Skip to main content

Building blocks: Get the latest information on campus construction projects

Aug 21, 2018

The start of the fall semester brings to campus not only a new freshman class but also the completion of several major renovation and construction projects. While students, faculty and staff begin to use these spaces once again, work will continue throughout the academic year on additional projects, with more planned for the university’s bicentennial and beyond.

Projects finished over the summer

The reception desk at the Walter Career Center in Ernie Pyle Hall
Ernie Pyle Hall, the former location of the IU journalism program, now houses IU’s Office of Admissions and the College of Arts and Sciences’ Walter Center for Career Achievement.Photo by Chaz Mottinger, Indiana University
  • Ernie Pyle Hall: Staff in newly renovated Ernie Pyle Hall began greeting prospective and current students seeking admissions and career counseling information this summer. Located next to the Indiana Memorial Union on Seventh Street, the building now houses IU’s Office of Admissions and the College of Arts and Sciences’ Walter Center for Career Achievement.
  • Forest Quad: The second phase of renovations at Forest Quad is complete. The renovation included new windows and updated restrooms, as well as updates to mechanical, plumbing, electrical and security systems. Located on Third Street near the Jacobs School of Music East Studio Building, Forest consists of two residence hall towers connected by a center building that includes The Restaurants at Woodland.
  • Memorial Stadium Excellence Academy: Standing at the corner of 17th and Dunn streets since 1960, Memorial Stadium has now been fully enclosed by a new addition at the southern end. The addition, referred to as the Excellence Academy, was completed and ready for use by student-athletes and staff earlier this month, with some finishing work remaining on the exterior plaza. The Excellence Academy includes student-athlete services – sports medicine, wellness, leadership, life skills – and a dining facility and event suite. Accessibility upgrades and other renovations to the existing stadium also were included in the project.
  • Swain Hall: Primarily the home of IU’s physics and astronomy departments, Swain West and the addition connecting Swain West and Swain East on Third Street were occupied earlier this month, with exterior work on the south face of the addition to be completed in the coming weeks. Swain West consists of three major sections: the original 1938 building, a north section added in 1957 and the south addition completed in 1972. As well as major building systems and interior renovations, this project trimmed the south addition back to reveal the original West and East buildings. The addition did not fit architecturally with the existing buildings and was built to allow later construction of a walkway over Third Street that never happened. The addition was refaced and a new gable constructed to blend with the existing buildings while creating a visible and accessible new front entry.
  • Old Crescent brick sidewalks: Damaged sidewalks in front of Kirkwood and Wylie halls were replaced with brick to match the sidewalks in Dunn’s Woods and other parts of the Old Crescent.
  • Woodlawn Avenue: New infrastructure was installed beneath Woodlawn Avenue from Seventh Street to 10th Street, as well as limestone and iron gates at the Indiana Memorial Union loading dock. Work also included new brick pedestrian plazas at the intersection of Seventh Street and Woodlawn Avenue and reconstruction of the headwall over the Jordan River near the IMU loading dock.

