.

Georgia Tech is planning a new $148 million multibuilding complex. The new Technology Square will house the Dupree College of Management, the University Bookstore, a 250-room hotel and conference center, a parking deck, and 20,000-sf of retail and restaurant space. The facility is still in the design phase and is slated for completion in August 2003. Construction costs for the Dupree College of Management building are estimated at $35 million.

Southern Catholic College has acquired 338 acres in Dawson County. The under-formation regional college will spend $34 million on the first phase of development that will include land purchase, an academic building, a gym, and a dormitory. An estimated total of $300 million will be invested in the campus over the next 20-25 years. Expected to open in fall of 2002, the school will eventually accommodate approximately 3,000 students.

University of Kentucky-Lexington’s new Biomedical/Biological Sciences Research Building is currently in the schematic design phase. The 200,000-sf building is scheduled for occupancy in 2004. HERA of St. Louis, is providing lab planning, programming, and design services for the facility. A.M. Kinney of Cincinnati is the prime architect and engineer, and Philadelphia-based Venturi Scott Brown Associates is the design architect.

The University of Texas is renovating and expanding three buildings at its main campus in Austin. The $40-million project will involve Benedict, Mezes, and Batts halls, linking the structures with new construction and modernizing existing classrooms. The new Austin office of 3D/I is in charge of the project, which is slated for completion in approximately two years.

San Diego Mesa College has awarded Kvaas Constructors, Inc., of San Diego a contract to build a Humanities, Languages & Multicultural Studies Project. The $7.05 million project is estimated to reach completion near the end of 2002.

UCSD's Jacobs School of Engineering is building a 5-story, 105,000-sf bioengineering facility at the La Jolla campus. The $34 million Powell-Focht Bioengineering Hall will house five labs for researchers and graduate students, one lab per floor, each focused on a specific research area. Ground was broken in August 2000 on the facility, which is expected to open in 2002.

The University of California-San Diego's Thornton Hospital in La Jolla will be in close proximity to the site of a new $87 million cancer center recently approved by U.C. Regents. The center will provide facilities for research labs, community education, and clinical space, as well as a 130-car underground parking garage. Construction is slated to begin in early 2001, with completion estimated for fall of 2003.

The University of Rhode Island has selected Global Spectrum to manage its new $54 million convocation center and $12 million ice rink. The facility management firm's multiyear contract includes overseeing the entire operation of the URI Convocation Center and ice rink, including staff management, booking, and basketball ticket sales. Designed by HOK Sports of Kansas City, Mo., the 8,000-seat convocation center and 2,500-seat ice rink are slated to begin construction in late 2000 and will open in fall of 2002.

Southwest Texas State University is proposing a $21.7 million, 108,000-sf building to house its growing College of Business Administration. Space is tight in the university's current 58,000-sf facility that is in need of technological updates and new computer equipment. The state legislature has been petitioned for funding approval with hearings beginning in late January, and a decision expected by May or June. Construction could begin in 2003, depending on availability of funds.

The University of Texas engineering and business schools will be expanded and updated, thanks to a $7.3 million donation from Ford Motor Company. The College of Engineering will be partially renovated to create an academic and student center as well as adding two technology learning labs for students and faculty. Ten mechanical engineering labs will be upgraded to accommodate a new curriculum that teaches theory and practical applications simultaneouly. Funds will be divided between the College of Engineering and the McCombs School of Business.

Wartburg College is expanding and renovating Becker Hall of Science which currently houses the department of biology, chemistry, computer science, mathematics and physics. The 50,000-sf structure will be renovated to provide office, storage, and classroom facilities. The building currently houses instructional labs, a greenhouse, an animal room, a 100-seat auditorium, computer rooms, and classrooms. The 55,000-sf addition will contain an auditorium, labs, and state-of-the-art technology for flexible classrooms/seminar rooms.

The University of California is purchasing a site near Merced for a new $400 million campus. Construction is slated to begin in early 2002 on the first three buildings: a science and engineering facility, a library and technology center, and classroom space for arts, humanities, and social sciences. UC received a grant for $11.4 million to finance purchase of the site, and has budgeted $160 million to begin construction. The new campus will accommodate 31,000 people within the next 2 decades.