Purdue trustees approve capital plan, new labs and dining upgrades

As part of the capital plan, more than a dozen academic buildings across the four Purdue campuses will be built or expanded.

More than $250 million in construction is slated between 2007 and 2009. The West Lafayette campus is scheduled for additions or new buildings for mechanical engineering, aviation technology, human development, hospitality and tourism management, and electrical and computer engineering, as well as a new parking garage. Purdue Calumet is scheduled for a sciences addition to the Gyte Building, and Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne is scheduled for a Student Services and Library Complex and an addition to the Music Building. Purdue North Central is slated for a new Student Services and Recreation Complex.

The capital plan forms the basis for Purdue's 2007-09 biennium capital budget request to the state of Indiana.

"The capital plan is a roadmap for the next decade that anticipates large investments both in repair and renewal of existing physical infrastructure and in new spaces for study, research and discovery," said Morgan R. Olsen, executive vice president and treasurer. "The plan improves the quality of the Purdue educational and research environment while being mindful of the impact on Indiana taxpayers."

About 40 percent of the funding for construction scheduled between 2007 and 2009 comes from private sources, the bulk coming from private gifts to the university. During that first biennium, the single largest allotment is $53 million in state funds for a new boiler. The boiler is part of a long-term plan to replace or supplement aging facilities and provide cleaner and more efficient heating and cooling capacity, said Wayne Kjonaas, vice president for physical facilities.

The near-term projects approved by the trustees include a $2.1 million contract with URS Corp. of Indianapolis to design the Wayne T. and Mary T. Hockmeyer Hall of Structural Biology. The proposed $30 million building on the West Lafayette campus will create new space for the Structural Biology Group, currently housed in the basement of Lilly Hall. The group's research focuses on the structure of proteins and nucleic acids and also examines virus replication and assembly and the interactions between virus and host. The new facility will include labs for cell culture, crystallization, X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy.

"We have been at the leading edge of structural biology for years despite being spread out over several buildings," said Richard Kuhn, head of Purdue's biological sciences department. "With all of our scientists under one roof, research will go smoother, collaboration will increase and science will improve. We will have a brand new stimulating environment that attracts and retains the best students and faculty."

The board also approved planning, financing and construction of a $6.16 million renovation to food and dining areas on the ground floor of Purdue Memorial Union, including the Union Market, Villa Pizza, Freshens and the Union Station Dining Room.

The project will transform a 21,000-square-foot area, including the 25-year-old Union Market operation, into an open, airy "streetscape" that will feature six quick-service restaurants similar to those found in Wabash Landing and other popular areas near campus. The project also will replace much of the area's aging infrastructure and will include a new air handler. Work is scheduled to begin on Dec. 1, and the restaurants will open in August 2007.

"This is an exciting and progressive concept," said Gary Goldberg, director of Union dining services. "We will be able to better and more quickly serve the needs of the university community."

The board approved purchasing up to $1.9 million in IBM hardware for the OnePurdue project from Locicalis in Indianapolis. The purchase includes 23 servers.

The three-year, $73 million OnePurdue project, scheduled for completion in 2008, is replacing aging, redundant computing technologies and integrating administrative applications, including student services, finance and human resources. By streamlining its business processes, the university will be able to reduce paperwork, increase Web-based self-services and enhance data security.

On Thursday (Feb. 2) the board's Physical Facilities Committee approved awarding construction contracts for several projects, including:

• D.A. Dodd Inc. of Rolling Prairie, Ind., received $1.9 million in contracts and J.R. Kelly of Lafayette received a $1.3 million contract to install air conditioning and sprinkler systems in Earhart and McCutcheon residence halls at West Lafayette.

• D.A. Dodd Inc. was named general contractor for the $749,000 project to upgrade the heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems in the 56-year-old Gyte Building on the Calumet campus.

• Ralph R. Reeder & Sons Inc. was named general contractor for the $1.26 million project to replace more than 20,000 square feet of roof above library space in Stewart Center.

• Project Design & Piping Inc. of Fort Wayne was named general contractor for the $1.4 million project to replace a 2000-ton chiller at IPFW.

• Hamilton Hunter Builders Inc. of Fort Wayne was named general contractor for the $709,000 roof replacement and masonry repairs for Neff Hall at IPFW.

• Kettlehut Construction Inc. of Lafayette was named general contractor for the $992,000 project to remodel the Veterinary Medicine's Junior Surgery Suite in Lynn Hall at West Lafayette.

• The committee contracted with Domain Architecture Inc. of Indianapolis to design almost $700,000 in renovations to the 474-seat Wetherhill Lecture Room 200 at West Lafayette, which was built in the early 1950s. The committee also authorized the $500,700 needed to replace roofing at Lilly Hall at West Lafayette and contracted Martin Riley Architects/Engineers of Fort Wayne for the design work.

"These moves represent an investment in the future of Purdue education by being good stewards of the assets and infrastructure we have inherited," Kjonaas said.

Writer: Jim Schenke, (765) 494-6262, jschenke@purdue.edu

Sources: Morgan R. Olsen, (765) 494-9705, mrolsen@purdue.edu

Wayne Kjonaas, (765) 494-8000, wwkjonaas@purdue.edu

Richard Kuhn, (765) 494-1164, kuhnr@purdue.edu

Gary Goldberg, (765) 494-8931, gcgoldberg@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

To the News Service home page