Higher Education

Winstanley Enterprises broke ground in June of 2021 on a $100 million bioscience research center in New Haven, Conn. Designed by Elkus Manfredi Architects, the 10-story, 525,000-sf facility will provide leasable laboratory and office environments for biomedical companies and academic institutions. Featuring a large public plaza, the collaborative structure will include a 48,000-sf business incubator operated by BioLabs, a conference center, and a STEM classroom for K-12 education programs.

The University of Southern Maine broke ground in May of 2021 on the 42,000-sf Career and Student Success Center in Portland. Designed by Elkus Manfredi Architects to foster collaboration and interaction, the three-story project will house a 4,500-sf multipurpose room, a cafe and brew pub, a 300-seat dining hall, the Career and Employment Hub, the Diversity and Multicultural Center, and numerous student lounges.

Carnegie Mellon University is constructing a $75 million replacement facility for the Alan Magee Scaife Hall of Engineering in Pittsburg. More than doubling the size of the original building, the 120,000-sf structure will provide technology-rich research labs, flexible classrooms, and spaces for formal and informal collaboration.

Stetson University broke ground in June of 2021 on the Cici & Hyatt Brown Hall for Health & Innovation in DeLand, Fla. Designed by Kahler Slater in association with Harvard Jolly Architecture, the 40,000-sf facility will offer flexible and transparent classrooms for active learning, teaching labs for health and environmental sciences, a GIS computer lab, and a Stress Management and Resiliency Training (SMART) lab.

Kathleen W. Rollins Hall at Rollins College in Orlando, Fla., embodies the social/entrepreneurial mission of the college and exemplifies the meaning of an applied liberal arts education. Opened in January 2020, the 29,225-sf facility collocates 10 programs that immerse students in global learning opportunities and partnerships, both on and off campus.

Caltech is planning to break ground in April of 2022 on the $100 million Resnick Sustainability Resource Center in Pasadena. Designed by the Yazdani Studio of CannonDesign, the 80,000-sf interdisciplinary facility will provide sophisticated laboratory environments for research programs in climate science, ecology, biosphere engineering, energy, biofuels, decomposable plastics, solar science, and water and environmental resources.

Harvard University completed construction on the $1 billion Science and Engineering Complex (SEC) in Boston in spring of 2021. Sited adjacent to Harvard's enterprise campus in Allston, the eight-story, 544,000-sf project was designed by Behnisch Architekten as a living laboratory for interdisciplinary research, learning, and innovation. Housing the John A.

Indiana Tech broke ground in May of 2021 on a $21.5 million expansion and renovation of Zollner Engineering Center in Fort Wayne. The first phase of the project comprises a 30,000-sf addition that will open in fall of 2022. Renovation of the existing 40,000-sf structure will begin in May of 2022 with occupancy expected in fall of 2023. Classrooms and labs in the center will remain open throughout the project. Academic and research activities will be relocated into the addition to enable the renovation to proceed. 

Dwight and Dian Diercks Computational Science Hall at Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) is far more than the academic home for a new degree program in leading-edge technology. It is full of formal and casual study spaces designed to attract students from all disciplines on campus. It also boasts a 256-seat auditorium and a 2,300-sf atrium, both inviting venues for school functions and community events. 

Washington State University dedicated the $61.9 million Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory in May of 2021. Designed by Perkins&Will, the 61,000-sf facility represents an expansion of the Paul G. Allen Center for Global Animal Health in Pullman. Enabling the detection and diagnosis of human and animal diseases including SARS-CoV-2, avian influenza, BSE, and West Nile virus, the three-story building houses instructional venues, collaboration spaces, a high-bay necropsy suite, and specialized labs for testing, research, and development.

The University of British Columbia is planning to construct the CAD$180 million Gateway Building on the Point Grey campus in Vancouver. Designed by Perkins&Will and Schmidt Hammer Lassen, the 269,000-sf project will offer sophisticated facilities for interprofessional education and research including wet and dry laboratories, high-fidelity simulation suites, flexible classrooms, and four large lecture halls.

The University of Southern California broke ground in May of 2021 on the Dr. Allen and Charlotte Ginsburg Human-Centered Computation Hall in Los Angeles. Located on the University Park campus, the 116,000-sf facility will accommodate the Viterbi School of Engineering’s programs in artificial intelligence, robotics, machine learning, cryptography, internet technology, health computing, software development, and computer graphics.

The Anteater Learning Pavilion (ALP) at the University of California, Irvine (UCI) is the first university building in the state dedicated to using design and technology to increase innovation and collaboration. The three-floor, 94,000-sf ALP has flexible classrooms, mobile furniture, and wireless connectivity throughout, including projection and display technology, to make using technology in the classroom seamless. Opened in September 2018 for a total cost of about $67 million, the ALP provides much-needed room for growth, with a total of 1,446 instructional spaces, 392 informal learning spaces, and 44 staff offices. Michael Dennin, Ph.D., vice provost of Teaching and Learning and dean of the Division of Undergraduate Education at UCI, participated in the building planning committee, and encouraged the commitment to 100 percent active learning space.

Rochester Institute of Technology broke ground in spring of 2021 on the $120 million Student Hall for Exploration and Development in Rochester, N.Y. Designed by William Rawn Associates, the SHED will feature a large maker space where students can prototype new technologies and collaborate on engineering projects. Providing 1,500 classroom seats, the 100,000-sf structure will offer five 150-seat learning venues and 22 standard-size flexible classrooms.

Vermeulens has released its market outlook report for the first quarter of 2021. Key points include: