Purdue University will invest $239 million to build a research facility, renovate a library and expand student housing. The university’s Board of Trustees approved the 10-year capital plan during its Aug. 2 meeting. The board expects to start construction on three priority projects in 2026.
The largest investment is the $160 million Interdisciplinary Sciences Research Building project as part of the One Health strategic initiative. The university will build a 140,000-square-foot facility to house programs for life science research on the West Lafayette campus – most notably the Institute for Cancer Research. The current life sciences facilities would need extensive renovations and updates to accommodate the university’s research needs, goals and capabilities.
As part of the project, the university will allocate 1,400 square feet of animal facilities space for gnotobiotic animals – specimens that have been born under germ-free conditions in a controlled environment to help study the impact of microbes on an animal’s well-being. The facility will include energy and space efficient research laboratories. Plans include building core and support rooms to further cutting-edge research initiatives. After transitioning programs to the new research building, Purdue University will repurpose the current life sciences structures.
The university will spend $56 million to provide additional student housing. Plans include building a 110,000-square-foot student housing building for first- and second-year students. The structure’s layout will include a kitchen, classroom and study spaces. The residence hall will add 375 beds in pod or suite-style units.
Purdue University will use $23 million to support the first phase of the Hammond Student Union Library Building (SULB) renovation project. The university will renovate 29,000 square feet of the building’s labs, classrooms and offices. The renovations are part of the university’s efforts to replace lost space after demolishing Porter Hall.
Plans include turning SULB’s campus bookstore on the first floor into a multimedia center for the College of Humanities, Education and Social Sciences. The university will reconfigure the second and third floors to make room for office and classroom space. In addition, the university will install a fire suppression system and upgrade the vertical circulation systems.
Photo by Diego Delso
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