Town hall meetings to introduce building plans for Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery

On October 1, 8, 10 and 25 the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) are hosting a series of town hall meetings to inform the UW–Madison community about the latest building plans for the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery.

Composed of the private Morgridge Institute for Research and the public Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, the twin institutes are to be constructed in the heart of campus as a hub for interdisciplinary research.

The institutes’ design and structure are intended to foster collaboration across the sciences that will result in breakthrough discoveries that benefit the world. They are the result of the vision and funding provided by UW–Madison alumni John and Tashia Morgridge, the state of Wisconsin, and WARF, UW–Madison’s patenting and licensing organization.

The building’s architects are Ballinger of Philadelphia, and Uihlein Wilson Architects of Milwaukee. Construction will begin in spring 2008 on the 1300 block of University Avenue, with a planned 2010 completion date.

At the town hall meetings, attendees will:

• Learn about the innovative building plans that include public and retail venues; wet, dry and damp labs; educational outreach space; and social areas to encourage collaboration;
• See models and artists’ renderings of the plans designed to encourage a collaborative and interdisciplinary research culture on campus and engage the public in the sciences and arts in new and unexpected ways;
• And hear about the campus connection and contribution to the institutes, and participate in a question and answer session.

The meetings are being held on the UW–Madison campus from 4-5 p.m., with a reception to follow on each date: Oct. 1 at Ebling Symposium Center, Microbial Sciences Building, 1550 Linden Drive; Oct. 8 at 1610 Engineering Hall, 1415 Engineering Drive; and Oct. 10 and 25 at Main auditorium, 1st floor, Fluno Center, 601 University Avenue.