September 24, 2004
Trustees approve Discovery Learning Center, parking expansion
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Purdue University Board of Trustees voted today (Friday, Sept. 24) to approve planning and construction of the Discovery Learning Center in Discovery Park and an addition to a campus parking garage.
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The trustees approved the planning, financing and construction of an addition to the McCutcheon Drive Parking Garage to serve University Residences. The board also hired a contractor for Purdue's new computer science building and set student housing rates at Purdue Calumet.
The trustees hired BSA LifeStructures, Indianapolis, as architect and engineering firm for the Discovery Learning Center. The center will focus on new approaches to teaching and learning science, technology, engineering and math. The building's $10 million cost will be paid for with Purdue funds set aside for capital projects. Construction is expected to begin in the fall of 2005 and be completed by spring of 2007.
The learning center has been operational since March 2003 and already has funded projects and facilitated partnerships on campus. For example, the National Science Foundation funded Center for Authentic Science Practice in Education will provide research experience to university freshmen and sophomores to increase their enthusiasm for science-related careers.
More than 300 faculty, representing 12 schools and 45 academic departments at Purdue, plus those from other universities, business and industry, teachers, and professional organizations, are involved in similar collaborations or research in conjunction with the center.
Discovery Park, a 40-acre site on the southwest edge of campus, will be home to the Bindley Bioscience Center, Birck Nanotechnology Center, Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship, Discovery Learning Center, e-Enterprise Center and Biomedical Engineering Building.
The board also voted to hire Walker Parking Consultants, Indianapolis, to serve as the architecture and engineering firm for an addition to the McCutcheon Drive Parking Garage with as many as 1,060 spaces.
The addition, which is expected to cost $12.5 million, will replace parking expected to be lost in a proposed student housing project west of Fowler Memorial House. All spaces in the 314,000-square-foot addition will be used by University Residences, bringing the total number of residential parking spaces to about 3,500.
"Not only will the new addition replace the 600 parking spaces we expect to lose, but it also will provide more than 400 new spaces for our residents' vehicles," said Wayne W. Kjonaas, vice president for physical facilities.
The addition will be paid for by University Residences, which is self-supporting.
The board also hired Kettlehut Construction, Lafayette, to construct the university's new $20 million Computer Science Building, to be located near the intersection of University and Third streets. The new facility will provide classrooms, instructional and research laboratories, breakout rooms for student organizations and student projects, and assorted meeting rooms and offices.
Construction is expected to be completed in the spring of 2006. The existing computer science building – the renovated Memorial Gymnasium – will continue to house a portion of the department's activities until the new building is complete.
The new facility will be paid for by a combination of gift funds and state appropriations.
Trustees approved the financing and construction of a utilities extension to the site of the new computer science building. The project will extend telecommunications cable, steam heat, water supply, electrical systems, and storm and sanitary sewer for the facility. The approved budget for the project is $2 million.
The board also voted to set housing fees for the 2005-06 school year at the Calumet campus at $3,990. The residence hall, which will open in the fall of 2005, will feature 94 apartment-style student suites, each having four bedrooms and two bathrooms. Each suite also will include a shared kitchen, and living and dining areas.
"During the planning of the residence hall, several studies were done that showed not only a demand for student housing, but also that this price would be in line with the local housing market," said Gary H. Newsom, vice chancellor for administrative services at the Calumet campus. "In addition to new, high-quality apartments, residents will also have amenities such as high-speed Internet access, residential life programs and a comprehensive security system."
Construction of the residence hall began earlier this year on 11.5 acres of land adjacent to the Physical Education Recreation Building along 173rd Street.
In other business, the board voted to increase the budget of the Tom Spurgeon Golf Training Facility to $2.7 million after receiving bids from contractors that were higher than the original $2.2 million estimate. The 11,400-square-foot facility, which will be financed with gift funds, will be located in Purdue's Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex.
The building will include an indoor putting green, a swing-analysis video computer system and multiple heated hitting bays.
The trustees also approved hiring Purdue Sports Properties LLC, of Jefferson City, Mo., as the marketing and media partner for Purdue's Division of Intercollegiate Athletics. The firm will provide Purdue assistance in areas including the broadcasting of football, men's and women's basketball and volleyball games; game programs; the production and broadcast of coaches' shows; group ticket sales; premium seat sales; and other activities.
The contract is for a five-year period with an option to renew for an additional five years. James S. Almond, vice president for business services and assistant treasurer, said services are expected to cost $610,000 for the first year.
The board's Physical Facilities Committee approved the renovation of two rooms in Smith Hall for Department of Animal Science laboratory space. The lab and accompanying office space will be dedicated to research in muscle biology and meat science. The committee hired L'Acquis Consulting Services Indianapolis LLC as architect and engineering firm for the project, which is expected to cost $950,000.
The committee also voted to hire Gibraltar Design, Indianapolis, as architect and engineer on a project to install a new fire alarm system in the Purdue Memorial Union. The system is expected to cost almost $610,000.
Neither committee decision requires approval by the board.
Writer: Matt Holsapple, (765) 494-2073, mholsapple@purdue.edu
Sources: Wayne W. Kjonaas, (765) 494-8000, wwkjonaas@purdue.edu
James S. Almond, (765) 494-9706, jsalmond@purdue.edu
Gary H. Newsom, (219) 989-2234, newsomgh@calumet.purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu
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