The Indiana University Board of Trustees approved five facilities projects and one architectural design during its June meeting in Bloomington:
- Renovations of Wells Quad and School of Public Health facilities in Bloomington.
- A science laboratory renovation and expansion project in Indianapolis.
- Renovations of the IU School of Dentistry building in Indianapolis.
- The university’s annual Repair and Rehabilitation Plan for all campuses.
- Demolition of Redbud Hill Apartments in Bloomington.
- The architectural design of new spectator stands at the field hockey complex in Bloomington.
Wells Quad and School of Public Health
The Bloomington campus project will renovate portions of academic and research buildings within Wells Quad and School of Public Health-Bloomington facilities, including Sycamore Hall, Sarah Parke Morrison Hall, Music Addition and Public Health, totaling approximately 572,000 gross square feet.
Student spaces will be updated, including classrooms in all buildings and music practice rooms and rehearsal spaces in the Music Addition. Repairs will be made to façades and new energy-efficient building systems installed, including centralized air conditioning at the Public Health building. The Music Addition and Public Health building also will receive new windows.
“Renovations of Wells Quad buildings and Public Health facilities in Bloomington will impact multiple programs within the College of Arts and Sciences, the Jacobs School of Music and the School of Public Health,” said Thomas A. Morrison, IU vice president for capital planning and facilities. “Updates of these facilities will provide contemporary spaces in which students, faculty and staff can effectively learn, teach and perform at their best while also engaging in research.”
Indianapolis science labs
In Indianapolis, a project to renovate existing science teaching and research laboratories and construct additional new lab spaces will address growing needs for instructional and research facilities as IUPUI transitions into IU Indianapolis and creates a new Science and Technology Corridor.
For existing labs, necessary infrastructure upgrades and replacements including mechanical, electrical, plumbing and air exchange systems will be installed, along with new technologies and equipment. An approximately 50,000-gross-square-foot addition also will be constructed to provide increased laboratory and related support space to ensure continued academic and research success and growth.
“This project to renovate and expand teaching and research labs is an exciting step in the vision for IU Indianapolis to become a premier urban public research university,” said Phaedra Corso, IU associate vice president and vice chancellor for research, Indianapolis, and chair of the Research Accelerator Action Team. “These labs are the anchor to the establishment of the SciTech Corridor, which will grow opportunities for multidisciplinary, transformative STEM research in downtown Indianapolis and engage industry in innovative partnerships to benefit IU, the Indianapolis community and the Hoosier state.”
School of Dentistry
Renovations for the IU School of Dentistry, also in Indianapolis, will update portions of the original 1932 Dental School building, along with the 1960 and 1969 additions, totaling approximately 59,000 gross square feet.
The renovation will create a new Student Commons with informal learning and conference spaces, along with student-serving offices. A new Special Care Clinic with related labs and support space will train students in caring for patients with disabilities and complex medical conditions.
To provide stronger and more integrated research support to the school, the Oral Health Research Institute will be moved into the Dental School building. The updated facilities will include a new wet/bench lab, digital dentistry lab, information technology office and other support spaces. The Orthodontics Clinic also will be renovated and expanded to enable contemporary, accommodating and effective patient care.
“These renovations will modernize our facilities for clinical research and provide dedicated space to support student academic success, health and wellness,” said Carol Anne Murdoch-Kinch, dean of the IU School of Dentistry. “Additionally, we will expand Indiana’s capacity for dental care for adults with intellectual disabilities and children with craniofacial birth defects by training oral health care professionals in new clinics designed for the comfort and safety of these populations.”
Repair and Rehabilitation Plan
Trustees also approved the university’s annual Repair and Rehabilitation Plan. Funded by state appropriation and student fees, the plan focuses on reduction of deferred maintenance on all campuses as well as infrastructure projects necessary for continued campus operations. Projects will include repairs or replacement of roofing; building façades; elevators; electrical, fire protection, mechanical and plumbing systems; steam, utilities and chilled water systems; and classroom and site improvements.
“The university’s continued investment in repair and rehabilitation of facilities and infrastructure ensures the growth of learning, teaching and research in safe and productive environments,” Morrison said. “The repair and rehabilitation program not only performs needed repairs and maintenance, but also anticipates future needs by installing and improving the backbone infrastructure necessary to maintain daily operations in support of academic and research initiatives.”
Apartments and field hockey complex
Two additional items were approved for the Bloomington campus: the demolition of Redbud Hill Apartments and the architectural design of spectator stands and storage at the field hockey complex.
Redbud North and Redbud East Apartments, which opened in 1959, are slated for demolition in accordance with the Bloomington Campus Housing Capital Plan. Each has accumulated significant deferred maintenance, making the cost of renovation unfeasible.
The architectural design of new permanent spectator stands at Deborah Tobias Field, to be located on the east side of the field hockey complex and adjacent to Ireland Family Fieldhouse, will include a press box, bleacher seating and storage. The facility will replace temporary bleachers that are erected each season, along with temporary storage sheds.
The press box will be a two-story structure of approximately 600 gross square feet, constructed of buff-colored split-face concrete block with smooth accent bands matching the adjacent Ireland Family Fieldhouse building. The lower level of the press box will provide weather-protected storage.
The bleachers will be clad with painted metal siding and elevated to provide optimal spectator viewing while also enabling secure equipment storage below.
