Industry News

Drexel University has expansion plans -- a new $30 million, 150,000-sf research facility, and, at the LeBow College of Business, a new $8 million, 40,000-sf structure. Over the last four years, the university has also built two residence halls -- the $22 million, 171,000-sf North Hall, and the $15 million, 109,000-sf East Hall

Independence Park Institute, a $10 million educational building designed by Kallman, McKinnell and Wood Architects, will house interactive educational space for student visitors to Independence Mall each year. The building is as yet unfunded, but construction is scheduled to begin in December 2001, with completion in 2002. Construction at other Independence Mall sites includes the $12 million Liberty Bell Pavilion, the $40 million Visitors Center, and the $130 million National Constitution Center?all scheduled to open beginning fall 2001 through 2003.

The Mount Sinai School of Medicine has selected Tsoi/Kobus & Associates to assist in redesigning its medical education facilities within an existing tower. The new facilities will consolidate approximately 120,000 sf of existing teaching, library, and administrative space, using centralized information technology and media services. The Morchand Center for Clinical Competence will be expanded, and a new Minimally Invasive Surgery Education Center will be established.

The University of Notre Dame has chosen The S/L/A/M Collaborative to design a new 200,000-sf undergraduate science teaching building. The project is the implementation of the first phase of the College of Science master plan and will provide state-of-the-art teaching labs and support space for the departments of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Biological Sciences, and Physics. Research Facilities Design is the laboratory building design consultant.

The State University of New York at New Paltz is expanding its residential accommodations for students. The Dormitory Authority of the State of New York awarded STV Architects of Douglassville, Pa., two contracts for the first newly designed and constructed housing to be built at the campus in 30 years. The first of these dormitories is currently in construction and STV will design a new 200+ bed residence hall to sit adjacent to it on the same site. The 62,000-sf, four-story facility is designed with three-person units, with two rooms in each unit.