Higher Education

Massachusetts Institute of Technology has contracted Parsons Brinckerhoff as project manager for a $50 million utilities upgrade. The Cambridge-based firm will also provide resident engineering and inspection services.

The tenth University of California campus will be located in Merced, in the Central Valley of California. Design and construction of the 2,000-acre site will be managed in a joint venture of Parsons Brinckerhoff and The JCM Group. The campus will accommodate 25,000 graduate and undergraduate students at full build-out.

A new Conservatory of Music in Puerto Rico is being designed by Boston firm Domenech Hicks and Krockmalnic Architects. New administrative, academic, and performance facilities, as well as a 300-car parking garage, will be included in the $50 million rehabilitation of a historic building.

Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences' new urban campus has been completed in eight months' time. Construction began in October 1999 when Payton Construction Corp. of Boston began the transformation of a historic five-story, 56,000-sf structure plus construction of a new 5,000-sf addition. The college, which offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in several health care disciplines, will accommodate 400 students and 50 faculty and staff in classrooms, labs, auditoriums, a libarary, and academic and administrative offices.

Washington University broke ground in early October 2000 on the university's Uncas A. Whitaker Hall for Biomedical Engineering building, designed by Boston-based architects Shepley Bulfinch Richardson and Abbott. The new three-story facility will include a flexible laboratory wing comprised of 22,000 sf of wet lab space and 12,500 sf of procedure equipment and environmental areas (which will include a nanofabrication lab, vivarium, electron microscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance suites). A three-story atrium will connect the laboratory wing with faculty office pods and classrooms.

Fujitsu Laboratories plans to work with its subsidiary, Fujitsu Laboratories America, in Sunnyvale, Calif., and the University of Maryland in College Park, to create a $3.5-million research institute devoted to advanced computer technology. Beginning in April 2001, the institute will study bioinformatics, network security, wireless computing, and the impact of pervasive computing. Fujitsu anticipates a $10-million budget and a staff of 40 by 2004.

University of Delaware has selected The Lighting Practice of Philadelphia to create the lighting for two renovated buildings plus a new addition on the University’s Newark campus. The 95,000-sf Wolf Hall and McKinly Hall will be thoroughly upgraded and renovated. The Biology Department for postgraduate studies and research and the Psychology Department, which serves both undergraduates and postgraduates, occupy both halls. A new 10,000-sf addition to Wolf Hall will complete the complex.

Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences' new urban campus has been completed in eight months' time. Construction began in October 1999 when Payton Construction Corp. of Boston began the transformation of a historic five-story, 56,000-sf structure plus construction of a new 5,000-sf addition. The college, which offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in several health care disciplines, will accommodate 400 students and 50 faculty and staff in classrooms, labs, auditoriums, a libarary, and academic and administrative offices.

Trinity College of Washington, D.C., broke ground in early November 2000 on a 62,000-sf Trinity Center for Women & Girls in Sports. The $20 million sports complex will include a gym, swimming pool, locker rooms, fitness center, dance and aerobics studio, multipurpose space, and athletic offices. The sports facility, the largest in the country dedicated specifically for women and girls in sports, was designed by Geier, Brown & Renfrow Architects and The Hughes Group. Completion is scheduled for 2002.

Washington University broke ground in early October 2000 on the university's Uncas A. Whitaker Hall for Biomedical Engineering building, designed by Boston-based architects Shepley Bulfinch Richardson and Abbott. The new three-story facility will include a flexible laboratory wing comprised of 22,000 sf of wet lab space and 12,500 sf of procedure equipment and environmental areas (which will include a nanofabrication lab, vivarium, electron microscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance suites). A three-story atrium will connect the laboratory wing with faculty office pods and classrooms.

Ida Price Middle School and Orchard Middle School in San Jose have worked with Saramark Inc., a San Jose construction company, to upgrade their science classrooms. To ensure state approval, Saramark adhered closely to the California Department of Architecture's standards and regulations for classrooms, school labs, seismic retrofitting, storage of chemicals, ventilation, and plumbing.

University of California-San Diego (UCSD) and the University of California-Irvine (UCI) have received funding to launch the California Institute of Telecommunications and Information Technology, dubbed Cal-(IT)2, an interdisciplinary center to research telecommunications and information technology. The $300 million project will build a 215,000-sf at UCSD and a smaller facility at UCI. Construction of the UCSD building is scheduled for completion in 2004.

The University of California-San Diego (UCSD) has completed construction of the Preuss School, a 74,780-sf charter school for low-income sixth to twelfth grade students on seven acres in the university's East Campus area. Construction began in fall 1999 on five classroom buildings, an administration building, library, and multipurpose gymnasium. The new science building has four lab stations that are supplied with utilities and lab equipment. The stage in the new gym is equipped with sound and lighting capabilities.

St. Joseph's University has a broad range of projects it is considering for construction over the next decade as part of its overall campus master plan at the City Avenue campus. Student housing and a multi-tier parking garage are most urgently needed. In addition, a new convocation center, sports arena, and classroom space would serve a total of 7,000 students. Within three to five years, the university expects to begin construction on some or all of the projects.

Stanford University expects approval on its land use plan to build as many as 3,018 units to house students, faculty, and staff over the coming ten years. Additional construction on the campus includes 2 million sf of classrooms, labs, and other academic facilities. The new construction would take place on 1,800 acres that have already been developed at the campus.