Projects under construction

Construction at the IU Art Museum
Construction completion for the Eskenazi Museum of Art is planned in December, with the museum scheduled to open in fall 2019.Photo by Chaz Mottinger, Indiana University
  • Ruth Lilly Auxiliary Library Facility III: Completion of this third addition to the Ruth Lilly Auxiliary Library Facility, otherwise known as the ALF, on Range Road is anticipated in the coming weeks. The addition will increase the centralized, secure, long-term temperature- and humidity-controlled storage available for artifacts from a variety of campus collections.
  • IU Golf Course: Work continues on the renovation of the IU Golf Course on the Indiana 45/46 Bypass, with course completion expected this fall. However, the course will not open until late spring to allow for establishment of the turf as well as construction of the clubhouse.
  • Wilkinson Hall: Opening of the new home of IU’s volleyball and wrestling teams is expected in late November. The facility is next to Cook Hall on 17th Street, bringing the competition venue for the volleyball and wrestling teams onto the IU Athletics campus and enabling student-athletes to better utilize the nearby Excellence Academy.
  • Eskenazi Museum of Art: Renovations continue at the Eskenazi Museum of Art, part of the Fine Arts Plaza on Seventh Street. Construction completion is planned in December, with the museum scheduled to open in fall 2019. With over 45,000 objects, the museum is known for its extensive collections of African and Oceanic art but also includes works by Claude Monet and Pablo Picasso, as well as jewelry, prints, drawings and photographs.
  • Fine Arts Studio Building Addition: Construction has begun on an addition to the Fine Arts Studio Building at 13th Street and Woodlawn Avenue, with completion anticipated in December. The addition will include needed collaborative and consolidated studio space for programs in the School of Art, Architecture + Design.
  • Metz Carillon: Work on the carillon bells is underway in the Netherlands, and construction of the tower is expected to begin this fall, with completion in about one year. The carillon bells are being refurbished and four new bells manufactured to upgrade the instrument to a grand carillon, one of fewer than 30 in the world and a handful nationwide. The newly constructed carillon tower will be in the Arboretum off 10th Street.
  • Teter Quad: Phase one of a three-phase project to replace mechanical systems and perform other renovations at Teter Quad is in progress. Teter Quad consists of five residence hall buildings at the corner of Sunrise Drive and 10th Street. Completion of the entire project is anticipated in summer 2020, with project phasing to allow a portion of the facility to remain operational throughout construction.
  • IU Health Regional Academic Health Center/Academic Health Sciences Building: Construction is underway for this IU Bloomington health facility including hospital, critical care/emergency, clinics, surgery, diagnostics, academic facilities and related support units, as well as parking. Located on the Indiana 45/46 Bypass next to the IU Golf Course, completion of the facility coordinated by IU Health is anticipated in 2020.

Planned projects, pending state and other approvals

Rendering of a new International Center on the IU Bloomington campus
A new International Center will be constructed at the northeast corner of Jordan Avenue and Seventh Street with completion anticipated for summer 2020.Rendering courtesy of the IU Office of the Vice President for Capital Planning and Facilities
  • Wells Library: Portions of the ground floor of the Wells Library will be renovated for the Office of the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education. An accessible ramp also will be constructed at the northwest exterior corner of the library as part of the renovation; dining space for the Bookmarket Eatery will be expanded; and classrooms and restrooms will be updated. Anticipated completion: December 2019.
  • Old Crescent Phase III: Renovations of Ballantine Hall, which have had an impact on classroom space across campus, are expected to begin this fall, with the start of work at Geological Sciences to follow. Located southeast of the IMU, Ballantine was completed in 1959 and remains one of the largest academic buildings in the nation. Geological Sciences, the primary home of the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences and the Indiana Geological and Water Survey, sits north of Woodlawn Field on 10th Street. Anticipated completion for both projects: 2020.
  • Parking Garage/Office Building: A new parking garage with an attached academic/administrative office building will be constructed north of 11th Street between Forrest Avenue and Walnut Grove. Anticipated completion: 2020.
  • International Center: A new International Center will be constructed at the northeast corner of Jordan Avenue and Seventh Street to serve as the hub of IU’s longstanding international engagement mission. Anticipated completion: summer 2020.
  • North Housing Addition: This new housing facility near McNutt Quad will include about 700 beds and a dining addition to the existing McNutt Central building. Anticipated completion: summer 2020.
  • IMU Dining Renovation: Renovations of selected dining facilities in the IMU on Seventh Street will be phased to allow continuous food service. Work will update areas such as the Food Court, Dunn Meadow Café, the Commons and related infrastructure. Anticipated completion: November 2020.
  • Repair and rehabilitation projects: As part of IU’s goal to reduce its deferred maintenance backlog, work will continue on repair and rehabilitation projects throughout campus. Projects may include building exteriors, roofs, windows, electrical, plumbing, elevators, mechanical systems, interior construction and utilities.

Beth Feickert is a capital planning project specialist for the IU Office of the Vice President for Capital Planning and Facilities.

Media Contact

More stories