Renovation, additions among this year’s construction projects

As students, faculty and staff resume classes for the fall semester, they will undoubtedly notice a flurry of new and continuing construction projects.

The Engineering Centers Building should be completed in October after more than two years of construction.

Meanwhile, major building partner-ships — BioStar and HealthStar — continue to progress. The first phase of BioStar, the Biotechnology Building addition, is beginning. Construction on the second of three HealthStar projects, the Health Sciences Learning Center, is well under way.

Important renovations and additions to existing facilities continue to stir up dust.

Major projects beginning or continuing during fall semester include:

Engineering Centers Building 1550 Engineering Drive
The Engineering Centers Building, which broke ground in summer 2000, will be done in October. The Engineering Centers will be a multidisciplinary facility for engineering education and research activities, including space for mechanical equipment and student project activities, student and faculty meeting rooms, an auditorium, student organizational functions and learning spaces.

Biotechnology addition 425 Henry Mall
Construction on the addition to the Biotechnology Building is expected to begin this fall and be completed by summer 2004. The addition will house the Genome Center and the Laboratory of Genetics, which are now located in the 40-year-old Genetics Building. The ROTC Building will be demolished to make way for the addition.

The addition is the first phase of the BioStar Initiative. Other BioStar projects include a new Microbial Sciences building, an addition and renovation to the Biochemistry building and a new Interdisciplinary Sciences building.

Chamberlin Hall Remodeling 1150 University Ave.

An upgrade to Chamberlin Hall is already under way and should be completed in January 2004. The building is being renovated to consolidate most of the Physics Department under one roof. The Nuclear Physics accelerator, labs and offices will remain in Sterling Hall. Most indoor walls, ceilings, floors and utility equipment will be replaced.

Weeks Hall addition 1215 W. Dayton St.
Construction on two additions to Weeks Hall, as well as some remodeling to the existing building, is scheduled to begin in December. The existing building is being remodeled to serve the Geology Department’s instructional and research programs.

The museum addition will contain an expansion at the first floor, including new space for exhibits, related offices and storage.

The academic addition will be four stories plus a full basement. Major components will include laboratories, instructional spaces, offices, library expansion, sample repository and utilities rooms. The laboratory spaces will provide support and office space for geomicrobiological research.

SERF addition 715 W. Dayton St.
Construction is progressing on a $6.6 million expansion project. The expansion project includes a three-story addition to SERF, which will house four basketball/ volleyball courts on the first two levels and an aerobics facility with space for cardiovascular and dance training on the top level. The project should be completed by August 2003.

Health Sciences Learning Center 750 Highland Ave.
Construction on the Health Sciences Learning Center began last fall and should be done in January 2004. The building will be a state-of-the-art learning facility for UW students in the health professions. It will house the consolidated libraries of the health sciences schools, classrooms, distance education facilities, basic skills clinical labs, and teaching and assessment facilities.

The HealthStar project is a partnership between the state and the university to construct this building and two others: Rennebohm Hall is already completed, and the Interdisciplinary Research Complex should open in 2005.

Soil and Plant Analysis Lab 5711 Mineral Point Road
Construction on the Soil and Plant Analysis Lab began in May and is scheduled to be completed by January. The project provides for a one-story building consisting of laboratory space, a receiving and shipping room, an office area and a mechanical room. The new laboratory has been designed to accommodate a future addition. The building will be constructed at the headquarters area of the West Madison Agricultural Research Station. The building will replace the lab’s existing facility, which consists of four attached trailers.