Higher Education

Florida State University (FSU) has selected HOK Florida to design the expansion and renovation of the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota, Florida. The Ringling Museum is the largest university museum in the nation. The proposed $44 million project will expand the complex to include a new Visitor Center and Interactive Art Education Facility. An adjunct to the existing Museum will include new art exhibiition galleries as well as a new Art Collection, Library and Archives Facility.

Ground was recently broken on the Koret Comparative Genomics Laboratory at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. Made possible by a $1 million Koret Foundation grant, the lab is slated to open in 2002. Research subjects will inlcude genetically related pet disorders such as canine heart problems and feline cancers, eye disorders and head defects.

The Center for Applied Genetic Technologies has opened its doors at the University of Georgia. The $28 million, 40,000-sf facility will accommodate animal and plant science researchers and includes a 20,000-sf biotech incubator, the Georgia BioBusiness Center.

San Francisco State University is expanding in the East Bay, leasing 29,676-sf for its Oakland Multimedia Center. The facility will host multimedia training classes in the evenings and will serve as a conference center by day.

The University of California, San Diego (UCSD), has selected Gilbane Building Co. as construction manager/general contractor for a new $60-million research facility for the California Institute of Telecommunications and Information Technology called Cal-(IT)²—a partnership between UCSD and the University of California, Irvine. The 215,000-sf facility will consist of research neighborhoods, specialized labs, and administrative offices.

Amherst College has selected Shepley Bulfinch Richardson and Abbott of Boston to design two new freshman dormitories on the College campus. The new dorms will be sited where the existing James and Stearns residential halls are located. The College has also assigned the company the conversion of its Pratt Geology Museum to a residence hall.

Stanford University’s Clark Center for Biomedical Engineering and Science began construction in October 2001. The 504,000-sf, $146-million collaborative science building is scheduled for occupancy in 2003. The facility provides generic space for interdisciplinary projects and will accommodate approximately 50 faculty.

ITT Educational Services is opening a 30,260-sf computer and technology college in February 2002 at 760 Moore Road, a converted warehouse developed by O'Neill Properties Group. O'Neill began development of the project two years ago as part of the company's strategic conversion of old warehouse/industrial properties to office facilities.

Design of the American National Fish and Wildlife Museum in Springfield, Miss. was recently completed by Cambridge Seven Associates of Cambridge. The museum will house over 160 species of wildlife, a 92,000-sf hybrid aquarium with a 30-ft waterfall, and a 90-ft long cave for flying bats.

The University of Washington Medical Center has broken ground on a $100-million surgery center. Located in Seattle's University District, the three-story, 160,000-sf Surgery Pavilion is being handled by general contractor Hoffman Construction of Washington. Twenty-seven individual bids will be awarded to subcontractors for electrical, mechanical, and interior and exterior work.   

The Johns Hopkins University has selected architectural and engineering firm RTKL to design Building 17—a $33-million, 230,000-sf building to house offices and special lab space at the Applied Physics Laboratory campus. The multipurpose structure will contain offices, computer lab and support spaces, as well as amenities for the overall campus: a conference center, cafeteria, fitness center, retail store, and medical unit. Pedestrian bridges will connect the facility to adjacent buildings. Completion is slated for 2004.

The University of San Diego broke ground in May 2001 on the new four-story, 150,000-sf Science and Technology Center. The $47-million building will contain state-of-the-art labs, a vivarium, a greenhouse, aquariums, an astronomy deck, and a large conference area. San Diego architects Carrier-Johnson designed the facility, which is being built by Rudolph/Sletten. Completion is anticipated by 2003.

 The University of San Diego has completed construction of the Joan Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice. The $30-million center is designed to accommodate both research on the topics of peace, conflict, and social justice as well as actual international negotiations and mediation. The 92,000-sf facility, designed by San Diego-based Carrier Johnson, incorporates an auditorium seating 320, classrooms, distance learning center, and faculty offices. Visiting scholars or officials can be housed in an adjoining three-unit apartment. Rudolph & Sletten Inc. is the general contractor.

 California Polytechnic University, Pomona expects to complete construction summer 2001 on the Engineering Laboratory Replacement Project phase two--a $20-million, two-story, 117,900-sf facility accommodating engineering labs, classrooms, and offices. Construction is being performed by Nielsen Dillingham Builders of San Diego. Architect for the project is Leo A. Daly of Omaha, Neb.  The civil engineer is Boyle Engineering of Newport Beach, Calif.

Drexel University's new Laurence A. Baiada Center for Entrepreneurship in Technology, scheduled to open in fall 2001, is being designed by IA/Interspace. The center will house a cybercafe and a multi-purpose presentation room for student presentations of business plans to potential investors. Drexel has contracted with the Port of Technology in nearby University City to run the Baiada Center.